Lyretail Male Guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

Meet the Lyretail Male Guppy, a fancy guppy with a lyre-shaped tail

The Lyretail Male Guppy is an aquarium-bred ornamental form of the guppy, Poecilia reticulata, the livebearer whose wild ancestors come from north-eastern South America and the southern Caribbean. In a lyretail guppy the top and bottom edges of the tail are drawn out into long, curving points around a fuller fan, so the tail takes the outline of a lyre. The male in our photographs has a blue-green body with orange spots near the tail and an orange tail and dorsal fin marked with black spots.

Like every guppy, this is a peaceful, active fish for a community aquarium with moderately hard to hard water. Males carry the long fins and bright colour; females are larger and plumper and are not part of this listing.

Know the tail names before you compare

Guppy tail names are used differently by breeders and by the trade. Aquarium Glaser points out that breeders' terminology differs from trade names: a fish traded as a "Calico Lyretail" is, in breeder language, a multicoloured double sword.

Our guide to guppy types and tails explains the main tail shapes, and the guppy strain finder helps you compare colour lines.

Know what one purchase supplies

One purchase quantity supplies one live male lyretail guppy. Colour and pattern vary between individuals and batches, so the photographs show the tail form and the typical colouring, not the individual you will receive. Males are easy to tell from females at sale size: Seriously Fish notes that males have a gonopodium, a stick-like modified anal fin used for mating, while OATA describes the female anal fin as triangular.

Plan the group, not a single fish

• Group size: OATA recommends keeping at least three guppies together; FishBase suggests groups of five or more.
• Males only: a group of males alone avoids unplanned fry, which Seriously Fish describes as the way to stop this very prolific fish from breeding.
• Adult size: FishBase gives a common length of about 2.8 cm total length for males; OATA puts traditional guppies at about 5 cm, and females are the larger sex.

Prepare the tank before you order and read our delivery and live arrival information, so your guppies go straight into a matured, tested aquarium.

Plan the aquarium for an active group

Seriously Fish gives a minimum base of 45 × 30 cm, about 41 litres, for guppies. OATA's guppy and molly care sheet asks for at least 45 litres for a small group of the smaller species, and FishBase suggests a tank of at least 60 cm. Bigger is better: a long tank gives the males room to display and dilutes the waste of a growing group.

Run a three-point space check

1. Measure the tank: 45 litres is the floor; a 60 cm long tank suits a group of five or more males comfortably.
2. Count every fish: include your guppies and all their tank mates as adults; our stocking calculator helps.
3. Leave swimming room: long fins need open water in the upper and middle layers, not a tank crammed with ornaments.

Mature the filter before any fish go in. The RSPCA explains that cycling takes at least two weeks and that fish should only be added once ammonia and nitrite have risen and fallen back to zero.

Furnish the tank to protect long fins

Seriously Fish says guppies are unfussy but appreciate a planted tank with floating vegetation, and that strong currents should be avoided. OATA also asks for a gentle current for guppies and warns against sharp or rough ornaments that could damage long fins.

Give every feature a job

A heater is needed all year, and OATA recommends a lid. Keep the aquarium away from draughts, radiators and direct sunlight, and run the lights on a regular day and night cycle.

Match hard, alkaline water for a lyretail guppy

Guppies are hard-water fish. Seriously Fish says they may survive soft, acidic water for a while, but long-term care should use moderately hard or harder water. The four sources below differ in their outer limits, so we plan on the range where they all overlap.

Read the sources side by side

FishBase adds that guppies need fairly warm temperatures of about 23–24°C. Stability inside the range matters more than any single number, so set the heater once and leave it.

OATA sets ammonia and nitrite at zero mg/l and nitrate at no more than 20 mg/l above your tap-water level. If your tap water is very soft, guppies are a poor long-term match unless you raise the hardness; check your supply with our water matcher before you buy.

Filter steadily and change water weekly

Guppies are small but eat eagerly, and a group produces steady waste. Seriously Fish uses a filter turnover of four to five times the tank volume per hour; for a 41-litre tank that is roughly 165–205 litres per hour. Choose a filter that reaches that flow through a spray bar or a gentle outlet, so the current stays soft for the long tails.

Follow a weekly maintenance routine

1. Test ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH and hardness weekly, as OATA recommends, and more often while the tank is new.
2. Change 25% of the water at least once a week, siphoning solid waste from the gravel.
3. Treat replacement water with a tap-water conditioner and match its temperature.
4. Rinse filter media in removed tank water, never under the tap.
5. Check the thermometer every day; heaters can fail.

Our guppy care guide covers set-up and maintenance for every guppy we sell.

Feed small, varied meals once a day

Wild guppies are mainly insectivorous, but Seriously Fish notes that tank-bred guppies are far removed from wild stock and accept most foods. FishBase lists zooplankton, small insects and detritus in the wild diet. OATA recommends a quality flake or granule with a high algae content, supplemented with small live or frozen foods such as daphnia or small bloodworm.

Build one measured meal

• Staple: a small pinch of quality flake or micro-granules.
• Variety: two or three times a week, swap the staple for frozen daphnia or another small frozen food.
• Portion: only what the group finishes within a few minutes, once a day, as OATA advises.
• Clean-up: remove anything left on the floor; overfeeding fouls the water.

Watch the males at feeding time. Long fins make them slightly slower, so spread food across the surface to stop faster tank mates taking it all.

Introduce new guppies calmly

OATA's method is to switch the aquarium lights off, float the sealed bag for 10 minutes to equalise temperature, then add small amounts of tank water to the bag over up to 20 minutes. Release the fish and leave as much bag water behind as possible.

Use a first-week checkpoint plan

OATA advises adding fish slowly so the filter bacteria can keep up and monitoring water quality closely for the first week.

Watch fin and body condition

A healthy lyretail male has clear, bright eyes, fully spread fins, intact scales and steady breathing. Seriously Fish warns that many commercially bred guppies are weakened by inbreeding and overproduction and are prone to disease, so good water quality and a calm tank matter even more for fancy forms.

Match each sign to a first action

These signs come from OATA's list for guppies and mollies. Test first, then act on the result rather than guessing.

Decide between a males-only group and a mixed group

A group of lyretail male guppies is the simplest set-up: no fry, plenty of colour and long fins on show. If you add females, OATA recommends two females for every male, and Seriously Fish advises several females per male, because males pursue females persistently.

Weigh the two set-ups

Remember that females can store sperm. Seriously Fish notes they can keep producing young for six months or more without a male, so a female bought from a mixed tank may give birth even in a males-only group. Our female guppy guide covers choosing females if you want a breeding group.

Choose tank mates that leave long fins alone

Guppies are very peaceful. Seriously Fish suggests a quiet community with other livebearers, rasboras, Corydoras, small loricariid catfish and tetras, and warns against fin-nippers such as tiger barbs and serpae tetras. OATA also advises keeping guppies away from fin-nipping species such as barbs.

Screen companions with this table

Use our livebearers range for companions that share the same water, and compare other male guppies such as the Double Sword Male Guppy, the Metallic Blue Neon Male Guppy, the Green Snakeskin Delta Male Guppy and the Dumbo Ear Male Guppy to build a colourful males-only group.

Understand breeding if females join the tank

Guppies give birth to live young. The sources differ on the details: Seriously Fish gives a gestation of four to six weeks with 5–100 young per brood, while OATA gives 24–30 days and 20–80 fry. Pregnant females show a darkened gravid spot behind the anal fin.

Protect the fry

• Adults eat their young, so dense plants and floating cover improve survival.
• OATA suggests moving a heavily pregnant female to a breeding net and removing her after the birth.
• Raise the young on very fine foods until they are too large to be eaten.
• FishBase gives maturity at about two months for males and three months for females.

Never release guppies or their young into ponds, rivers or drains. Seriously Fish records feral populations in around fifty countries, including the UK, and FishBase notes adverse ecological effects where guppies have been introduced. Browse all our guppies, the guppy and livebearer category or the male guppy category to complete your group.

Answer lyretail guppy buying questions

Can I keep lyretail male guppies without females?

Yes. Seriously Fish notes that keeping only one sex avoids unwanted fry. Keep a small group of males rather than a single fish.

How many lyretail guppies should I buy?

At least three, the minimum OATA gives for guppies, and ideally five or more as FishBase suggests, in a tank of at least 45 litres.

Which fish should not live with a lyretail guppy?

Fin-nippers such as tiger barbs and serpae tetras, which damage the long tail, and any fish large enough to swallow a guppy.

What water does a guppy need?

Moderately hard to hard, alkaline water. The overlap of Seriously Fish, FishBase, OATA and RSPCA guidance is 22–28°C, pH 7.0–8.0 and about 9–18 dGH.

How big does a male guppy get?

FishBase gives a common length of about 2.8 cm total length for males. Females are larger; OATA puts traditional guppies at about 5 cm.

Is a lyretail the same as a double sword guppy?

The names overlap. Aquarium Glaser notes that breeders class some traded lyretails as double swords. Our lyretail has long upper and lower tail points around a broad fan; compare the photographs of each listing.

What should I feed a lyretail guppy?

Quality flake or micro-granules with some algae content, plus small frozen foods such as daphnia two or three times a week. Feed once a day, only what is eaten within a few minutes.

Why does my male guppy have a damaged tail?

Usually fin-nipping tank mates, sharp ornaments or poor water quality. Test the water, check the decor and remove any fin-nipper.

Consult the care references

• Seriously Fish: Poecilia reticulata — distribution, size, footprint, water values, diet, compatibility, sexing, reproduction and notes on commercially bred stock.
• FishBase: Poecilia reticulata — lengths by sex, environment, diet, group and tank size, maturity and introductions.
• OATA: How to look after guppies and mollies — water values, tank size, ratios, feeding, maintenance, introduction, breeding and health signs.
• RSPCA: aquarium environment — guppy temperature range, filter cycling and the nitrogen cycle.
• Aquarium Glaser: Double Sword Guppys — breeder and trade names for lyretail and double sword guppies.