# Killifish? Killifish!



## OpalBones (Apr 10, 2014)

Killifish. Are. Beautiful!

I would love to someday keep one or two or six as a pet. Has anyone here ever kept or had experience with them? What was your experience with them? What do you think people would need to know about them before buying?

I'm doing a ton of googling and book reading but I also want to hear from people who know about these pretty guys firsthand.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I've kept and bred killifish in the past. I only kept species from the Aphyosemion/Chromaphyosemion/Fundulopanchax groups as in Australia their import is extremely limited and only a few groups are permitted into the country. 

I really like killifish, and always wonder why they are not more popular. 

The species I've kept have always done best in soft, cool, water. But there are so many species that I'm sure there is a killifish suitable for most water conditions. They are expert jumpers so a tight-fitting lid (I prefer to use cling wrap) is necessary. 

Live and frozen foods are best if you want to breed them, but I have found killifish to be voracious eaters that will readily take any foods. 

Some males can be aggressive or rough with their females, particularly during courtship/spawning. So many breeders have multiple females with a single male. Based on personal experience, males that are kept alone with just their females develop very long fins. When I've kept multiple males together the fins never look as good, probably due to nipping/fighting.


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## OpalBones (Apr 10, 2014)

LittleBettaFish said:


> I've kept and bred killifish in the past. I only kept species from the Aphyosemion/Chromaphyosemion/Fundulopanchax groups as in Australia their import is extremely limited and only a few groups are permitted into the country.
> 
> I really like killifish, and always wonder why they are not more popular.
> 
> ...


Thank you for the great response! When I first saw how beautiful they are I was also wondering why they are not more popular.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

I think the reason they are not more popular is because they have a really short life cycle. The neat thing about them is the fertilized eggs can be held on to for years until the aquarist is ready to hatch them. 

The Bailey Brothers, Pet Fish Talk show did a podcast on killifish a few years back. You can check it out here,
http://www.petfishtalk.com/shows_special/killifish/killifish.htm

And Natures Talk Show does a regular killifish hour podcast with members of the Americian Killifish Assocation. It's available on itunes or here,
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/naturestalkshow

Here is a show they did on lampeyes,
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/naturestalkshow/2015/01/18/killifish-hour--lampeyes-killies--chris-weatherford


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## OpalBones (Apr 10, 2014)

MikeG14 said:


> I think the reason they are not more popular is because they have a really short life cycle. The neat thing about them is the fertilized eggs can be held on to for years until the aquarist is ready to hatch them.
> 
> The Bailey Brothers, Pet Fish Talk show did a podcast on killifish a few years back. You can check it out here,
> http://www.petfishtalk.com/shows_special/killifish/killifish.htm
> ...


Awesome links! Thank you, Mike! I will for sure check out these podcasts.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Only annuals have a short lifespan. Other species can live for at least 2-3 years, which is on par with what most bettas seem to live to.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

Come to think of it, I do recall seeing some killies at Petco about a year ago. I don't remember their scientific name but they were a golden something or other. I haven't noticed any in a while but to be honest I'm not really looking. Try a local Petco and see what they have. I've never seen them at Petsmart.


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## OpalBones (Apr 10, 2014)

I'm still a long way off from getting a new large tank (more than ten gallons is large to me lol) but next time I am at petco of a fish selling store I will have to look for some killis.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Some of the smaller species could easily live as a breeding pair/trio in a 5-10 gallon tank. Personal favourites of mine that I have kept, are A. striatum, A. australe, A. gabunense, Ch. bitaeniatum Ijebu Ode, and Ch. poliaki. If you search through this forum for the words 'killifish' you will find a thread I started based around my killifish.


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## LolaQuigs (Mar 28, 2010)

Is there a good website about them? Or somewhere where I could find a list of which ones are annuals and which lave longer lifespans?


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

I saw these American Flag killifish at a LFS on Sunday. From what I understand they are a cool water fish and are native to Florida. They are a nice little fish and I'd love to see them colored up.








Sorry for the crummy photo, blue lights and blue backgrounds make bad pictures.


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## OpalBones (Apr 10, 2014)

Oh those look like pretty little guys. I didn't know you could keep them in smaller tanks, that's pretty great especially since I have an unused ten gallon hanging around.  

Every where I look says you should have a breeding pair of them but I am not too interested in breeding as not many stores around me buy fish and I'm scared of shipping live critters. Can most of them live in an all male group or will it be like bettas with fighting?

I think the reason it's hard to find a good webpage about them is because there are so many varieties with different needs.


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## LolaQuigs (Mar 28, 2010)

OpalBones said:


> Every where I look says you should have a breeding pair of them but I am not too interested in breeding as not many stores around me buy fish and I'm scared of shipping live critters. Can most of them live in an all male group or will it be like bettas with fighting?


This is exactly what I was wondering! I love the look of killis, but most of the information I can find about them is about breeding, which I have no interest in.


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