# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna >  Wild Micropoecilia branneri

## SCOPE

hi,
anybody here got experience in rearing these?

i heard from my taiwanese friend that some qty of these is being imported into Taiwan mean for Japanese market....this is very rare & first time in Taiwan. i may pick some next week while i am there.

i found very limited information on them:
http://www.eonet.ne.jp/~k-poecilidae...anneri_jp.html
they are livebearer that are found in the Amazon

Hope to hear your comments

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## loakita

> hi,
> anybody here got experience in rearing these?
> 
> i heard from my taiwanese friend that some qty of these is being imported into Taiwan mean for Japanese market....this is very rare & first time in Taiwan. i may pick some next week while i am there.
> 
> i found very limited information on them:
> http://www.eonet.ne.jp/~k-poecilidae/fish/Micropoecilia/poecilia&#37;20branneri_jp.html
> they are livebearer that are found in the Amazon
> 
> Hope to hear your comments


hi any luck with this sweety ? i've look for this one to ... japan very expencive and permit are hard to get.

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## Shi Xuan

> hi any luck with this sweety ? i've look for this one to ... japan very expencive and permit are hard to get.


Hi,

M.branneri is an uncommon livebearer species not easy to acquire. If I can list them, they fall under the exotic category as Giradinichthys multiradiatus, a goodeid species that is both difficult to maintain in the tank & hard to come by. 

From my knowledge, even acquiring this livebearer from Japan might be a problem, especially after the disaster in Japan earlier this year, when many lost this fish. I think you will have better luck if you try to look for them in Taiwan.

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## loakita

Shi Xuan 

thanks for the information , i will try taiwan...do you have the link?
Yes micropoecilia is not that easy to get, ... so anybody have it in Singapore? wish...wish...wish. 
by the way i own spotted gambusia ( innes gambusia ), just want to let you guys know i happy to swap this babe this other gambusia ( else than holbrooki and affins) , poecilia wingei (else then snake and red chest) , or micropoecilia ( any species) . 
Cheers

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## Shi Xuan

If you've been a bit earlier, I could have traded some M.parae melanzona 'red' for your gambusia. I've since given Micropoecilia parae Melanzona up in favor of some Annual killies & a wild swordtail species from a pretty population, Xiphophorus cortezi 'Vinasco'. I got it from a Japanese livebearer breeder, who happens to be from the Japanese livebearer association. I'm simply captivated by the colors & patterns of this swordtail species & therefore, my desire to keep them. You can see this fish through this link;

http://www2.chokai.ne.jp/~platy/joyful19/img/1092.jpg

It took him a lot of trouble to get them to me & so, I hope I can keep them well. They are still young but in time, they might show the nice colors as well. 

Best regards,
Shi Xuan

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## loakita

> If you've been a bit earlier, I could have traded some M.parae melanzona 'red' for your gambusia. I've since given Micropoecilia parae Melanzona up in favor of some Annual killies & a wild swordtail species from a pretty population, Xiphophorus cortezi 'Vinasco'. I got it from a Japanese livebearer breeder, who happens to be from the Japanese livebearer association. I'm simply captivated by the colors & patterns of this swordtail species & therefore, my desire to keep them. You can see this fish through this link;
> 
> http://www2.chokai.ne.jp/~platy/joyful19/img/1092.jpg
> 
> It took him a lot of trouble to get them to me & so, I hope I can keep them well. They are still young but in time, they might show the nice colors as well. 
> 
> Best regards,
> Shi Xuan


wow nice fish there :Shocked: , good for you :Well done:  , bad for me im late :Exasperated:  ...do you still own any micropoecilia?, i can wait for next fry batch...and by the way how your experiences with parae, do you succeed to breed them, how long you've keep them last time ? Thanks

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## Shi Xuan

Hi there,

I didn't keep them for long, just enough time for the F1 to mature & start producing fry. The brood size is very small, 5-7 fry after an excruciatingly long gestation period for such a tiny livebearer. The males took 4-5 months to fully mature & start chasing after the females. Prolific buggers but if you want to collect fry, you have to be patient & most importantly, lots of plant covers or you can separate females showing signs of birthing into a separate tank or container. 

Alas, I gave them up because I don't have enough tank space to keep them properly & the parae "melanzona" don't show any other varieties besides red, most probably through inbreeding that probably segregated the blue & yellow. If I have to keep them again, I would prefer one that produces varieties, such as melanzona "red", "blue" & "yellow".

A pity, livebearer scene is not very vibrant in Singapore. We don't get to see such livebearers in the fish shops so often. Someone told me you might get to see goodeids or Micropoecilia but they are a rare sight as well. I don't keep Micropoecilia anymore but if you do a forum search, you might be able to find another breeder who might still be keeping M.parae melanzona that Scope brought back from taiwan. 

As such, quite a handful of livebearers are not suitable for the climate in Singapore, Giradinichthys multiradiatus, Skiffia sp. & most goodeids because they come from cooler parts of Mexico, the fishes which do best in our tropical climate would be, most of the Xiphophorus, Limia sp. tiger or tridens, poecilia gillii, giradinus, Alfaro cultratus (need a lot of space) & Xenotoca eiseni. 

Best regards,
Shi Xuan

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## loakita

> Hi there,
> 
> I didn't keep them for long, just enough time for the F1 to mature & start producing fry. The brood size is very small, 5-7 fry after an excruciatingly long gestation period for such a tiny livebearer. The males took 4-5 months to fully mature & start chasing after the females. Prolific buggers but if you want to collect fry, you have to be patient & most importantly, lots of plant covers or you can separate females showing signs of birthing into a separate tank or container. 
> 
> Alas, I gave them up because I don't have enough tank space to keep them properly & the parae "melanzona" don't show any other varieties besides red, most probably through inbreeding that probably segregated the blue & yellow. If I have to keep them again, I would prefer one that produces varieties, such as melanzona "red", "blue" & "yellow".
> 
> A pity, livebearer scene is not very vibrant in Singapore. We don't get to see such livebearers in the fish shops so often. Someone told me you might get to see goodeids or Micropoecilia but they are a rare sight as well. I don't keep Micropoecilia anymore but if you do a forum search, you might be able to find another breeder who might still be keeping M.parae melanzona that Scope brought back from taiwan. 
> 
> As such, quite a handful of livebearers are not suitable for the climate in Singapore, Giradinichthys multiradiatus, Skiffia sp. & most goodeids because they come from cooler parts of Mexico, the fishes which do best in our tropical climate would be, most of the Xiphophorus, Limia sp. tiger or tridens, poecilia gillii, giradinus, Alfaro cultratus (need a lot of space) & Xenotoca eiseni. 
> ...


HI SHI XUAN

hi long time huh..., Shi Xuan, they said that the colour of pictas is determinated by their father,y link genetic... so i think the female is valuable, next time you want to get rid of them you tell me okay, i more then happy to give the assylum  :Laughing: 
Do you still interested for innes gambusia? this one is rambo, they can survive anything... i shipped them from USA , it take 3 weeks but they survive, if you do please send me an email [email protected]

by the way happy Chinese new year  :Wink:

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## stormhawk

I did spot some Micropoecilia parae, one of the forms at least, at C328 approximately 1 month ago. I did not pick up any but from what I see, it's obvious that someone is still breeding them locally, but in small numbers.

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## loakita

Well for someone outhere, manage to breeding this fish... please share, i wonder why is so hard to keep them alive.

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## Shi Xuan

They are not difficult fish, just a lot of patience to get the females to drop their fry. I wonder sometimes for such a small fish, how many generations can be raised in a year. They are pretty but not as pretty & prolific as killies. I can get dozens of killie fry in a year but it's not applicable for this small fish & that's a reason why I've decided to drop this fish. I will try them again only when I have spare tanks. :Razz: 

Contrary to beliefs that livebearers are easy "bread & butter" fishes, I beg to differ. For example, the Goodeids family produce some fishes that are relatively difficult to maintain in the aquarium. Characodon lateralis & audax both requires cool & clean water & are classical examples of livebearers that proves to be a challenge. 

Oddly, I think Frans Vermeulen actually placed the genus Crenichthys in his website when I suppose they should be goodeids... :Confused:

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## stormhawk

Shi Xuan, did you see the tank full of a Micropoecilia species at C328 when we were there? I think they were M. picta, but all males unfortunately. Price was insanely cheap at 80 cents each.

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## Shi Xuan

Yes, I've noticed that those Micropoecilia picta 'black" have been there for quite a while. C328 used to sell them in pairs, which comes in bags, floating in the chiller tanks near the cash counter. They were expensive at the start, going at $13, if I can remember. 

The price has since dropped and it's now 80 cents, like you've said. :Laughing:  I guess someone is actively breeding them locally and selling surplus ones, since they can be prolific at times. 

There was even once when Micropoecilia parae "tiger" was available at a similar price but no females though. Too bad, locals only take these as cheap feeders, which is nothing to be proud of. :Sad:

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## stormhawk

If there were females in that tank I would have bought some but too bad only males. They looked sick though.

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## Shi Xuan

I guess C328 will probably sell them in pairs again, once that tank of males is cleared up but it's unlikely anytime soon. Many still mistook them as a variant of guppy or endler, so I'm doubtful they will be purchased readily, being associated as cheap fishes and therefore, not worthy of keeping. 

I'm not surprise these fishes ended up sick, after being cramped in such a confined space for so long. Most livebearers are simply not as hardy as it seems. 

That said, you made a good decision not buying the bag of feeder green swordtails that day. Some of the fishes look emaciated and it will be catastrophic if any of these ends up in your tank. :Opps:

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## stormhawk

Way too big for my liking too.  :Grin:

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## doppelbanddwarf

I have a trio of Micropoecilia picta "red". The brood size is small and they seem to eat their fry. Y618 used to sell in packets of 5 pairs each.

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## loakita

hey is some one out there willing to be my middle guy please :Jump for joy: , i've been crave for this fish !!! 

doppelbanddwarf how long you've been keeping the fish? do you manage to keep them breeding and alive ... once i've keep them for three month and breeding F1, but die one by one...sadly  :Crying:

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## doppelbanddwarf

No I do not have Micropoecilia branneri. What I have is Micropoecilia picta "red".

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## loakita

doppelbanddwarf,yes i notice your is picta red ... so how's your story, anything you can share ?  :Wink:

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## Shi Xuan

Loakita, I think your best luck, would be Aquabid. I'm starting to realize that our custom clearance has become more stringent, and shipping live fishes around, is like a game of Russian Roulette. Stormhawk/Jianyang would know better. :Wink:

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## doppelbanddwarf

I'm down to 3 for the 3rd generation. The fry really need a lot of plant cover to survive. In terms of water condition I think they are adaptable. I kept them in low ph with some juvenile apistos which is also the main reason I'm left with 3 for this batch as the juvenile apistos became more aggressive over time. On the whole they are much less reproductive compared to guppies or endlers.

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## stormhawk

Amazingly, those M. picta males are still at C328.

Doppel, at least your picta survived. I don't think I have the space for any livebearers at the moment.

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## doppelbanddwarf

Y618 had a tank of male pictas the last few times I went too.

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## loakita

well once i've tried aquabid, from USA vendor... the shipping rate is killing me, and the fish condition is so bad due to the long journey. Well maybe next time i go to Singapore....no i'm planning to go to buy some micropoecilia for sure  :Blah: !!!!

oh yeah about picta, some said they succesed breeding pictas with simulate swap invoirement, meaning lots organic waste, tanin, and salt...fun i don't have to do water change that much! anyone have the same experience ?

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## stormhawk

I don't quite understand you loakita. Are you referring to a simulated "swamp" environment?

As for Aquabid, shipping live fish via mail is not a good idea, where SingPost is concerned. You cannot do this legally and shipping periods can differ from a few days to 2 weeks or more depending on the method the seller uses. Global Priority Mail for any package from the US can take roughly a week or so to arrive. EMS is roughly 3 days or so but the cost is astronomical for a single person to bear.

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## Shi Xuan

Jianyang, I think he's referring to the environment which Ronnie use to raise fish fry, that is, lots of mulm. 

As for Aquabid, he's from Indonesia, so Singpost is a no-no where its concerned. :Laughing:  That will subject to his country's regulations then and as for live fish shipment, I think it very much depends on the seller. The last EMS I did, was from Japan and the fishes arrived well albeit skinny but it would be the last time I'm going to attempt it. :Opps:

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## stormhawk

I wouldn't consider Ron's old mulm boxes to be swamp-style though, given that these livebearers may come from estuarine habitats. I think loakita was referring to a mangrove swamp environment, where the water changes from fresh to saltwater during high tide, then back to fresh at low tide.

A long time ago my brother sent a package to a friend in Indonesia.. it took one month. Delivery is really slow and if he wants items from Aquabid, he better use FedEx or some other reliable courier service.

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## doppelbanddwarf

I would say these picta are very hardy fish and should be able to breed in most environments. The problem is the brood size is not large to start with and the parents will attack fry. I have removed gravid females to large external breeder boxes to try to save fry. Even then if I'm not observant then I will only know there are fry when some have died.

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## loakita

Sorry for the misspelled i mean swamp environment :Embarassed:  ... not that good in written english folks, i just learning english from TV hehehe ! google translator from now on  :Grin: . 
What i'm referring as simulating swamp is non bare bottom tank, lots of mulm, lots of aquatic plant, tranquil water flow ...yes this babes like it dirty ! anyways i just share you the link okay :

http://endlersusa.com/viewtopic.php?t=213

 
I have a chad with this guy "emeraldking" Stan... he succesfull breeding pictas, i just thought its make sense to simulate swamp ...the are in fact called "swamp guppy" ... well next time i'll try his ways, i dont mind to do less water changes, at all :Razz:  !!.

i really into this micropoecilia species, so i hope you guy with some experiences in keeping this species keep sharing.

Cheers

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## loakita

> Jianyang, I think he's referring to the environment which Ronnie use to raise fish fry, that is, lots of mulm. 
> 
> As for Aquabid, he's from Indonesia, so Singpost is a no-no where its concerned. That will subject to his country's regulations then and as for live fish shipment, I think it very much depends on the seller. The last EMS I did, was from Japan and the fishes arrived well albeit skinny but it would be the last time I'm going to attempt it.


yup i've been beeting with higher risk importing from USA, so i think i can tolerate risk to import from Singapore... from my experience it only takes one weeks from HongKong to Indo, so i think Singapore should do even faster. It just so nice to know i can acquire this fish from somewhere near, next time i go to Singapore i'll grab one.

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## loakita

> I would say these picta are very hardy fish and should be able to breed in most environments. The problem is the brood size is not large to start with and the parents will attack fry. I have removed gravid females to large external breeder boxes to try to save fry. Even then if I'm not observant then I will only know there are fry when some have died.


i had 10 fry last time, using breeding net ...it always give better protection for fry even if you compare with dense aquatic plant. I don't have problems with parents attacking the fry...the parents die soon after hehehe

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## shrimppaste

I think I just saw them at C328 today.

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## loakita

> I think I just saw them at C328 today.


i hope you enjoy your self teasing me :Mad:  :Exasperated: ...goss i wish C328 have a branch in Jakarta!!!

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## Shi Xuan

> i hope you enjoy your self teasing me...goss i wish C328 have a branch in Jakarta!!!


Those are Micropoecilia picta "black" males, no females where its concerned.

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## stormhawk

loakita, there's no big fish market like Pasar Pramuka in Jakarta?

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## loakita

> loakita, there's no big fish market like Pasar Pramuka in Jakarta?


Hey Stormhark have you been to Jakarta ? ...memphhh i've tried Jalan Kartini's fish market, i'll try Pasar Pramuka then. Exotic LB its not really that trend in Indonesia, even in the hobbies, mostly fancy guppy only ...but we have lots exotic wild beta here..., im thinking to start collect some, i like wild fish. :Wink:

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## stormhawk

Nope not to Jakarta, though everyone knows Pasar Pramuka is the best place for exotic birds. I was hoping they might have a special fish market at Jakarta, like the one in Surabaya. My brother spoke to me of the fish market in Surabaya though he did not specify what they had.

I think it is the same situation in Indonesia for livebearers, as it is in Singapore. Only guppies get attention and the rest = feeder fish.

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## Shi Xuan

The best bet for livebearers would be USA, Europe, Japan and Taiwan. It could be the asian mindset, and it's even degrading in Singapore, where they are reduced to utter "longkang" fishes and I don't think it will change for anything better. 

BTW, as far as I know, there's a medaka museum for fishes of the Cyprinodontiformes order, in the Higashiyama Zoo and Botanic gardens;
http://eagle2004.blog3.fc2.com/blog-entry-491.html
http://www2.chokai.ne.jp/~platy/HSM.html

On a second thought, there's two forumners here keeping livebearers, Kim and Svein. I'm not too sure what happened to the latter, because it has been a long time since he last posted, although I hope he knows that killies.com has been relocated here and comes here frequently. :Smile:

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