How to care for green swordtails. Aquarium swordtail fish Transplantation into a general aquarium
Another popular fish among aquarists is the swordtail, or rather, it would be more correct to say, the green swordtail, since this is the color that predominates among swordtails living in nature.
The swordtail is viviparous freshwater fish. They got their name from the elongated part of their tail, which resembles a sword. This species of fish was first described in 1848 by Dr. I.Ya. Neckel, but the fish got their name in honor of another botanist - Karl Heller, who found these fish in nature, and therefore they are called Xiphophorus helleri, or Heller's swordtails.
Natural environment The habitat of these fish is Central America and the subtropics South America– Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Brazil. They live in bodies of water with stagnant water and in shallow water bodies. As already mentioned, the natural color of the swordtail is green. But as a result of selection, breeds of red, lemon, black, and spotted colors were obtained.
Appearance of swordtails
Swordtails are quite large fish. In nature, a female can reach a size of 15 cm, and a male - 10 cm. In an aquarium, their sizes are somewhat smaller - 5-8 cm.
As a rule, the female is larger than the male, her mouth is upturned for better feeding from the surface of the water. The coloring of males is brighter than that of females. Characteristic feature males are elongated lower rays of the caudal fin, resembling a sword, and having a black color.
During selection, swordtails with different colors and fin shapes were bred. But we will show them at the end of the article.
Features of keeping swordtails in an aquarium
Swordtails are enough unpretentious fish. They get along well in aquariums where they have about 3 liters of water. In addition, swordtails feel better in long aquariums, at least 30 cm. In general, to keep a group of swordtails you need a spacious and elongated aquarium.
The water in the aquarium should be between 18-26°C, water acidity - 7-8 pH, water hardness - 8 - 25 dH. The fish stay in the upper and middle layers of water. The color and type of soil is not important for them. Swordtails love clean water Therefore, careful water filtration and regular water changes up to a third of the aquarium’s volume are recommended. Recommended plants include Limnophila indica, glitterwort, and pinnately. The backdrop looks good from jagged elodea, camomba. Riccia looks good on the surface.
Behavior of swordtails in the aquarium
Swordtails are quite peaceful fish, and get along with most other breeds of fish of the same size and temperament. You should not keep more than three males in an aquarium, otherwise they will compete with each other. Swordtails have one thing amazing property. Due to unfavorable conditions - overpopulation of females, long absence of males - females are reborn into males. The lower rays of their tail grow and a gonopodium appears. The reverse transformation (from males to females) was not observed.
What and how to feed swordtails
Swordtails are not demanding when it comes to nutrition, which is why they can be recommended to beginners and not particularly active aquarists. The main criterion for feeding swordtails is variety in food. As a rule, this is achieved by alternating feeding various types feed - live, dry, vegetable. As a result, there are three main types of food that need to be alternated:
Dry food, which can be purchased at a pet store;
Plant foods are usually prepared independently. These are crushed leaves of lettuce, seaweed, spinach, and nettle. Young leaves are used. Before cutting, the leaves are doused with boiling water.
Live food - bloodworms, mosquito larvae, daphnia, brine shrimp, cyclops and tubifex. The tubule needs to be cut.
Do not overdo it with feeding in order to avoid excess uneaten food and, as a result, contamination of the water in the aquarium.
For non-standard feeding, you can consider the following options:
- boiled yolk;
- cooked fish (chopped);
- squid (chopped);
- dried crushed bread;
- lean chopped meat.
Reproduction of aquarium fish - swordtails
Breeding swordtails is not difficult, or rather, if you follow all the conditions of keeping, they will breed on their own. Males are usually distinguished from females by their brighter coloring and the presence of an extension in the lower part of the tail. Female swordtails are viviparous fish, that is, the fry immediately emerge from the female - they are born.
The female reaches sexual maturity at 6-8 months. But, surprisingly, the female is even more at a young age can be fertilized by a male, that is, before puberty. The male's sperm will remain in the female until he fertilizes her. Also, after a single fertilization, the female is able to give birth several times. Sword bearers have the ability to be reborn, that is, to change their gender.
Pregnancy in fish lasts about 30-35 days. As a rule, it is visually noticeable that the female has grown an abdomen. About 2 days before the expected due date, the female swordtail needs to be removed. It is advisable that the conditions of detention do not differ from aquarium conditions. It is necessary to place some vegetation with the female in any case. The vegetation will serve as protection for future fry. After their birth, the mother can eat them, so the fry will look for an opportunity to hide, and plants will help them with this. The number of fry can be more than 100 pieces. After the female swordtail has given birth, she must be placed back in the aquarium. The fry grow and develop on their own for the first time. All this is done for their safety, since they can be eaten in the aquarium. You can feed the fry with the same dry food, but additionally crushed. Next we will talk about feeding the fry in more detail.
How and what to feed swordtail fry
It is better not to feed the fry on the first day. On the second day after birth, you can give thoroughly crushed egg yolk or dry daphnia (also well ground). Hatched brine shrimp will do. This crustacean is very nutritious for fish, which will affect their rapid growth and well-being. In the second week of the fry's life, you can start feeding them bloodworms, daphnia and cyclops.
Initially, the fry can regenerate into both females and males. The dependence of degeneration depends on the temperature of the water in the aquarium. If it is closer to 30 degrees, then more males will be reborn, if closer to 20, then accordingly there will be more females.
The swordtail is perhaps the most unpretentious aquarium fish. This species first appeared in 1964 and has only been gaining popularity since then. The long growth on the tail of males gives the fish their name. They are loved for their unpretentiousness, beauty, diversity of species and ease of breeding.
In general, the swordtail aquarium fish is peaceful; individuals get along well in aquariums with other species. But their personalities may differ; there are bullies, this mainly concerns males. Most often they show aggression towards each other.
It is recommended to keep the fish in an aquarium that is densely planted, but also has free space for swimming. The presence of algae floating on the surface of the water will help to diffuse the light and will prove to be an excellent shelter for future fry.
Like other viviparous fish, these individuals take root well in salt water, but it is not necessary to do it on purpose.
Differences between males and females
Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish small females and males of swordtails from each other, but it is possible with certain knowledge. Naturally, first it is important to pay attention to the fin on the tail, which in males is long below and resembles a sword. In females there is no such difference.
In addition, you should examine the fin near the anus, located at the bottom of the abdomen. In males it unusual shape- stretched out and looks like a tube. Thanks to him, he fertilizes the eggs in the female’s abdomen. The same fin in females is round in shape.
Males and females do not differ in color from each other. And due to the many crossings, hybrids of any shades have been bred.
The swordtail aquarium fish is unusual in that females are capable of turning into males. The sex of the fish is formed in several stages.
Among fish aged 4 months, small males first form, and after some time, some of the females also become males. Some of these females have already spawned first. But if you keep swordtails in favorable conditions, then they won’t change the gender.
Varieties of fish
– distinguished by its olive color with a greenish tint. Along the horizontal side of his body there is a bright red stripe and several lighter stripes. The body is laterally flattened, and the sword on the tail of males is beautifully edged. Females are slightly larger and have lighter shades.
a variation of the previous type. Its only difference lies in the yellowish tint of the body. They do not survive reproduction well.
- also an albino variety, but they are more viable compared to lemon ones.
Black ones are a hybrid from crossing green swordtails and black pelicia. Their body is somewhat wider compared to the usual species. Color – black with a greenish or bluish tint. Fish often suffer from a disease associated with an excess of pigments in the body. This makes it difficult for them to reproduce.
Red - were obtained by crossing green swordtails and red pelicia. The species is distinguished by a bright red body color.
- they were named so due to their three-color color - the main one white body is supplemented with several large black and reddish spots.
Rainbow - similar in color to Australian rainbow fish. Their body is gray-green with an orange tint. There are red-brown stripes along it. The fish's fins are bright orange.
– they got their name because of the pronounced black spots on a red background. Males have a long sword on their tail.
Mountain– their body is creamy-yellow in color, and on the sides there are small spots and barely noticeable zigzags.
– the birthplace of this species in nature is the country of Mexico. The size of individuals is from 5 to 5.5 cm, females are also larger than males. There is a brown zigzag stripe on the body from the tail to the eye. The scales of the fish are gray-yellow, and there are specks on the fin of the back. The sword on the tail of males grows up to 2 cm in length and is yellow in color.
Microswordtail (Xiphophorus xiphidium) – this species also lives naturally in climatic zone Mexico. The female swordtail reaches 5 cm, and the male does not grow more than 4 cm. This species is beige or olive in color with or without vertical stripes. There are dark spots on the tail. The sword on the tail of males is transparent and short, only 5 mm.
Clementia's Swordtails(Xiphophorus clemenciae) – individuals reach 4.5 – 5 cm in length, but the female is much larger than the male. The body is silver-blue with reddish horizontal stripes. The sword on the tail of the male is large - up to 3.5 cm in length.
Montezuma's swordtail (Xiphophorus montezumae) - the body length of the female of this species reaches 7 cm, and the male - a maximum of 5 cm. The body is painted in a lilac shade, which turns into brown on the back. There are also several zigzag stripes on the body that are paler than the main color. The male is distinguished by a yellow dorsal fin with dark speckles.
Swordtail KoiKohaku, otherwise Santa Claus - this variety differs in three large spots bright red color on the white body of the fish. Santa Clauses can reach 10 cm in length.
(forked) - got its name due to the unusually forked shape of the tail.
- a variety of bright red color with black fins.
- a large individual, growing up to 10 -12 cm in length, excluding the tail in males. The lower fin resembles a pike, and the lower part of the abdomen is darkened.
– has bright orange fins and the same color lower half of the body.
- so called because of its dorsal fin, it is large and resembles a sail in appearance. The subspecies is considered to be the ruby flag swordtail, which has a rich red color. Also a subspecies of the flag species is the red blacktail.
– is a breeding form of green swordtails with an unusually shaped caudal fin.
How to feed swordtails correctly
These fish can be fed flakes, fresh live or frozen food, or other suitable food. aquarium fish OK. They require a varied diet including plant foods with a high concentration of fiber. The thing is that in natural conditions almost the entire diet consists of algae and their fouling.
It is impossible to plant a huge number of plants in an aquarium, so you can always buy special bait based on plant components. It is recommended to make these flakes the basis of the diet, and give live food only as a supplement in a small amount. You can choose any live food, since the fish are completely unpretentious in food.
How does reproduction work?
Swordtails are viviparous fish; the fry appears fully formed. The eggs are fertilized inside the female's body and are carried to maturity. This time is about 30 days.
Breed fish in home aquarium very simple. Males are constantly active. The main thing is to remove the female in time to protect the fry so that they become food.
When the female swordtail becomes very plump and appears on her abdomen dark spot- this means the time for childbirth is approaching. You can leave it in a community aquarium, but too few fry will survive this way, as other fish will quickly eat them.
If you want to breed a large number of fry, you need to place the female before giving birth and equip this place with a large number of dense plants. She gives birth most easily in the thickets, and after giving birth she chases the fry, so they will be calmer in the shelter.
So, after becoming familiar with the features of care, maintenance and breeding of swordtails, even novice aquarists will be able to create suitable conditions for the life of the fish.
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Fish sword bearer the most common among aquarium hobbyists. Swordtails were brought to Europe in 1907.
A distinctive feature of this species, for which it received its name, is gonopodium. This is a reproductive organ in the form of a xiphoid process, which develops in male swordtails.
This type of fish can be easily purchased at a poultry market or pet store, and it is very easy to care for and breed.
DESCRIPTION
Swordtails or Xiphophorus helleri, belong to the family pecilide, order - carp-toothed.
Homeland: Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, Central America.
Swordtails come in a wide variety of colors: green, yellow, red, tricolor, black. The most common colors of these fish are red and red with black fin.
All of them were obtained through artificial selection - crossing platies with wild species of swordtails, which in nature have an olive color. Also, after numerous crossings, different shapes gonopodium in swordtails.
Fish shape: flattened laterally, grow up to eight centimeters in length. Females are usually larger than males. They can reach twelve centimeters in an aquarium. But males are much brighter in color.
Fish live from three to five years.
CONTENT CONDITIONS
Swordtails are unpretentious to the conditions in which fish are kept. It often happens that careless owners keep their pets in three-liter jars, and the fish live and reproduce. But it is better not to bring the fish to such a state, but to provide them good conditions for life.
Water temperature It will be optimal within 25-26 degrees, but swordtails will be able to survive a drop to 16 degrees.
It is better to prepare water of medium hardness, although this is not the main condition.
There should be at least three liters of water per inhabitant.
Aquarium need to purchase optimal sizes, it should be covered with a glass lid on top. During games, males can leave the aquarium by jumping out of it, especially at night.
For good health, swordtails, like all other aquarium fish, need constant aeration And filtration.
It is also important to improve the “home” for your pets. The aquas must contain live plants, forming lush thickets. They will serve as shelters. And in the aquarium you need to provide a lot free space for swimming.
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Video: appearance
What care is needed?
A third of the water should be replaced weekly with fresh, pre-settled water.
You can feed swordtails with any food. But diet fish should be enriched with both live food and various combined mixtures with the addition of plant components: lettuce, seaweed, spinach. Suitable live foods include daphnia, bloodworms, and tubifex.
The fish are fed in the morning, preferably once a day. Shouldn't be allowed overeating, as this has a detrimental effect on their health. At one feeding, the fish are given as much food as they can eat in five minutes.
If you urgently need to go somewhere for a week, and there is no one to look after the fish, then you don’t have to worry. Swordtails can easily go without food for a week. They can eat plaque from the aquarium and algae and suck small shellfish from the shell.
COMPATIBILITY
For fish of this species, you need to choose spacious and bright aquariums that are not overcrowded with various inhabitants. Due to lack of light, they can become aggressive and attack their neighbors. In general, swordtails are calm fish, but older individuals can become violent.
You should not put swordtails and goldfish, because the former can eat large and beautiful tails second. It is also not worth keeping a large number of males together, as this will lead to frequent fights.
Fish have a pronounced hierarchy; usually the main male chases the rest. It is best to have three females for every male.
Swordtails will get along well with fish of approximately the same size, namely:
- Guppy;
- Poecillia;
- Mollies;
- Angelfish;
- Neons;
- Gourami.
REPRODUCTION
In order to activate the reproductive processes of swordtails, you need to increase the water temperature by one degree. The male will then begin courting the female. After fertilization, it is better to place the female in another aquarium, otherwise the male may torture her to death.
The female’s “tummy” will begin to gradually increase, and future ones will ripen in it. fry. The duration of pregnancy is about forty days. On the female's full abdomen it will appear dark spot- this will be a signal that childbirth is soon approaching. Then the fish gives birth to fry.
Spawning lasts from three to twelve hours, depending on the number of offspring. The female swordtail can produce the most different quantities fry: from five to more than one hundred pieces. The number of juveniles depends on the age and size of the fish.
The cubs are also separated from the mother, since she can easily eat them, like other representatives of the aquarium inhabitants, if you have not previously separated the female. After giving birth, the female is returned back to community aquarium.
The fry are born as full-fledged fish, capable of moving and feeding independently. They grow quickly and move actively. You can feed them daphnia, brine shrimp, cyclops and add spirullina to the diet.
Sexual characteristics, namely the anal xiphoid process in males, appear 3-4 months after birth. By five months, the juvenile swordtail has already reached puberty. Whether the fry become female or male depends on the water temperature. There will be more males if the temperature is around 29 degrees.
Video: reproduction
Viviparous or not
Swordtails are viviparous fish. They also have several amazing distinctive features:
- The female can turn into a male on her own(she will have a xiphoid process and will be able to fertilize females, but in this case almost all females will be born, and sometimes she will become infertile);
- After fertilization, the female can give birth up to eight more times without a male(she can “freeze” sperm in herself and then fertilize herself).
DISEASES
When you buy new fish, always pay attention to its condition appearance. The presence of plaque on the body in the form of white grains or fluff will indicate fungal disease. In this case, you should not immediately place the swordtail in a common aquarium.
If there are also any ulcers or blotches on the body, this may indicate viral infection. It is better to refrain from buying such fish if you are a beginner aquarist. Because viral fish diseases are difficult to control and recognize.
Swordtail is common among aquarium fish breeders. Even a schoolchild can cope with its maintenance and care.
In swordtails it is easy to distinguish a female from a male. Males are brighter and have a “sword” on their anal fin.
At proper care this viviparous fish will reproduce beautifully, producing offspring every month, and delight its owner with its bright colors.
Today we will talk about one of the most popular fish that has won the hearts of many aquarists - the swordtail. This unpretentious creature has become a real find for those who are just starting to create their own underwater world. We will help you choose the species that is suitable for yours, advise you on suitable food, and also describe the conditions and breeding process.
Aquarium swordtail and its species
The swordtail is a very famous aquarium fish, native to the rivers of Central America and Guatemala. 
The swordtail got its name because of the bizarre growth in the lower part of the tail, which during the development of the fish turns into something like a sword blade.
Both in nature and in aquarium conditions The swordtail grows up to 10–12 cm (depending on gender). Its growth can only be stopped by a small capacity of the aquarium or poor conditions.
Important! Body length is indicated without taking into account the caudal process.
They began to create different variations for the reason that the natural color of the fish is brown-olive. This color helps the swordtail in nature, but in the aquarium hobby such “gray” colors will not attract the attention of hobbyists. It is for this reason that, based on the “wild” swordtail, a natural variation of the fish, about 40–50 species were bred, which differ in the color of scales, fins or tail, body shape and eye color.
We present to your attention the most common types of fish.
Very interesting view, which is radically different from the “usual” variations of the fish in the absence of a “sword” and the elongated edges of the tail and fins. It is also worth paying attention to the inclusions of black color, which many associate with the color of a tiger shark. 
Pineapple Swordsman Tuxedo. This variation combines three colors at once: red, black and, as the name suggests, pineapple. The species does not differ from the original form in body structure, only the color scheme was changed during the creation of the variety.
A gold variant of the swordtail that only has a small line of black on the bottom of the "blade". Marigold has a body structure identical to the original fish. 
Truly beautiful view, which captivates at first sight. The fish has a flatter forehead compared to other variations, and the fin process extends at an angle close to 45°.
This species has two variations - red marble and neon marble, in which the main color of the fish changes, the inclusions remain black. 
The fish's body is painted matte black so that you can see every scale on the swordtail's body. Different variations of the black swordtail differ in the color of the fins and tail, as well as the pigmentation of the eyes. 
This species is interesting because in addition to the general color, the pigmentation of the eyes has also been changed. Before us is a frighteningly beautiful fish, the body of which is painted in different shades of yellow, and the abdomen is painted white. 
Sword bearer Koi Kohaku. The red and white swordtail resembles a small goldfish in shape and volume of fins. It is worth paying attention to the fact that this type suggests variations with pigmented red eyes, tall fins or a lyre-shaped tail.
Perhaps the most common type that can be found in literally every pet store.
Matte red with black stripes on opposite sides of the tail, the swordtail looks great in any aquarium. Thanks to this species, the swordtail gained its popularity. 
After you have acquired the desired variation of the swordtail and happily take it home to introduce it to other fish in the aquarium, it is worth thinking about acceptable conditions of maintenance and care, which determine the effectiveness of the swordtail, life expectancy and desire to reproduce.
Swordtail does not require special conditions that can hit your pocket or take up a lot of time.Important! High water temperatures in an aquarium lead to a marginal decrease in the amount of oxygen dissolved in it, so the higher the water temperature, the longer the aeration process (oxygen injection) must take place.
Temperature in the aquarium. The optimal water temperature is 24–26 °C, but the fish feels great at lower temperatures (about 19–21 °C).
In winter, the temperature can be reduced to 16 degrees, but in such conditions the fish will not reproduce. Both too low and too high temperature water has a detrimental effect on the general condition. Therefore, when the temperature rises to 28–30 °C, it is worth cooling the water by adding some fresh water, or, if the aquarium is small, placing sheets of wet paper around the perimeter of the outer glass, which will help reduce the temperature.
Water requirements:
- hardness - 8–25°;
- acidity - 7–8.
Important! The easiest way to check the acidity of water is with litmus paper, which can be purchased at any pharmacy.
If you have insufficient water filtration or a large number of "residents", then you need to replace about a third of the water in the aquarium weekly. 
However, if the aquarium is large and it is installed good system cleaning, then replacement can be carried out once a month, this will not affect the fish in any way.
Now let's talk about aeration. An air blower, even the smallest one, should always be present, since you will not be able to accurately calculate the required volume of water per fish. With a strong increase in temperature in summer time the fish will simply begin to swim near the surface from lack of oxygen.
Also, do not forget that almost all aeration systems are equipped with a filter, which will purify the water during operation of the unit. Therefore, it is better to play it safe once again and install an aeration system than to lose large quantity favorites.
Important! The aquarium should always be covered with glass, as swordtails love to jump out of the water.
How and what to feed the fish
The swordtail is unpretentious in terms of nutrition. To maintain healthy looking and necessary motor activity Any dry food that is sold in paper packets (daphnia, cyclops, hamarus, etc.) is enough for him.
If possible, diversify the diet with live food, which should be fed into specially equipped feeders with a sieve funnel. 
We recommend that you purchase small dry food that your fish can easily swallow at one time. It is advisable to buy not only pure daphnia or gamarus, but also some vitamin mixes or mixtures that have a positive effect on the growth and development of the swordtail.
It is better to feed swordtails three times a day, but if you notice that during the second feeding the fish are reluctant to consume food, then you can feed only in the morning or evening.
A hungry fish is very active and will immediately swim to the feeder when it sees you. Therefore, after short observations, you can create an optimal feeding schedule.Important! During feeding, add as much food as the fish will eat in 10–15 minutes. Remove any leftovers immediately.
It is worth remembering that if the fish is constantly full, which cannot be the case in natural conditions, it will stop actively moving and will begin to hover at the bottom or near plants. 
Therefore, it is worth giving such an amount of food so that your pets always remain slightly hungry. This condition will not harm their body, and the additional activity in search of food will amuse you and fill the aquarium with life.
The difference between a female and a male
The swordtail is a mysterious fish, since the male and female, as a rule, can be distinguished by the tail process, but in certain situations the fish can easily change sex, growing or shedding a “blade” and replacing the genitals.
There are two features that can be used to distinguish a male from a female: the caudal process and the anal fin. The male always has with him a large tail growth, which can reach the length of the body. Although females grow similar “blades,” they are several times smaller. The female most often does not grow a “sword”, so distinguishing her from the male is not difficult.
As for the anal fin, in the male it is elongated into a tube, and in the female it is rounded. This structure is not accidental, since the male uses the fin to fertilize the female.
However, all arguments related to gender are sometimes meaningless, since fish, being surrounded by a large number of “relatives,” can change gender at will. 
This feature gives big problems both sellers and aquarists, since if you buy, for example, three females and one male, you can end up with three males and one female.
Males, as a rule, defend their territory and compete with each other, so after such metamorphoses a calm aquarium life can interrupt “gladiator competitions”, which will disturb all “tenants”.
For this reason, we recommend buying either a large “flock” at once, which will number about ten individuals, or taking only a couple. 
However, even this option does not exclude the fact that all fish can become males or females.
Did you know? The female, who after metamorphosis has become a male, lays down material at the genetic level that affects the number of female individuals. As a result, up to 90% of “girls” are born.
Reproduction of swordtails
As mentioned above, the swordtail is an unpretentious fish, which also applies to reproduction.
Before moving on to the conditions under which the fish will happily reproduce, it is worth clarifying some details. 
Firstly, the swordtail is viviparous fish, therefore, you will not see any caviar on glass or stones. In some cases (large aquarium) you may not notice that the fish has already given birth, which slightly complicates the process of raising fry.
Reproduction of swordtails at home is easy even for novice aquarists, but in order for everything to go smoothly, follow our instructions exactly. 
Swordtails are ready for reproduction already at 7–8 months of life, but for reproduction they must be created optimal conditions, which we will talk about next.
Let's start with water. Can encourage reproduction elevated temperature water (26–28 °C) and hardness about 12°. The water in the aquarium should be fresh, clean, without turbidity or large amounts of waste.
Nutrition. A variety of food will stimulate the reproduction process, which must include live food and various plant additives (especially if there is little live vegetation in the aquarium).
Important! A female, fertilized once, does not require repeated fertilization for further reproduction of offspring.
As soon as you notice that the female’s belly has begun to grow, immediately begin to arrangement of spawning grounds.
A three-liter jar with a wide neck or a small aquarium with a volume of up to 5 liters is quite suitable for this. A good option is a goblet-shaped single aquarium, which is often purchased for goldfish. Next, fill the vessel with settled clean water(under no circumstances take distilled water) and move it there small quantity small-leaved vegetation.
As a last resort, you can buy plastic algae with the same parameters or put a mesh washcloth on the bottom, which will serve as shelter for the fry in the first hours of life. 
At the final stage, a pregnant female without a male is transplanted into the spawning area and fed live food until birth. Immediately after the fry appear, the female must be moved to a community aquarium.
Important! To get more males, the temperature in the spawning area needs to be reduced to 20–22° C, to receive more females - increase to 30° WITH.
You look with joy at the fry that have just been born and think that the hardest part is over, but this is not at all the case. Small fish are very vulnerable, they need to be fed properly and monitor the temperature and aeration in the spawning area.
Feed. The initial food for fry can be represented either by a store-bought version or by regular dry crushed egg yolk.
However, it is worth remembering that store-bought food for fry will not pollute the water as much as homemade food, so monitor the condition of the water after each feeding and remove any residues in a timely manner. 
Although you can use crushed live food to feed the fry, we strongly do not recommend doing this in the first weeks of life, since pathogenic organisms can get into the water along with the food, which will cause the death of the fry.
Temperature. In the spawning area, the temperature is not allowed to drop below 20 °C. The optimal water temperature will be between 22–28 °C.
If you follow all the rules, then the fry will grow quickly, and by the end of the first month of life they can be transplanted into a common aquarium. 
This concludes our discussion of the topic of breeding swordtails and moves on to the rules of “neighborhood” in a common aquarium.
Did you know? Scientists from MacEwan University in Canada have proven that fish remember their feeding location for 12 days.
Compatibility with other fish
Sword bearer - peace-loving fish, for whose compatibility with other fish you can give it a big plus.
Despite their peaceful nature, swordtails can damage the fins of sedentary “neighbors”. These include “veil” fish. Also, swordtails will not give life to very small fish, like neons, which will constantly suffer from attacks from males. We wrote above that males divide territory and constantly conflict with each other. Eventually the weaker male will die from lack of food or injury.
To prevent this from happening, there must be a place in the aquarium where the fish can hide (a house, dense vegetation, a shell), and there must be two males.
That is, there must be either one male, or three or more. In this case, the number of females must be appropriate. 
Using my experience, I can say that the swordtail gets along well with zebrafish, velifera, mollies and platies. As for small neons, swordtails are afraid to attack a large flock, so proximity is possible only if there are a lot of neons.
Disease resistance
Another advantage is resistance to diseases.
Immediately after purchase, swordtails are quarantined in the same three-liter jar for a week to determine whether they are healthy or require treatment.
Sometimes swordtails are affected by fungal diseases, which appear as white “fluff”. It appears both on the scales and on the tail and fins. The problem can be solved quite simply. You should dip the sick fish in salt water or a very weak manganese solution.
Important! If you are new to aquarium keeping, it is better to use a saline solution, as the wrong manganese solution can kill the fish.
This concludes our discussion of the beautiful aquarium fish that has won many hearts. Use our instructions to maintain necessary conditions, since most diseases affect weakened individuals who suffer from hypothermia or poor quality food.Watch underwater world at least 30 minutes every day to identify the problem in time and solve it as quickly as possible.
A distinctive feature of the fish is, of course, the “sword” - a long appendage at the tail.
The fish are medium in size. The male can grow up to 11 cm without the “sword”, and the female can grow up to 12 cm.
There are a lot of color variations: green, yellow, albino, spotted, red, etc. In nature they are green, fish of other colors are specially bred hybrids. Most fish have a stripe running along their body.
Swordtails: care and maintenance
Swordtails are unpretentious in keeping, easy to breed, so they can often be seen even among beginner aquarists.
Nutrition
Under natural conditions, fish feed on fine algae, so you need to choose food rich in fiber. It is preferable to buy flakes with a plant component, and use live food as a supplement.
For the main diet, flakes and granules with spirulina and algae tablets are suitable as fiber-containing products.
Swordtails eat any freeze-dried and dry food with appetite, and are not picky about live or frozen food. They eat daphnia, bloodworms, and artemia.
Requirements for keeping swordtails in an aquarium
The fish is active, so despite its small size, it requires enough space for comfortable swimming. It is recommended to purchase only one fish for an aquarium with a volume of 35 liters. To accommodate a family for breeding - 1 male and at least 2 females - a volume of 50 liters is required.
In terms of preferred water temperature aquarium swordtails unpretentious: they can live in the range from 18 to 28 degrees Celsius, but feel best at 23-35.
A regular water filter is sufficient for oxygen enrichment and purification.
It is worth considering that the activity of swordtails extends not only to swimming speed. They can easily jump out of the aquarium if it is without a lid and high level water. Therefore, the aquarium must be covered from above.
Fresh water must be added every week in a volume of up to 25%. No need to change often.
Fish love living vegetation, as they naturally live surrounded by it. The presence of plants helps in nutrition and promotes a calm state of the fish.
The most successful plants for an aquarium with swordtails are:
- riccia;
- Vallisneria;
- Cryptocoryne.
You should not fill the entire aquarium with plants so that there is only open space for swimming.
Compatibility with other fish
The swordtail is a fish that can behave aggressively with others, and the males also fight among themselves. Therefore, it is better not to keep several males in one aquarium.
The reason for the aggression may lie in the insufficient volume of the aquarium. Pisces are not always unfriendly and can get along well with others.
But swordtails can live peacefully with almost everyone, medium-sized ones and some representatives of the veiled ones (,).
Sexual differences in swordtails
Determining the sex of a fish is very simple: only the male swordtail has the same “sword” that gave the fish its name; the anal fin is pointed.
A female swordtail without a “sword”, with a paler color and a wide anal fin. And she just has unique property: in conditions of a shortage of males, it can change sex!
Swordtails: breeding in an aquarium 
Swordtails are very easy to breed in an aquarium. It is necessary that for one male there are two or three females.
The duration of pregnancy is 4-6 weeks. The period depends on the water temperature, light level and feeding habits. You can tell that her due date is approaching by the appearance of a dark spot near her anus.
At one time, from 15 to hundreds of fry are born. The frequency of spawning at optimal water temperatures can be monthly.
The main problem in breeding is to preserve offspring. Swordtail fry become food for their parents if this process is not controlled. In nature, fish never see offspring, so in an aquarium they are mistaken for food. To save babies, there are three options:
- Use a funnel-type depositor. The female remains in it, and the fry end up in a separate aquarium.
- Place the parents immediately after spawning in a separate aquarium.
- Use an aquarium for breeding that has a lot of dense plants that can protect the young.
After spawning, the female must be housed separately and fattened. More interesting fact about females, except for the possibility of changing sex, that she can then reproduce fry without a male. The female sometimes retains milk and self-fertilizes.
| Basic information | |
|---|---|
| Name | sword bearer |
| Scientific name | Xiphophorus hellerii |
| Origin | Central America |
| Maximum size | 70-80mm |
| Minimum aquarium size | 30l |
| Temperature: 16-28°C pH: 6.0-8.0 Water hardness: below average |
|
| Omnivore | |
| Behavior and Compatibility | |
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