What Are Guppy Fish And Where Do They Come From?
Guppies go by many different names, including rainbow fish, millionfish, and their Latin title, Poecilia reticulata. Apart from being one of the most widely distributed tropical fish, they’re also commonly kept in freshwater aquariums.
So Where Do They Come From?
You’ll most frequently find guppies in South America, particularly in countries such as Brazil, Barbados, and Guyana. Nowadays, guppies show up in pretty much every freshwater body within their reach. You can easily find them in streams situated near coastal fringes in mainland South America.
What Are The Different Types Of Guppy Fish?
Though small in size, guppies can display wide ranges of colors and patterns, as well as fin and tail shapes. This is largely because guppies have been chosen for breeding by hobbyists for decades, and in effect, they’ve managed to produce many different variations throughout the years–too many for any human to reel off.
Here’s how it works: When breeders mix and match individual characteristics by initiating sexual reproduction, they can end up creating hundreds and hundreds of different breeds. More recently, they’ve also been introduced to most other countries around the world in an attempt to control mosquito breeding.
Colors
Guppies can come in every color you could possibly imagine, from metallic blue to bright orange. You can usually see these color variations on their upper and lower bodies; the head and upper body are typically lighter in color than the tail. Though gray is the most dominant color of guppy species, colors like gold, platinum, and even albino white are also fairly common.
Patterns
While some guppies are solid in color, others have different patterns across their body.
Some of these include:
Tuxedo: Tuxedo-patterned guppies have different colors on the front and back sides of their body. But why the name tuxedo? The light colors of the upper body compared to darker lower body look just like the pattern of a tuxedo suit!
Cobra: This pattern has dark rosettes and spots, which is characteristic of a cobra.
Snakeskin: Similar to the cobra pattern, this morph also has rosettes, but instead of spots it has more of a chain-link pattern across the body. Common tail patterns include:
Leopard: Fins are covered in a series of spots that resemble leopard skin.
Mosaic: Tail is patterned with spots that connect to form a mosaic-like design.
Lace: Fine, web-like shapes that most often occur on snakeskin guppies.
