Variety of Guppy

Cobra guppy

Poecilia reticulata

One of 9 varieties of Poecilia reticulata · See all varieties →

Also known as Blue Cobra Guppy, Platinum Cobra Guppy, Red Cobra Guppy, Yellow Cobra Guppy, Luminous Cobra Guppy, Green Cobra Guppy

FreshwaterBrackishFish

Varieties · Poecilia reticulata

See all 9 →

Care at a glance

Temperature: 64–82°F; 18–28°C
pH: 6.8–7.8
Adult size: 2.4 in; 6 cm
Minimum tank: 13 gal; 50 L

Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Beginner
Breeding: Easy
Rarity: Very common
Family: Poeciliidae

Overview

Cobra is a body pattern sold with a color word in front: Red Cobra, Blue Cobra, Yellow Cobra, Platinum Cobra. The pattern shows on males, so females out of the same line look like ordinary guppies. Shops also use King Cobra for the same fish, and how tight the barring is varies between farms.

In the wild

Cobra is a domestic pattern built on the snakeskin lines and does not occur as a fixed pattern in the wild. Hobby histories trace the name to a May 1965 piece in Tropical Fish Hobbyist, in which Mike Reed presented fish as King Cobra for the Mac Guppy Hatchery of Long Island, New York. Breeders have recombined the pattern ever since, so no single farm owns the look.

Good to know

The cobra look is vertical barring laid over the snakeskin pattern. A 1999 Zoological Science paper from Violet Phang's group in Singapore describes the bars as an autosomal recessive gene, bar, that shows only on males already carrying the Y-linked snakeskin body gene. Because that base pattern rides on the Y chromosome, every son takes it from his father, which holds the line.

Did you know

Barring on its own does not make a snakeskin at a guppy show. The IFGA asks the snakeskin classes for a continuous chain-link or rosette pattern over at least 60 percent of the body. A barred fish without that mesh is entered in the class matching its tail color instead.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

Cobra guppy is a peaceful, social species that keeps to the middle. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.

Check the full mix in the stocking calculator