Platy (fish)

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Platy
Rainbow wag platy.jpg

Platy ( Xiphophorus maculatus )

Systematics
Order : Toothpies (Cyprinodontiformes)
Subordination : Cyprinodontoidei
Family : Viviparous toothcarps (Poeciliidae)
Subfamily : Live-bearing toothcarps (Poeciliinae)
Genre : Xiphophorus
Type : Platy
Scientific name
Xiphophorus maculatus
( Günther , 1866)
Cultivated form ♀

The platy or mirror fish ( Xiphophorus maculatus , Latin maculatus "spotted") is a fish from Central America from the family of viviparous toothcarps . It and its numerous cultivated forms enjoy great popularity as an aquarium fish . Its German name is a short form of the outdated generic name Platypoecilius (literally about "Breitkärpfling").

Occurrence

The freshwater fish inhabit the waters of Belize , Guatemala , eastern Mexico, and Honduras . The river systems of the Rio Papaloapan and the Rio Coatzacoalcos are considered to be the main sources of this species . Outside of its homeland, the platy has established itself as an invasive species in wild waters in 18 other countries. These include Madagascar , Mauritius , Nigeria , India , Indonesia , Japan , Saudi Arabia , Singapore , Sri Lanka , Bahamas , USA (mostly in warmer states such as California , Colorado , Florida , Hawaii , Louisiana , Nevada and Texas ), Australia , Brazil and Colombia . It has become a threat to the native aquatic fauna and flora in Australia. In Hawaii it has led to a decline in dragonflies and in other countries it is considered a vector for pathogens . Some platy species also have limited populations in Europe, such as the Warmbach in Villach .

X. maculatus inhabits slowly flowing highland rivers or flowing waters near the coast of the subtropics and tropics and prefers structured areas with aquatic plants or vegetation above the water. Preferred habitats are shallow and marshy ponds and ponds with a pH value of seven to eight and a temperature between 18 and 25 degrees Celsius in connection with the large rivers .

features

The compact body of the Platys is high back and flattened on the sides. The males reach a total length of two to four centimeters and are usually slimmer than their three to five centimeters long female conspecifics. The coloring is very variable, the basic color is usually a yellowish gray, which shimmers blue or green when light hits it. Males are usually more intensely colored than the females. In some populations, the sides of the body are black. Many shapes are light beige on the belly and throat and show a pattern of black and brown speckles and spots or vertical stripes. Some Belize populations are orange or red. Usually at the base of the caudal fin there is a black or brown spot each above and below, or the fin is completely black.

The platy has 25 to 27 scales in a central longitudinal row.

Fin formula: dorsal 10, pectoral 10–11, ventral 6

behavior

Platys are not considered schooling fish, but live in loose social groups that do not swim uniformly in one direction. The fish are very active and very busy with courtship behavior. They usually occupy the mean water or areas close to the surface and disappear into aquatic plants when there is danger. The platy is sociable and should not be kept alone in the aquarium. An “overhang” of females is favorable. To keep internal aggressions in check, not only two males should be kept together, as the weaker animal would soon take on the role of the “whipping boy”. So either just one male with several females, or a larger group of both sexes. A gender ratio of 1♂: 3♀ is recommended in the aquarium hobby. This distributes the pressure on the females, because if there is an overhang of males, the females can be stressed by the massive courtship behavior. There are scientific studies that consider an overhang of males to be more sensible, as they compete with each other and are therefore less able to track the females. It turned out that aggressive interactions are as strong between females as they are among males.

Dominance and subordination play a major role in the social behavior of the platy . The dominance relationships that emerge from a group and express themselves in flight and attack behavior remain relatively constant. There were differences between fish that socialized within the basin or that came from outside.

The platy is a model organism in cancer research. The genome of Xiphophorus maculatus has been deciphered. The color scheme and the polymorphism depending on gender have also been scientifically examined.

The Platys live true to location and surface-oriented and prefer plant-rich, standing or slowly flowing waters. They often stay close to the shore in dense vegetation or the surrounding water layers.

nutrition

The platy is omnivorous . In addition to food and algae , it also eats living or dead plant parts, but also insects , shrimps and micro-organisms such as water fleas , Artemia and cyclops .

Reproduction

Platys are very fertile and have a high rate of reproduction under favorable conditions. Sexual maturity is reached after about three to four months. The platy belongs to the viviparous toothcarp family , i. H. the males mate the females with the gonopodium , a transformation of the anal fin. The sperm remains fertile in the female for several weeks, so that she can litter several times without mating. However, “fresh semen” is preferred in most cases. The diploid chromosome set is 48-48 / 24. The species hybridizes quickly.

The courtship behavior is less pronounced, before fertilization the male drives the female, swims alongside him for a long time until the male is accepted and the female can mate.

The gestation period lasts about 24 days. A week before the birth, a dark gestation mark can be seen on the back of the abdomen. In the case of light-colored animals, the eyes of the young animals in the womb should also be visible in later pregnancy. The eggs burst open at the moment of birth ( ovoviviparia ). Up to 80 relatively large young can be born per litter, which shortly afterwards swim freely and eat, whereas the larvae of many egg-laying fish only lie on the ground a few days before the swim bladder develops and consume their yolk sac after hatching.

Aquaristics

The large platy farms are located in Sri Lanka , Thailand and Israel . There they are produced with different water chemistry values ​​(ammonia and nitrite contents of 0, as well as a water hardness of 12 - 18 dGH, medium to hard water). These initial water values ​​should be adhered to as far as possible. The first introduction to Germany took place in 1907 by the United Ornamental Fish Breeders Berlin-Conradshöhe by Bertha Kuhnt. Even the wild form of the platy is extremely variable in its color. Through the breeding use of hereditary variations and crossings with the swordtail ( Xiphophorus hellerii ) and the parrot ( Xiphophorus variatus ), a number of cultivated forms were created that differ from the original form in terms of color and fin shape. Platys come in numerous breeding color variations such as Wagtail, Mickey Mouse, Salt-and-Pepper, Tuxedo, Belize Purple, Bleeding-Heart, Moon, Blue Mirror, Rainbow, Hifin, Pintail, Comet or Twin Bar. The minimum pool size should not be less than 40 liters (10 gallons). The platy has a life expectancy of around three to five years. To keep the fish healthy, a weekly partial water change of 25% is recommended. The peaceful fish can also be easily socialized with other species such as (armored catfish) Corydoras , tetra- neon tetra , real tetras, gouramis Osphronemidae , small and peaceful barb species, as well as snails and freshwater shrimp. A communal keeping together with strongly territorial or aggressive species such as cichlids (Cichlidae), arowanas . Barbs and tiger barbs ( Puntigrus tetrazona ), fighting fish (genus Betta), Hydrolycus scomberoides and tetras Erythrinus erythrinus should be avoided if possible. Platys are relatively robust fish and therefore less prone to fish diseases. The spot disease (Ichthyophthirius multifiliis) and fin rot play a certain role in the case of incorrect posture. When aquatic plants in the aquarium are particularly suitable water horn ferns ( Ceratopteris ssp.) Or chickweed ( Ceratophyllum spp.), Which can accommodate juveniles ideal cover options. The dense root system of the South American frog bite ( Limnobium ssp.) Can offer a similar function .

literature

  • Harro Hieronimus : Guppy, Platy, Molly. Gräfe and Unzer Verlag, Munich 2005, ISBN 978-3-7742-7366-5 .
  • Harro Hieronimus: Your hobby, platys and swordtails. Bede Verlag, Ruhmannsfelden 2001, ISBN 978-3-933646-52-1 .
  • Michael Kempkes, Frank Schäfer: Aqualog: all livebearers. ACS Verlag, Rodgau 1998, ISBN 978-3-931702-77-9 .
  • Helmut Stallknecht : Who knows what about swordtails and platies? Tetra Verlag, Berlin 2000, ISBN 978-3-89745-182-7 .
  • Bernhard Teichfischer: Guppy, Platy, Swordtail and Molly. Cultivated forms of livebearers. Dähne Verlag, Ettlingen 2004, ISBN 978-3-921684-64-1 .
  • Wolfgang Eberhard Engelmann: zoo animal husbandry fish, animals in human care. 1st edition. Volume 5, Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Harri Deutsch, Frankfurt am Main 2005, ISBN 3-8171-1352-8 .
  • JA Dawes: Livebearing Fishes: A Guide to their Aquarium Care, Biology and Classification . London, UK: Blandford 1995, ISBN 978-0-713725-92-6 .

Web links

Commons : Platy ( Xiphophorus maculatus )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Xiphophorus maculatus (Southern Platyfish). CABI Invasive Species Compendium
  2. ↑ Klaus Dallmann: The platyfish, Xiphophorus maculatus. Handbook of Genetics. Pp. 81-132. Fishes of the genus Xiphophorus (Poeciliidae, Atheriniformes) are found on the Atlantic slope of Mexico and adjacent parts of Central America.
  3. ↑ Jürgen Petutschnig, Wolfgang Honsig-Erlenburg, Reinhard Pekny: To the current crayfish and fish occurrence of the Warmbach in Villach. In: Natural science association for nurseries (ed.): Carinthia II . 198/118 Year, Klagenfurt 2008, pp. 95-102 ( PDF on ZOBODAT ).
  4. ↑ a b Dieter Gentzsch, Matthias wedding sheet: Xiphophorus maculatus , Xiphophorus […]. In: Claus Schaefer, Torsten Schröer (Hrsg.): The large lexicon of aquaristics. 2 volumes. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-8001-7497-9 , pp. 989-992.
  5. ^ Günther Sterba: Freshwater fish of the world . Weltbild Verlag, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-89350-991-7 . P. 614.
  6. ↑ What is the correct gender ratio for guppies, platies & co. Aqualog
  7. ↑ G. Thines and B. Heuts: The Effect of Submissive Experiences on Dominance and Aggressive Behavior of Xiphophorus (Pisces, Poeciliidae). Journal of Animal Psychology. 1968
  8. ↑ Stanley Wechkin: Social Familiarity and Nip Dominance in Male Swordtails ( Xiphophorus helleri ) and Platys ( Xiphophorus maculatus ). Sage journals. 1975 (en.)
  9. ↑ Michael J. Siciliano, Alfred Perlmutter and Edward Clark: Effect of Sex on the Development of Melanoma in Hybrid Fish of the Genus Xiphophorus . Cancer Research 31, pp. 725-729. June 1971
  10. ^ Surprising Findings in Fish Genome. Julius Maximilians University, Würzburg 2013 .
  11. ↑ Manfred Schartl, Yingjia Shen, Ronald B Walter and Tzintzuni Garcia: The Genome of the Platyfish, Xiphophorus maculatus, provides insights into evolutionary adaptation and several complex traits. Nature Genetics. 45 (5). 2013
  12. ↑ Alexandra L. Basolo: Genetic Linkage and Color Polymorphism in the Southern Platyfish (Xiphophorus maculatus): A Model System for Studies of Color Pattern Evolution. Zebrafish 3 (1). Pp. 55-83. 2006
  13. ↑ A heart for animals. Platy fact sheet
  14. ↑ a b c d e f g Platy Fish: The Complete Care Guide at www.fishkeepingworld.com
  15. ↑ Among certain higher categories mechanisms of sex determination are of taxonomic significance. The XX-XY mechanism is present in most mammals. Some species have a multiple sex chromosome system which, however, is clearly derived from the basic type. In birds females are the heterogametic sex. However, in teleosts and amphibians male and female digamety may be found among closely related forms. Of particular interest is the sex chromosome mechanism of the southern platyfish Xiphophorus maculatus (Guenther) which is polymorphic for sex chromosomes, W, X and Y. in KD Kallman: The Sex-Determining Mechanism of the Platyfish, Xiphophorus maculatus. Genetics and Mutagenesis of Fish. S 19-28. 1973
  16. ^ Ornamental Fish Breeding Center - Ginigathhena. National Aquaculture Development Authority of Sri Lanka. (en.)
  17. ^ Rüdiger Riehl, Hans A. Baensch : Aquariums Atlas. 14th edition. Volume 1, Mergus Verlag, Melle 2002, ISBN 3-88244-065-1 , p. 610.
  18. ↑ Platy Fish Patterns on www.aquariumnexus.com
  19. ↑ Varieties of Platy Fish (Xiphophorus spp.). Hardy, Compatible With Other Fish, and Easy to Breed. November 11, 2019