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For filtration, I would recommend a cascade power filter. They really are top notch filters, and reasonably priced as well. Guppies do like a little current in their water, so they will be happier for it.
I would again say you could start with a single trio or 2 trios and you should be set. Make sure there are lots of plants for the fry to hide in. I havent had many fry get sucked up filters, so I wouldnt worry about it. Snails, no worry either, if they crawl in the filter they can crawl back out. Just make sure there is algae or food on the bottom for your snails. They dont need much, just a little.


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so pete no matter what breed of guppy the male will always have that extra fin and a female wont? that seems like the most foolproof way to make sure i get the right ratio.

Male Guppies have a modifier anal fin that points backwards towards the tail- its called a Gonopodium. Essentially it is synonymous with a penis in mammals.
Male Guppy- Note Modified Anal fin that looks like a finger
Female Guppy, note, no gonopodium
direct comparison sketch
In this sketch the female is the top and the male is the bottom, again note the different bottom anal fins on the male and female.
And the saying "a male guppy is much more colorful than a female" doesnt really apply these days. I have seen some females that are colorwise and finnage wise, just as pretty as the males. In fact, I buy them all the time!


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Another question i actually had was what would you recomend for filtration? I don't want my fry and snails all disapearing into the filter.

Yea, thanks for the info it was what i assumed it would be. I just hope i get the right ratio of probly 1 male, 3 female. I know petsmart labels them as male or female on the tanks but i don't know how much i can trust that.

LoL we posted at the same time..oh well.

That sounds like it's gonna be a neat tank! I've always wanted a larger tank with guppies and guppies only...
Anyways, enough about me.

A 20 gallon long would be better because it has more surface volume, which means you can stock it a little bit more heavily then you would in a normal 20 gallon.

I think the ratio is 2 females to every male. The reasen for this is so the females do not get harrased as much as they would if there was more males then females.

The male has a "slit" kinda fin near its vent (sorry, forget what it's called) and the female has a triangular fin. The males are usually more colored and smaller then the females. The females will also have a gravel spot (a black dot) Its pretty easy to tell them apart.

I don't keep snails, so I don't know much about them.
Hope I helped a little,
-Meg

Your setup sounds good to me, guppies breed like MAD so you shouldn't have any problems..as a basic guideline males have longer flowing fins and are more streamline/skinny, females have shorter fins but can be just as colorful and bellies should be nice and round..if your buying from a petshop you may see that the females have a black "gravid spot" around the anal fin, this is the eyes of the baby fry developing, ratio should be 1 M / 2 F or 1 M / 3 F and so on..here is a picture of M and F guppies..

Male
http://www.aquariumfish.net/images_01/guppie1.jpg

Female
http://www.aquariumfish.net/images_01/guppy_female_from_kate_w278.jpg

Hope This Helps [/font][/font]

Last edited by PondCometer at 08-Dec-2004 20:00