TankBud

Variety of Guppy

Snakeskin guppy

Poecilia reticulata

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

Also known as Red Snakeskin Platinum Guppy

FreshwaterBrackishFish

Snakeskin guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

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
10 gal
38 L
Temperament
Peaceful
Social behavior
Social
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Beginner
Breeding
Livebearer · Easy
Rarity
Very common
Family
Poeciliidae

Overview

The snakeskin guppy is a guppy patterned with a fine chain-link mesh. It is peaceful, easy to keep and suits a calm community tank.

Did you know

Snakeskin is one of the few fancy guppy patterns with a wild counterpart. The fine mesh shows up now and then in wild fish, which is why it drew breeder attention through the 1950s.

Caring for the snakeskin guppy

Keep snakeskin guppies in a group, since they look their best in numbers. A planted tank of 10 gal (38 L) or more suits them, and they spend most of their time in the middle.

Snakeskin guppies are very adaptable and can live in brackish water as well as fresh. Give them neutral to slightly hard water at 64 to 82°F (18 to 28°C) and a pH of 6.8 to 7.8.

They eat almost anything, from quality flake and micro pellets to frozen daphnia or brine shrimp. They are peaceful and social, and they settle well in a calm community tank.

Only males carry the snakeskin pattern, so females from the line look plain beside them. Males are also smaller than females but more colorful. Keep more females than males to cut down on pestering.

Snakeskin guppies are livebearers that give birth to free-swimming young. They breed so easily that a mixed group produces fry constantly. Females can store sperm and deliver several broods from one mating, so plan for the numbers or keep males only.

Good to know

The snakeskin guppy is sold with a color and often a metallic word attached, as in Red Snakeskin Platinum. Coverage varies between farms, from gill plate to peduncle on some fish and only the back half on others. The snakeskin body gene sits on the Y chromosome in ordinary snakeskins. A male passes it to every son, so the line holds with little work. Lace-patterned snakeskins are reported as X-linked instead, though crossing-over makes that hard to pin down. Show standards ask for a continuous chain-link or rosette pattern covering at least 60 percent of the body.

In the wild

The snakeskin pattern was fixed and named in domestic stock. M. Dzwillo worked out its genetics in 1959 and named the gene filigran, German for filigree. Hobby accounts say his stock likely traced to the German breeder Eduard Schmidt-Focke. The strains sold today are domestic lines built on that gene rather than wild fish.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The snakeskin 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

Common questions

Is a snakeskin guppy a different species from the guppy?

No. A snakeskin guppy is a variety of the guppy, Poecilia reticulata, and it wants the same tank, water and food as the species.

What size tank does a snakeskin guppy need?

A snakeskin guppy needs at least 10 gal (38 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What does a snakeskin guppy eat?

A snakeskin guppy eats almost anything, including quality flake, micro pellets and frozen daphnia or brine shrimp.

How big does a snakeskin guppy get?

An adult snakeskin guppy reaches about 2.4 in (6 cm).

How can you tell a male snakeskin guppy from a female?

Males carry the snakeskin pattern, while females from the line look plain beside them. Males are also smaller than females but more colorful.

How does a snakeskin guppy breed?

A snakeskin guppy is a livebearer and gives birth to free-swimming young. Females can store sperm, so one mating can give several broods, and a mixed group produces fry constantly.

Related species