Should I buy it?
Endler's Livebearer
Poecilia wingei
Also known as: endlers livebearer, endler, endler guppy
A 3.5 cm nano livebearer that breeds as quickly as guppies. Males display constantly. Fry survival in a planted tank produces rapid population growth.
Endler's Livebearer tank mates · 40L tank size hub
peaceful · beginner care
Sources & confidencehigh · partially verified · beginner: excellent
Checked against several solid care sources that mostly agree. Numbers here are a careful starting point. Your tap water, tank size, and habits decide the rest. How we evaluate.
Best for: Species-only or livebearer-only nano planted tanks 40L or more where a growing colony is the goal.
Avoid if: You can't manage fry, want to avoid breeding, or plan to mix with guppies (hybridisation destroys both colour strains).
Common mistakeMixing Endler males with fancy guppies in a small tank because both are “livebearers” is how keepers erase the Endler line. They hybridise freely, and within a few generations the colour and size people bought are gone. Keep Endler-only groups if the strain matters, or accept a mixed livebearer project on purpose — do not pretend the bag labels will stay true.
Top things that go wrong
- Shrimp & snails. Cherry shrimp and other dwarfs can coexist with peaceful small fish; baby shrimp are food for almost anything that finds them.
What most shops don't tell you
- 1.Shops sell Endlers as tiny guppies that stay small and never overcrowd. Males stay compact; the breeding maths does not. A mixed-sex group in a 40L still becomes a population project, and “they are smaller than guppies” is not a stocking licence.
- 2.Pure Endler and guppy in one tank. Hybrid fry arrive within months and the pure line is gone.
- 3.One male and five females in a 20L with no rehome plan. Fry outpace the filter inside a season.
- 4.Adults run 2 to 3 cm so any bigger fish reads them as food. Fry arrive monthly. Plan culls or a rehome route before stocking.
About this species
Endler's livebearers are small Venezuelan cousins of guppies that interbreed freely with them. Adult males stay under 3 cm with strong colour. Females are plain and slightly larger, and drop fry every month.
- Guppy40L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Platy60L min · same group, similar adult size
- Molly80L min · same fish family
- Swordtail80L min · same fish family
- Sailfin Molly120L min · same fish family
- Amano Shrimpalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Assassin Snailalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Beckford Pencilfishalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Black Neon Tetraalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Black phantom tetraalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Bloodfin tetraalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
No reverse lookups listed yet.
Plan grid
Key limits are above. Here: pH band, swim level, bioload, and activity.
Swim zones
Care snapshot
Quick compare before you buy. Not a score of how “good” the fish is.
- Beginner ease82
- Peacefulness90
- Community fit72
- Small-tank fit100
- Hardiness76
- Energy86
Numbers are deterministic planning indices from Fishori fields — not a scientific score of your individual fish.
Example setups
Starting points only. Run the pair checker for every fish you add.
Rough 90L+ layout: one calm centrepiece, 8–12 small tetras/rasboras, 6–8 corydoras-type bottom fish — verify every name in the pair checker before buying.
Safer directions include: Cherry Barb, Honey Gourami.
Compatibility
Tank mates for Endler's Livebearer
Usually safer (engine GOOD): Cherry Barb, Honey Gourami. Conditional (CAUTION — read the pair page before buying): Betta, Corydoras Catfish, Neon Tetra, Tiger Barb. Avoid (RISKY): Oscar. Every name links to a live pair check — the lists are a shortlist, not a stocking plan.
Usually safer
Open a pair page with this fish as the starting point.
Needs planning
Read the blocking rule on each pair page before experimenting.
Usually avoid
Do-not-stock combinations on conservative hobby rules.
Compare with
Run a real pair check: Endler's Livebearer + Cherry Barb
- Try Cherry Barb — open the pair check.
- Try Honey Gourami — open the pair check.
Behaviour and temperament
Endlers are peaceful livebearers that busy the midwater without the fin-war reputation of some male guppies. Males display constantly; injuries are uncommon when females outnumber males and the footprint is honest. They still provoke nippers and bettas the same way any bright livebearer does.
What sets them off
- Sudden crowding
- Poor water quality
Fin nipping: Not a habitual fin-nipper; stressed or crowded individuals can still test fins.
Predation: Not a predator toward similarly sized community fish; fry and dwarf shrimp are still fair game for most species.
Territory: Not strongly territorial, but still needs room so its working space does not overlap the next fish.
Planted tanks: excellent — easy plant ideas
In the glass: typical and warning signs
- Males flash and chase in the midwater; females graze and hold mid-to-top lanes.
- Pregnancy and fry are normal weekly ownership, not a crisis, in a mixed-sex group.
- Males clamped and hiding usually means too many rivals in too little length.
- Washy colour after a soft-water move is chemistry before temperament.
- Male–male chasing is display pressure, not community shredding, when ratios are sane.
- They do not hunt tank mates; they get hunted by anything that likes long fins or fry.
- Pull males that cannot escape each other in a short nano — add length or cut numbers.
- Any betta or fin-nipper in the same short tank means choose one project.
Fish behaviour can vary between individuals and tank setups. Always observe new fish closely after introduction.
Water, food, and grouping
Hardness
medium-hard
Diet
omnivore
Endlers take fine flake and micro-pellets readily and still colour up better with vegetable matter and the odd frozen micro-food. A protein-only routine softens them; a little spirulina flake or blanched greens keeps guts moving. Feed small pinches several times a day in a breeding group — leftovers from constant fry pressure foul a nano faster than people expect.
Shrimp & snails
Cherry shrimp and other dwarfs can coexist with peaceful small fish; baby shrimp are food for almost anything that finds them.
Keep at least 4, bought at the same time.
Livebearers breed every few weeks. Plan sex ratios or a rehoming route before the first fry.
- Hold 24 to 30 °C steadily on a real thermometer, not the dial on the heater.
- Aim for pH 7 to 8.5 and a hardness you can re-test in two weeks. A one-time strip in the shop car park is not a water test.
- Footprint: short wide tanks and tall narrow tanks fish differently for the same volume. Match the tank shape to the swim pattern, not just the litre count.
- Tank volume meets or exceeds 40L published minimum for adults.
- You can stock at least 4 individuals (group welfare).
- Heater can hold 24–30°C without cooking cooler-water tank mates.
Explore and stocking hubs
Tank-mates hub, matching guides, category peers, and litre stocking lists around this species’ minimum tank.
Plan with tools
Check mates as pairs first, then add this fish in the tank builder for the full stocking.
Filtration & heating
A 40L minimum tank needs a filter rated for at least 160L/hr turnover and a heater to hold 24–30°C reliably.
Plant suggestions
Endler's Livebearer does well in planted tanks. Plants compatible with 24–30°C and pH 7–8.5:
Research: partially verified · Confidence: high · 3 linked source(s). We do not invent citations.
How Fishori evaluates compatibility (same logic as pair and tank tools).
- Seriously Fish. Poecilia wingei
Primary: aquarium size, water chemistry, behaviour, and compatibility (URL verified in upgrade script; recheck if site content changes).
- FishBase. Poecilia wingei
Secondary: taxonomy, distribution, and maximum length in nature; cross-check with aquarium import lines and measured tank parameters.
- Wikipedia. Poecilia wingei
Secondary: general species context; verify all husbandry numbers against a dedicated aquarium care sheet and your test kit, not a single table row.
Evidence notes
- The Seriously Fish profile for the binomial in this record was successfully reached as the primary aquarium reference.
- FishBase contributes natural-range size and habitat context. Translate those numbers through your heater, your water report, and your tank footprint before stocking.
- Wikipedia is only cited if the article URL returned OK. Use it for orientation, not as the only care sheet for an import.
- All compatibility text reflects typical hobby experience and the Fishori model. Individual fish, shop stress, and the order tank mates are added in can still defy a single-paragraph label.
Common questions about Endler's Livebearer
- How big do Endler's Livebearer get?
- Endler's Livebearer adults reach about 3.5 cm. Shop fish look smaller; stock for the adult length.
- What size tank does Endler's Livebearer need?
- 40L is the planning floor for adult swimming space and bioload. A 49L+ tank is the more comfortable long-term footprint. Length and depth matter as much as raw litres for active or territorial fish.
- Are Endler's Livebearer aggressive?
- Endlers are peaceful livebearers that busy the midwater without the fin-war reputation of some male guppies. Males display constantly; injuries are uncommon when females outnumber males and the footprint is honest. They still provoke nippers and bettas the same way any bright livebearer does.
- What is the most common mistake with Endler's Livebearer?
- Mixing Endler males with fancy guppies in a small tank because both are “livebearers” is how keepers erase the Endler line. They hybridise freely, and within a few generations the colour and size people bought are gone. Keep Endler-only groups if the strain matters, or accept a mixed livebearer project on purpose — do not pretend the bag labels will stay true.
- What fish can live with Endler's Livebearer?
- The Endler's Livebearer profile lists Cherry Barb, Honey Gourami among its safer pairings (engine-checked GOOD). Betta, Corydoras Catfish, Neon Tetra, Tiger Barb are conditional (CAUTION): workable only with the specific conditions on each pair page. Avoid Oscar (RISKY). Run the pair checker for your exact water and tank size before stocking.