I was just wondering whether anyone on this forum has travelled to, for example mexico, to collect wild livebearers which are not commonly, if ever, sold or seen in the trade...

Cheers...

Nope but going about this time next year i hope, it will be around 14 days in Mexico's central dessert area looking to goodieads and xiphophorus.

I know many people how have been on collecting trips though and i can get a good number of fish.

If you looking for rare livebearers though their is a auction on march 25th in Corby, Northants.
BLA's corby page.

My uncle went down to see his mom in Florida and aid that he say around 200 wild halfbeaks!!!! He said that they had alot of pink on them!!!!!! Maybe you should stop by!

Well I've seen wild livebearers down in Mexico, I go every year but I've never been able to bring any home kinda dissapointing for me... It was pretty cool though when I was little my uncle and I would catch small mouth bass and bluegill and put them in his 300 gallon tank in his house... this was when I was little of course, and they aren't livebearers but it was still awesome for a 8 year old.

Florida! I won't be going there for a while ( years and years ), but thanks for the info!

Cheers...

the only livebearers I saw in florida were mosquito fish... I Guess I wasnt really looking too close either though

This is idle curiosity really, as I am in no position to anything of the kind myself but do you need a licence or anything similar to import live fish? I've just had a quick look at the DEFRA site (before anyone tells me to use google) but the relevant pages all seem to be pdf docs which I cannot read atm (don't ask - long story involving oldest son and new computer game )

Sounds like an amazing trip, helterskelter.....

You do need a licence to bring back fish and then you restriced to not being able to sell any fish.

I've not got a licence yet but their free from DEFRA and I'll do it about 6 months befor i go as their only a year long.

I've lived in FL all my life and I have never seen anything other than Mosquito fish here...

Are they found in any average lake or river?

When you say mosquito fish do u mean the tiny Heterandria formosa?

Google images

Or the Gambusia affinis?

Google images


Both are found in FL but the most intresting of them is the H. formosa.
G.affinis is just a nasty thing and if kepet with lots of other fish in a small tank will kill most of them.

I saw the gambusia and they were more in the marshy areas. I've seen shows (dirty jobs, and various animal planet shows) about control of mosquitos in Fla through gambusia. They collect them from the large growth areas of the fish and add them into peoples backyard areas that are known to brew mosquito's.

i would love to get a fish licensce.

I forgot about this thread... I was talking about the Gambusia affinis. You can find them in pretty much any bit of water -- pond, lake, etc. I kept a few in a 10gl for a while, but they pestered each other and killed one of the males, so I put them in my boyfriend's pond.

I have seen Lucania goodei accidently come into the pet stores around here with the ghost shrimp. I know they're not livebearers, but they look a lot like the Heterandria formosa and they're super cute!

I have been thinking about setting up a Florida tank with the Lucania goodei, but I never got around to it.

This post has been edited by invaderwithkey: May 26 2007, 05:41 AM

Gambusia affinis are nasty fish but are fun when u want to move to something difficualt to breed, the speed the mother will turn and eat her fry in an aquarium is so quick you dont realise she's even given birth sometimes.