Poecilia red marble
The Poecilia red marble or Red Marble Mollinesia is naturally found in bodies of water located in South and North America. The largest accumulations of fish can be found in the waters from Colombia to Mexico.
Poecilia red marble body silvery colour dotted with black and orange spots. Males are smaller than females. Usually their size varies from 5 to 12 cm. Males are slender, while females have a rounded abdomen. In addition, the anal and dorsal fins are elongated in males, while the dorsal plumage is rounded at the end in females.
Poecilia red marble fish are peaceful and leads an active life. These fish should preferably contain a small group of predominantly females. May be kept in a common aquarium with other peace-loving fish similar in temperament.
For a pair of fish need an aquarium of 50 liters, and for a flock of 6-8 fish, the aquarium should have a volume of 200 liters. The perimeter of the aquarium should be planted with a variety of plants, but at the same time, do not abuse them, because the fish need sufficient space for swimming.
Water parameters: temperature 22-28º C, hardness dH 8-25º, pH 7,0-8,5. Make sure the water temperature does not change drastically, otherwise the fish may die. Need filtration, increased aeration and a weekly change of 1/3 of the aquarium water with fresh. Preferably, that the aquarium water was brackish, which should be dissolved in salt or sea salt in the proportion of 1 tablespoon per 80 liters of water.
Preferably bright lighting. Poecilia red marble are very fond of sunlight, so allow direct sunlight into the aquarium if possible. The daylight duration is approximately 12 hours per day.
The diet of the fish consists of a variety of dry, live, frozen and plant food. They are given artemia, daphnia, Tubifex, chironomid, and bloodworms. Vitamin D should preferably be added to the dry food. Also add plant food in the form of chopped salad leaves, dandelion, pre-scalded cucumber and courgette slices with boiling water to the daily diet. Voted for the feed should be strictly dosed, because mollinesia red marble do not know a measure of food. Feed the fish 2 times a day in small portions. Preferably one day per week do fish day off, which will contribute to the purification of the body in them.
Reproduction
Females reach sexual maturity at around 6 months of age, males at the age of a year. Under suitable keeping conditions, the fish spawn continuously and no special measures are required.
A female pregnancy lasts about 1-1.5 months. A sign that the female will soon give birth is a heavily rounded abdomen, as well as a dark spot near the anus. The female becomes restless and tries to hide in hiding all the time. As soon as noticed this behavior, the female should be moved to another aquarium, densely planted. spawning begins at dawn. Depending on the physiological condition and size of the female, she may give birth to several hundred fry, which can lead an independent life. Immediately after birth, the fry lie on the bottom or leaves of plants, but soon begin to swim and feed.
The fry are fed artemia and dry food 3-4 times a day.
The lifespan of a Poecilia red marble in an aquarium is about 3-4 years.
