Livebearers are aquarium fish that retain the eggs inside the body and give birth to live, free-swimming young. Among aquarium fish, livebearers are nearly all members of the family Poeciliidae and include: guppies, mollies, platies and swordtails.
The southern platyfish, common platy, or moonfish is a species of freshwater fish in family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes. A live-bearer, it is closely related to the green swordtail and can interbreed with it. It is native to an area of North and Central America stretching from Veracruz, Mexico, to northern Belize.
Xiphophorus is a genus of euryhaline and freshwater fishes in the family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes, native to Mexico and northern Central America. The many Xiphophorus species are all known as platyfish and swordtails. Platyfish formerly were classified in another genus, Platypoecilia, which is now obsolete. The type species is X. hellerii, the green swordtail. Like most other new world Poeciliids, platies and swordtails are live-bearers that use internal fertilization and give birth to live young instead of laying eggs like the bulk of the world's fishes. The name Xiphophorus derives from the Greek words ξίφος (dagger) and φόρος (bearer), referring to the gonopodium on the males. All are relatively small fishes, which reach a maximum length of 3.5–16 cm (1.4–6.3 in) depending on the exact species involved.
The sailfin molly is a species of fish in the genus Poecilia. As with the other types of mollies, P. latipinna is a livebearer, giving birth to free-swimming babies, a trait they share with similar fish species such as guppies, platies and swordtails. Sailfin mollies typically inhabit both freshwater and brackish waterways along the coast of eastern North America, from North Carolina south to Florida and around the Gulf of Mexico to Texas, and south to the Yucatán Peninsula of México. Given their preference for more brackish water conditions, mollies are often found within just a few yards or miles of the ocean, inhabiting coastal estuaries, lagoons, river deltas and swamps, as well as tidal areas with a regular inflow of oceanic minerals and nutrients mixing with inland freshwater sources.
The Monterrey platyfish is a species of freshwater fish in family Poecilidae. A live-bearer, it was native to a very small section of the San Juan River system in the vicinity of the city of Monterrey, Mexico. The specific name refers to the American soldier and naturalist Darius N. Couch (1822–1897) who collected the type on a self financed expedition to Mexico.
The variable platyfish, also known as variatus platy or variegated platy, is a species of freshwater fish in family Poecilidae of order Cyprinodontiformes. A livebearer, it is native to southern Tamaulipas and northern Veracruz states in northeastern Mexico. It is a popular fish in the aquarium trade due to its prolific breeding, as are hybrids with other members of its genus, most notably the southern platyfish.
Poecilia sphenops is a species of fish, of the genus Poecilia, known under the common name molly; to distinguish it from its congeners, it is sometimes called short-finned molly or common molly. They inhabit fresh water streams and coastal brackish and marine waters from Mexico to Colombia. The wild-type fishes are dull, silvery in color. The molly can produce fertile hybrids with many Poecilia species, most importantly the sailfin molly. The male mollies generally tend to be mildly aggressive.
The yellow swordtail is a species of freshwater fish in the family Poeciliidae. It is endemic to the upper Coatzacoalcos River basin in southern Mexico. It is typically found in brooks and streams with slow current; it is less frequent in areas with strong current. The yellow swordtail is considered a threatened species by Mexican authorities. It reaches up to 5.1 cm (2.0 in) in standard length.
The northern platyfish is a small, endangered species of fish in the family Poeciliidae. It is endemic to the vicinity of Cuatro Ciénegas in the Mexican state of Coahuila. It is restricted to hot-spring heated ditches and marshes of the Laguna Santa Tecla. Its native water is shallow and vegetation-choked, with very stable temperatures that generally are around 27–30 °C (81–86 °F), although captive studies show the species also can live in slightly colder water.
The marbled swordtail is a species of freshwater fish in the family Poeciliidae. It was endemic to the Rio Salado system in Coahuila, northeastern Mexico. It was restricted to springs, connected creeks and pools in waters with a pH slightly above neutral and temperatures of 16–26 °C (61–79 °F), with captive studies indicating that the optimum temperature is around 24 °C (75 °F).
The Chiapas swordtail or upland swordtail is a species of livebearing freshwater fish of family Poeciliidae, and genus Xiphophorus. It is, therefore, in the same genus as the common platy and the swordtail. The Chiapas swordtail was discovered and first described by Donn E. Rosen in 1960, along with four other species of Xiphophorus.
The violet goby is a species of goby native to marine, fresh and brackish waters near the Atlantic coast of North and South America from South Carolina in the United States of America, to northern Brazil. It prefers bays, estuaries and river mouths with muddy substrates. It is often marketed as the dragon goby or dragon fish.
The green swordtail is a species of freshwater/brackish fish in family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes. A live-bearer, it is closely related to the southern platyfish or 'platy' and can crossbreed with it. It is native to an area of North and Central America stretching from Veracruz, Mexico, to northwestern Honduras.
Platy is a common name of freshwater fish in the genus Xiphophorus that lack a "sword" at the bottom of their tails. Both species are livebearers, similar to other fish of the family Poeciliidae, such as the guppy and molly. Platies are native to the east coast of Central America and southern Mexico.
Xiphophorus nigrensis, the Panuco swordtail, is a species of fish in the family Poeciliidae that is endemic to a small part of the Pánuco River basin in Mexico.
Xiphophorus mayae is a fish in the family Poeciliidae. It is found in Central America: eastern Guatemala and western Honduras. This species has red lines on its body which extend on to the upper portion of the caudal fin, males have the lower part of the caudal fin extended into a "sword".
Xiphophorus nezahualcoyotl, the mountain swordtail, is a live bearing fish in the family Poeciliidae. It is endemic to the northwestern Pánuco River basin in Mexico. The specific name of this fish refers to the poet, philosopher and emperor of Texcoco, Nezahualcoyotl (1402-1472).
Xiphophorus malinche, also known as highland swordtail, is a live bearing fish in the family Poeciliidae. It is endemic to the Pánuco River basin in east-central Mexico. This species is named after La Malinche, an Indian slave who played a role in the Spanish conquest as the interpreter, secretary, and mistress of Hernando Cortes.
Xiphophorus pygmaeus, the pygmy swordtail, is a poeciliid fish from northeastern Mexico. It is the smallest of the swordtails. The male's sword is barely visible and the species is often called the swordless swordtail. It is sometimes kept in home aquaria, but is a rather delicate species.
Xiphophorus milleri, the Catemaco platyfish, is a poeciliid fish endemic to Mexico's Lake Catemaco and its tributaries. As it has traits of both swordtails and platies, its discovery confirmed that these two groups should be consolidated into a single genus, Xiphophorus.
