Hello,

I was wondering if anyone knows what sorts of phenotypes there are for M. picta? I have the red variety, and I noticed one of my females has very little black and looks a lot like what you would expect from a blond guppy. Does M. picta also have this mutation? For that matter has albinism ever been documented for this species? Other mutations?

One last question i have is if anyone has experience breeding the red variety and if any hints can be shared about how it is inherited and how best to select to improve for it?

Thanks in advance!

P. picta 'red' is a natural colour variant that is sold as a strain in captivity. The 'normal' colouration is somewhat semi-transparent. Adrian has a good picture of them here.

While they are a 'micro', I found that they required the stability that a larger aquarium provides. Mine were in a 20G-long. They are reputed to be sensitive to water quality but I didn't have issues in that regard, probably due in part to the larger tank.

They're a lovely little fish, I'm sure you'll enjoy them.

Thanks Melody, they are kind are cool. When I got them they dropped some fry the same day so now those are almost 4 month old. The males are developing color but I'm not entirely sure when I should assume they have colored up as much as they are going to. The males were pretty much full grown at 3 months but hadn't much color yet. I think some of my males are going to look like the wild type. It's too soon yet to determine which of the females will show red and I need to put some more size on them before I pick breeders. I don't have room to breed the wild looking ones but I'm not sure I have the heart to cull them. Maybe I'll keep them till spring and see if someone wants them.

I am certain that you'll find a home for your culls, there are many fans of both forms. Many hobbyists will happily take them much younger than a store will.

Adrian is a wealth of information about them, I believe he was the first to distribute the red form.