10 Endler Guppy Varieties – Rare & Popular Types
The Endler guppy, also known as Poecilia Winger, is native to Venezuela. While Endler guppies are not as fancy-looking as lyre-tailed ones, they come in attractive shades of orange, silver, black, purple, yellow, and blue. The Endler is a livebearer fish that lays live fry.
Poecilia Wingei is a small fish but is a prolific breeder. These fish can hybridize with guppies and are often the easiest to find in pet shops. These are a hardy and undemanding breed, making them an ideal fish for beginner aquarists.
However, adequate care, proper diet, perfect water parameters, peaceful tank mates, and several other factors like male to female ratios, etc., will determine your fish’s overall genetics and appearance.
Today, we’ll discuss the 10 most common species of Endler guppies to consider for your community tank.
1. Three Spots Endler
The Three Spots Endler is one of the most popular breeds from the guppy family that come in shades of silver and orange with black spots all over their body. They have, unexpectedly enough, more than three spots and will add beauty, charm, and color to an aquarium tank. They enjoy a tank with hard and warm water and plenty of aquatic plants.
These are active fish that require plenty of space to swim around. Also, choose their tankmates with care as these are a group of small fish that like the company of other small and peaceful species. I recommend housing your three spot guppies with dwarf Corydoras, rainbowfish, and non-aggressive tetras.
One of the fun facts about a Three Spot Endler is that they respond quickly to light and movement. Darkness typically signals bedtime for Endlers, causing them to sink to the bottom and catch a good night’s sleep until the lights turn on.
2. El Silverado Endler
The El Silverado Endlers is a colorful and peaceful fish that is small in size. It makes the perfect fish for nano or planted aquariums. It has a silver-blue body coloration and looks very similar to Poecilia reticulata. El Silverado Endlers is a very hardy fish for its small size and likes to swim at the top level of the water column. You can see this fish swimming and feeding in the middle and bottom of your aquarium.
Keep your aquarium closed with a lid or a hood, as these fish like to jump. Ideal tankmates for El Silverado Endler include other peaceful fish such as Swordtails, Platies, Mollies, Cory Catfish, etc.
Make sure to avoid fin nippers. El Silverado’s long fins will make for great target practice. These Endlers like to live in groups, which is common in the guppy genus, since all subspecies have well-developed social senses. So, get at least 6-8 Endler guppies from your pet shop.
The El Silverado Endler is not a fussy eater and enjoys a varied diet of meaty and plant-based foods. They also like the occasional supplement of spirulina, nutritious vegetable matter, high-quality flake food, pellets, frozen tubifex, and bloodworms. Get a tank with at least 5 gallons to provide your El Silverado Endlers with plenty of space to swim.
3. El Tigre Endler
These fish come in attractive colors of neon blue, red, green, and black and have a peaceful disposition. They bode well with other peaceful fish and invertebrates. The El Tigre Endler is a hardy little creature that can adapt well to life in captivity.
They enjoy inhabiting the top of the aquarium and prefer a water temperature of 75° – 86° F. While an El Tigre Endler is not picky about the water pH, maintaining it between 7.0 and 8.5 can help your Endler live a long and healthy life.
El Tigre Endler is an omnivorous breed that accepts all kinds of high-quality dry and frozen foods. Indigenous to northern South America, the average adult of an adult El Tigre Endler is 1 inch. They thrive best when you maintain them in groups of six. The lifespan of an Endler guppy is 2-3 years. However, with proper care and excellent water parameters, you may watch your El Tigre Endler outlive its average lifespan.
4. Japan Blue Endler
The Japan Blue Endler Guppy is one of the latest color strains with a body exhibiting electrifying shades of blue. It is an exciting addition to any fish community due to its vibrant color and charming personality.
This breed keeps gaining more popularity among aquarists each day thanks to its neon-like nuances and unique presence. It is a peaceful freshwater/saltwater fish that’s easy to care for, enjoying a mixed diet encompassing fish flakes, blood worms, and java moss.
An adult Japan Blue Endler can grow up to 1.5 inches in size and live for 3 years with adequate care and excellent water parameters. They enjoy a water temperature of 75° – 86° F and a water PH of 7.0-8.5. Make sure to invest in a tank of at least 5 Gallon to provide your Japan Blue Endler Guppy with an excellent habitat.
Fortunately, these fish are hardy and adaptable, making them perfect for beginner aquarists. Besides, they cope well in different environments and enjoy swimming at the top of an aquarium tank. However, if you find your Japan Blue Endler swimming at the tank’s bottom, don’t be alarmed. They tend to exhibit some bottom-feeding behavior occasionally.
5. Black Fire Endler
The black fire strain is one of the most sought-after and attractive breeds from the Endler family. This fish has a black body and intense red nuances around the belly area. It gets the name fire from its red-colored dorsal and caudal fins and the irregular black patterning, resembling flames emanating from its body.
Unlike the reticulata guppies, Endlers are livelier and enjoy having a bit of current in the tank. I recommend an aquarium of at least 5 gallons to provide your fish room for swimming. Adding aquatic plant to your tank can offer places for the fry and the pregnant adult females to hide when in need.
That need could arise on a moment’s notice, since adult guppies don’t mind attacking and eating all fish fry, including their own.
6. Yellow Tiger Endler
Yellow tiger Endlers are colorful, adaptable, peaceful, and hardy fish suitable for most aquarium setups. They can thrive in nano and larger tanks, as well as species-only and community setups, provided water conditions are optimal.
These Endlers cope well with most peaceful fish and are an excellent community addition. I recommend that you avoid housing them with larger and more aggressive fish like the Tiger Barbs or Cichlids, as these breeds can nip on their fins. If their tankmates are large enough, yellow tigers will easily become food.
Tiger Endler males have the most attractive and distinct coloration in their species. This fish boasts an incredibly bright yellow and black-colored body, making them some of the most beautiful Endlers in the aquarium trade.
Note that these are prolific breeders, so they will reproduce with ease in the optimal setting. Beginner aquarists can enjoy the best fishkeeping experience with a group of Yellow Tiger Endlers, provided they understand the basics of breeding them.
Yellow Tiger Endlers usually occupy the top level of an aquarium but go to the middle and bottom for feeding and courtship. Some of the ideal tankmates include Celestial Pearl Danio, swordfish, platies, and other peaceful small fish.
7. Santa Maria Endler
The Santa Maria Endler has been a popular breed since 2015 and is an attractive fish with a black and orange body. It is a cross between the Poecilia reticulata and P. Wingei with a robust shape.
Santa Maria Endlers are peaceful and hardy fish with unique coloring. They have no special water or dietary requirements, making them the ideal fish for beginner aquarists.
Santa Maria Endlers are also known as Bleeding Heart Endlers and get along well with most other peaceful community fish. They are suitable for single-species and community aquariums, so long as they are well-planted. Do not house this breed with larger or aggressive fish like the Cichlids or Tiger Barbs to protect your Endler from getting their fins nipped. Also, maintain these fish in groups as they are pretty social and can imbue your aquarium with a livelier vibe.
8. Staeck Endler
A German doctor created the Staeck Endler strain by crossing a Staeck Guppy male with a Yellow Top Sword Endler female. Staeck Endlers are rare and look stunning. These are active and hardy fish and are popular due to their small size and peaceful temperament. These Endlers are suitable for both beginner aquarists and the more experienced collectors and breeders.
These Endlers like to swim in large groups consisting of more females than males. Make sure to keep 3 to 4 females for every male to mitigate the males’ violent tendencies.
Staeck Endlers make excellent tankmates for most peaceful species. You can house them with Danios, Rasboras, Dwarf Barbs, Corydoras Catfish, Loaches, shrimp, or snails. Avoid keeping them with larger or aggressive species like Cichlids as Endlers will typically become prey in that scenario.
Furthermore, do not house this fish with other Endlers or Guppies if you wish to keep the strain pure and prevent crossbreeding. Guppy males show little care about mixing their genes with anything that swims near them.
These fish can grow up to 1.5 inches in size and thrive best in a water temperature of 75 – 85 F. They prefer freshwater with a PH of 6.0 – 7.5 and like omnivorous meals, so make sure you offer them a balanced and diverse diet. Providing nutritious foods, occasional supplementation, and lots of live food alongside pellets and flakes can ensure a long and healthy life for your Staeck Endlers.
9. Black Bar Endler
Black Bar Endlers are a stunning but rare species. It has a grey-colored body with fluorescent yellow, orange, and black streaks. While it is a small fish, they are peaceful and hardy, capable of adapting to a variety of environments.
You can keep them in numerous aquatic settings, whether it’s single-species tanks or community setups with several other fish species. They are peaceful and docile and won’t bother other fish, so long as other fish won’t bother them.
Keeping Black Bar Endlers in larger groups will keep your fish healthier, more colorful, and socially interactive. I recommend housing your Endlers with other small peaceful fish and invertebrates to help them live their best lives. Since they are peaceful and non-combative, these fish can easily get stressed when paired more territorial, aggressive, or even overly energetic fish.
One of this variety’s distinct characteristics is their double swordtail caudal fin and orange-red dorsal fins.
These guppies to swim in groups of 6 or more and enjoy a well-balanced omnivorous diet. They live for up to 2 – 3 years and thrive best in stable and clean waters with a pH of 7.0 – 8.5.
10. Blue Start Endler
The French Blue Star Endler is a colorful and peaceful fish, perfect for nano or larger aquariums. Endlers generally occupy the top level of the aquarium and are not afraid to jump. Close your aquarium with a lid or hood to prevent them from testing their jumping capabilities, because they will, given the opportunity.
They get along just fine with other peaceful fish and invertebrates. I recommend you get at least 6 Blue Star Endlers, preferably in a healthy male-to-female ratio to prevent male aggression.
In case of a single-species nano tank, I advise only keeping one male per tank. Otherwise, the males will fight relentlessly over space, females, food, and whatever else is worth fighting for. They will even attack each other over their body coloring, since guppy males are biologically prone to attack brightly-colored guppies. They will view them as competition and react accordingly.
While the French Blue Star Endler is not a picky eater, they enjoy a varied diet of meaty foods alongside spirulina and other nutritious vegetable matter. You may also boost their health and longevity by providing them with high-quality flake food, pellets, and frozen or freeze-dried tubifex. These beautiful neon-blue or red/orange colored Endlers are a must-have if you like having a colorful and diverse tank.
Conclusion
Endlers make for an excellent pet for beginner, new, and experienced hobbyists. They do not require much care, possess lively personalities, and come in exciting colors.
The great thing about Endler guppies is that, no matter the variety, they all share the same water requirements, social needs, and dietary preferences. Learning to care for one strain will help you understand what all strains need.
