Endler / Endler's Livebearer

[Bloo]

Common Name(s): Endler / Endler's Livebearer

Scientific Name: Poecilia wingei

Family: Poeciliid

Origin: Venezuela

Maximum Size: Up to 3cm (1")

Minimum Tank Size: 5 gallons (recommended)

Care:
They are very easy to keep and will adapt to a wide range of water conditions. The temperature should ideally be around 81 degrees Fahrenheit (27 Celsius) with hard water. pH around 7.5
Though I myself keep them in a pH 7, gH 16, kH 11 and they certainly seem to thrive and breed.

They tend to keep the upper to mid levels of the tank and enjoy a well planted tank with plenty of cover for fry.

Also worth mentioning: Endler's orient themselves completely to the light. If you see them swimming sideways, check the light sources. Light coming in through a window will make them swim at almost 90? to the gravitational "down."
A high light tank is preferable, but not essential.

Feeding:
They will do fine on a variety of flake foods, but also enjoy microworms, grindal worms, spirulina, tubifex, and brine shrimp. Especially as live foods.

Tank mates:
Due to their size and very peaceful nature, they would do best on their own in a species tank. However can be kept with other peaceful (non-predatory) fish such as : Ancistrus, Otos, Ghost, Amano and Bamboo shrimp, Neons, Cardinals, Corys, Rasboras and Silver Hatchet fish ? to name but a few examples.

Breeding:
1 male to 2 females is an ideal ratio.
They breed very easily and on a regular basis. Young females can have broods of 1-6 on average. Mature adult females have 10-15 on average but do occasionally have more if they are larger and well fed. It takes about a month for fertilized eggs to develop enough for a female to give birth. Fry can be sexed from 5-6 weeks of age and females can breed from 2 months of age. So separate them sooner rather than later to prevent too much inbreeding.

Life Span:
Usually around 2 years in captivity.

Notes:
From John Endler himself: "Endler's Poecilia" are not the same as guppies (Poecilia reticulata). They are clearly a distinct species". However the can and will interbreed with guppies. This is generally not desired and they should therefore not be kept in the same tank.
(It also has to be said that there is however still a debate about this in many circles as to whether they are indeed a different species or sub species).

There are a few colour variations. The most common being "black bar".

These are some of mine. According the registry for Endlers, they will probably fall in class ?P? (Any fish of unknown origin but appearing to be an Endler's Livebearer based on the characteristics of size, shape and colour ).

(Please do not use my photos without my permission).

Male / Female size comparison

 

[afireinside]

Nice pictures

I have a question, I know it is recommended not to cross with guppy, but if you did it with enough pairs, and then line bred, could you get a endler/ guppy hybrid that is very hardy?

It would depend on what Guppy you started with. Feeders/Wild, yes. Fancy, probably not. Either way, you'd be taking away the few pure Endler lines left, so I definitely wouldn't do it. Most Fancy Guppies have Endlers in them anyway, and they didn't get much hardier. -Annastasia (Edited in so as not to get many posts in the index)

 

[bettawen]

yes you can the tiger hybrids are a good example of this

they where 1st developed in 97

there are several other types around as well

 

[Sibelius]

Very good article. I thought you might like a few notes on my first month or two keeping Endlers:
They're jumpers, so keep a lid on your tank, even with an 8mm gap between the lid and the tank, one still managed to get out.
They do lots better when floating plants are present, and love bloodworm, as well as the other foods mentioned. I also give mine a tiny amount of lettuce or other fruit/veg, every week, as a bit of a change, to see what they like. (good for vitamins.)
The females do nip the tiny delicate plants like small helsine and ammania, so for those who want a perfect planted tank, perhaps this isn't the ideal fish for you. The fry are very hardy, and are too quick to be eaten by their parents. The do not need a strong current, I have not noticed them to be fussy about what sort of water they like, although delicate fry can be blown about a bit by filter outlets, even tiny ones, although this doesn't do them any harm.

 

[Phatphish]

I would certainly agree about endlers being jumpers. They have been known to clear approx 2 feet before.

I would add though that in my experience, fry do sometimes get eaten/killed and attacked by adults and juveniles. I have lost fry this way and have seen them being killed.

For the record I keep and breed a number of different endler strains such as snakeskin, orange chested, snake chested, neon, black bar as well as some half black yellow delta guppies.....

 

[blowfish2u]

I would certainly agree about endlers being jumpers. They have been known to clear approx 2 feet before.

I would add though that in my experience, fry do sometimes get eaten/killed and attacked by adults and juveniles. I have lost fry this way and have seen them being killed.

For the record I keep and breed a number of different endler strains such as snakeskin, orange chested, snake chested, neon, black bar as well as some half black yellow delta guppies.....

Hi show us some photos of these orange chested, snake chested, neon, black bar ! Thanks.

 

[OldMan47]

A small correction. One of the known characteristics about true endlers is that are are not jumpers. It is one way to readily tell a wild guppy from a wild endler. On the other hand, since this endler article is showing mainly hybrids, I have no idea about guppy/endler crosses since I have never kept them.
All hybrids from any species cannot be deemed to have the characteristics of either parent species. They are not a blend but are showing some of the dominant characteristics of each species.

 

[emeraldking]

I do agree with Oldman47 that real endlers are not jumpers. I'm keeping endlers (both wild and fancy versions) ever since beginning of 2004 till this very day on.
In the description it says 3 cm body size. Well, this would go for a male in general. El tigre males are smaller (this strain is the smallest wild strain) than 3 cm. Light blue top sword endlers can even be bigger than 3 cm. Females however can reach up to 5 cm. The ones sold at an lfs do sell younger females that are still undersized.
Endlers will do even fine and will stil be very reproductive at lower temperatures (18°C-22°C). So, 27°C as mentioned is not in need. You would even establish a shorter lifespan at continuous 27°C or even higher.
Real endlers won't even chase nor eat their fry.

I have noticed that a lot of people label wild guppies and wildtype guppies as being endlers. And mostly that happens because they just don't know the difference between endlers and guppies (with the exception of fancy ones).

 

[emeraldking]

There are a few colour variations.

Well, this is incorrect. There are a lot of color and pattern varieties as being pure endlers.
Btw there are more things to tell about endlers, e.g. like that they origin from the Cumana and Campoma region for instance. The original article in this thread does show a number of inaccuracies about the pure endler and is basically based on own experience of the topic starter. I already reacted three years ago on this topic.