• Name:

    Moscow Black Velvet Guppy

    (View AKA's)
  • Family: Poeciliidae
  • Species: Fancy Guppies
  • Scientific Name: Poecilia reticulata
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More Details

Also Know As:

| Millions Fish

| Guppy

| Moscow Full Black

General info about Moscow Black Velvet Guppy

These fish are small, usually they are 2.5 inches, and have teeth in their upper and lower jaws. They are extremely colorful and there are many different coloration patterns, actually, there are no two individuals alike, their colors are like their fingerprint. Wild specimens are gray with a few tints of color, however, years of captive breeding and the fact that they reproduce quickly and have many offspring led to strains of intense coloration. There are also 12 tail fin varieties: round tail, pintail, pointed or spear tail, swordtail, lyretail, spade tail, flagtail, veil tail, fantail and triangle tail. The color of the tail is what defines the fish’s name even if the body is of a different coloration, for example, if the body is red and the tail is blue than it is called a blue Guppy.  It is very rare to find wild specimens for sale, in most stores there are only inbred guppies, usually these have a more fragile health.  Regarding the Moscow Black Velvet Guppies, these fish are entirely black.

To keep these fish in captivity, water pH should be between 7.0 and 8.0 and water temperature should range from 68ºF to 82ºF . The tank should have a bit of salt, 1 to 1.25 teaspoons of aquarium salt per gallon is recommended. When performing water changes, which should occur 2 to 3 times per month, salt water should be replaced with salted water, however, when replacing water that has evaporated there is no need to use salt water since the salt remains in the tank and only the water evaporates. The tank should have a gravel substrate, rooted plants and floating vegetation. They can be kept in a community tank although fin nipping species, fry and long finned species should be avoided as tankmates, good tankmates are Corydoras or Tetras. They can also be kept in groups, for a group of 3 a 5 gallon aquarium is enough.

Moscow Black Velvet Guppy Diet & Nutrition

This species is omnivorous. In the wild they are mainly insectivorous. In an aquarium, they can be fed with dried, live and frozen foods, their diet should be complemented with vegetable matter.

Determining Sex of Moscow Black Velvet Guppy

Males are usually more colorful than females, however, nowadays, females are being bred to be as colorful as males. Nevertheless it is possible to distinguish them by their size since females are larger and wider than males.

Breeding & Spawning Moscow Black Velvet Guppy

This species breeds frequently and produces a lot of offspring, hence the name Millions Fish. To breed this species in captivity, there should be several females for each male in a heavily planted, 10 to 20 gallon tank. Pregnant females can be identified by a darkened area behind their anal fin, their gestation period is about 4 weeks. The female gives birth to fry, which means she stores the eggs inside her and they hatch inside her as well. Females are able to preserve excess viable sperm in them which means they can produce young for 6 month even if there are no males present and that mating just one time with one male is enough for her to give birth several times. Each female may produce 5-100 young. Adult should be removed to avoid eating the fry.

Moscow Black Velvet Guppy Origin

This species is native to Central and South America, however, it has been introduced in many countries, mainly third world countries in order to help fight malaria by eating mosquito larvae.

Caution with Moscow Black Velvet Guppy

Highly inbred individuals are less resistant and have a more fragile health, so care must taken when buying these fish. It is recommended to buy guppies from breeders or society auctions.

Relevent Articles

Original Detail

Name Species Family Scientific Name More Detail Added by
Moscow Black Velvet Guppy Fancy Guppies Poeciliidae Poecilia reticulata

These fish are small, usually they are 2.5 inches, and have teeth in their upper and lower jaws. They are extremely colorful and there are many different coloration patterns, actually, there are no two individuals alike, their colors are like their fingerprint. Wild specimens are gray with a few tints of color, however, years of captive breeding and the fact that they reproduce quickly and have many offspring led to strains of intense coloration. There are also 12 tail fin varieties: round tail, pintail, pointed or spear tail, swordtail, lyretail, spade tail, flagtail, veil tail, fantail and triangle tail. The color of the tail is what defines the fish’s name even if the body is of a different coloration, for example, if the body is red and the tail is blue than it is called a blue Guppy.  It is very rare to find wild specimens for sale, in most stores there are only inbred guppies, usually these have a more fragile health.  Regarding the Moscow Black Velvet Guppies, these fish are entirely black.

To keep these fish in captivity, water pH should be between 7.0 and 8.0 and water temperature should range from 68ºF to 82ºF . The tank should have a bit of salt, 1 to 1.25 teaspoons of aquarium salt per gallon is recommended. When performing water changes, which should occur 2 to 3 times per month, salt water should be replaced with salted water, however, when replacing water that has evaporated there is no need to use salt water since the salt remains in the tank and only the water evaporates. The tank should have a gravel substrate, rooted plants and floating vegetation. They can be kept in a community tank although fin nipping species, fry and long finned species should be avoided as tankmates, good tankmates are Corydoras or Tetras. They can also be kept in groups, for a group of 3 a 5 gallon aquarium is enough.

PalaciosAn

Changed by users

Submitted Date Submitted By Status Action
2019-03-06 18:25:58 PalaciosAn Approved View