When I first stood in the pet store and saw a group of guppies swimming together, I thought, oh, it’s because it’s a tank full of fish, so they are sticking together to avoid other fish. But it died within a few days when I brought a single guppy home. So I started researching, and in every picture and story, I noticed every fish group had its own school. So are guppies schooling fish? What makes them do it?
Guppies are schooling fish, and you can find them in schools from a few fish to hundreds or even thousands of fish. Guppies like the school for a few reasons, such as the confusion effect, many eyes effect, and the dissolution effect.
In this blog post, we will explore why guppies like to school and how it helps them avoid predators. We will also discuss the pros and cons of getting schooling fish and whether or not you should keep them together. Stay tuned for more information!
Are Guppies Schooling Fish?
Oh yes. Guppies are schooling fish. Isn’t it the most beautiful part of them? The way they move in unison like a school of synchronized swimmers. It’s amazing to watch.
Although it is their defense mechanism to avoid predators, it is also mesmerizingly beautiful. You should see them in the wild; the view is breathtaking. These guppies are social creatures that need the company of their own kind to feel comfortable and secure.
What Makes Guppies Schooling Fish?
Well, it is actually hard to explain and pinpoint the reason, isn’t it? It’s like, ‘Why does Messi play football?’, ‘Why do dogs bark?’ and many other unanswerable questions worldwide. But we will try to figure it out together.
Living and swimming together as a group makes them school fish. They are born to live together, and even their genetics make them crave social interaction with other fishes.
Have you ever seen a guppy fish kept in an aquarium all by itself? It will get very lazy and won’t move around much.
This is because they are not used to being alone and don’t like it either. So, these fish swim together in groups to feel safe and secure in the wild.
Why Do Guppies Like To School?
When you see a group of guppies swimming together, it looks like they are playing or dancing. But in reality, they are actually trying to avoid predators. When a predator comes close to them, all the fish in the group scatter in different directions. This confuses the predator, and it is unable to catch any fish.
Like other schooling fish, guppies are a school for various reasons.
Protection From Predators
One of the most popular explanations is that schooling protects them from predators.
When a predator comes after a guppy, it has a hard time picking out any one fish to eat because all the guppies look alike, and they are constantly moving around. This makes it difficult for predators to single out an individual fish to eat.
Security
These fish are social and friendly creatures that love being around other fish. They feel more comfortable and secure when they are around other guppies. This is one of the main reasons why they school together.
To Find a Mate
Another reason guppies school is to find a mate. When they are in a group, it is easier for them to find a compatible mate.
How Does Schooling Help Guppies To Avoid Predators?
Being together is always a plus point. Unity is strength, my friend; you cannot imagine the power united people hold. Hence, schooling is a way for fish to become powerful and indestructible.
Schooling helps guppies to avoid predators in many ways. I know you want to know more about this so, let’s me break it and tell you about how.
Confusion Effect
The confusion effect is when a predator enters a school of fish, and the fish all scatter in different directions. As a result, the predator becomes confused and is unable to catch any one fish.
The confusion effect is when predators have difficulty picking out one fish from a school because they are all moving around so much. It’s like picking out one specific leaf in a gust of wind.
Many Eyes Effect
The many eyes effect is similar, but it is when the fish are all looking in different directions.
The predator is unable to focus on any one fish because there are so many of them, and they are all moving around.
The many eyes effect is when a predator enters a school of fish, and the fish scatter in different directions. The predator becomes confused and cannot catch anyone’s fish because so many eyes watch it.
Dissolution Effect
The dissolution effect is when the fish school breaks into smaller groups. The predator can then focus on one small group of fish and is more likely to catch one.
The dissolution effect is when a fish school breaks into smaller groups. The predator can then focus on one small group of fish and is more likely to catch one.
How Many Guppy Fish To Keep Together?
Honestly would say keep all the hundreds of them together, but it’s impossible. So the next best thing is to keep six of them at least.
If you want to go all out with your six, get yourself a 20-gallon tank and let them all loose. But, if you want to be a bit more moderate, keep just two or three in a ten-gallon tank.
But the golden thumb rule suggests you keep at least six of them and make sure to keep more females, and the male and female ratio is proper.
And any more than six guppies, try to increase the tank size too. Well, experienced aquarists tend to keep more in 20 gallons, but there, their experiences speak.
Can You Keep Guppies Alone?
No, you really can’t. They are schooling fish and need the company of their own kind to feel comfortable and safe.
You can’t take on cruelty when I mentioned how schooling fish works. Loneliness is a nightmare for guppies, so don’t listen to anyone who tells you otherwise.
If you try keeping them alone, they will become very stressed, and their health will deteriorate quickly.
They might even die from the stress of being alone. So please, don’t do that to your guppies.
What Happens If You Keep Guppies Alone?
Okay, tell me, what will happen if a social animal like a human starts living alone? They will get depressed, right? The same fate awaits your little guppy fish if you don’t provide them company.
Guppies are social animals that need the company of their own kind to stay happy and healthy. Your guppy will become very stressed, and their health will deteriorate quickly if you keep them alone.
The stress will escalate quickly while the heath condition will only worsen every day, and there comes a day when your guppy may even die.
They might even die from the stress of being alone, so please don’t do that to your guppies. So, keeping at least two or three guppies together is important.
But if you want to keep just one guppy, you should get another fish that is not a guppy. That way, your guppy will have at least some company even though they are not of the same species.
Do Guppies School Together with Other Types of Fish?
No, it doesn’t. Trust me; they will see the difference even when their eyesight is not good. Guppies only like to school with other guppies. People often say they need at least five guppies to keep together.
While you might see them swimming along with mollies, and platies, it is nothing more than a pleasant coincidence. These fish do not form a school.
They might come from the same family but don’t share the same instinct toward school as guppies do.
The foster siblings will live together but don’t have a spiritual connection. So, if you want a schooling fish, don’t get anything but guppies.
Cons Of Getting Schooling Fish
Yeah, it is all rainbows and stars until we face reality. Schooling fish are beautiful when they swim in a group, but we often overlook the fact of what they ask from us when we get busy with the plan.
So, it would help if you saw the cons you might have to deal with when you get a schooling fish like guppies.
Space Issue
The first thing that you need to take into consideration is the fact that schooling fish require a lot of space. When we say a lot, we really mean A LOT.
They need at least three gallons for every fish you have and often even more. So, if you plan on getting a small aquarium with a few schooling fish, you might want to change your mind.
Hard To Feed
Another thing that you need to know is the fact that these fish are really hard to feed. They are so used to swimming in a big group and eating whatever they can find that it is really hard to train them to eat from your hand.
This means you will need to find a way to feed guppies good food without scaring them and making them think they are being attacked.
You can try using a long tube or, even better – an automatic feeder. This way, you won’t have to worry about them not getting enough food, and you can be sure they are getting everything they need.
Temperature Sensitive
You should know that schooling fish are really sensitive to changes in temperature. This means that you will need to find a way to keep the water at a constant temperature if you want them to be happy and healthy.
They can get sick and even die if the water is too cold. On the other hand, they will become stressed if the water is too hot, which can lead to many problems.
So, you will need to invest in a good aquarium heater and ensure that you always keep an eye on the temperature.
Rapid Contamination And Disease
One of the dangers of keeping schooling fish is that if one fish gets sick, the whole school can quickly become contaminated.
The disease can spread very rapidly among a group of closely-related fish, and before you know it, there is a chance that you have to deal with a major problem.
Even if only a few fish in the school are sick, the entire group is at risk. This is one of the reasons why it’s so important to quarantine new fish before adding them to your tank.
You never know what kind of diseases they may be carrying, and you don’t want to take any chances with the health of your other fish.
Another thing to remember is that even if your fish are healthy, they can still spread disease to other fish. If you have a sick fish in your tank, removing it as soon as possible is best to prevent the disease from spreading.
Inadequate Oxygenation
When a school of fish is together, they swim in circles or back and forth in unison. This creates a lot of water movement, sometimes too much for the filter to handle.
As a result, the water in the tank can become poorly oxygenated, leading to stress and even death.
It’s important to ensure that your filter is up to handling a school of fish; if it’s not, you may need to upgrade to a better one.
You should also keep an eye on the oxygen levels in your tank, and if they start to drop, you may need to take action to increase the oxygenation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, guppies are schooling fish, and there are several reasons they school together. Schooling helps guppies to avoid predators, and it also confuses predators. The number of guppies you should keep together depends on the size of your tank, but you should generally keep at least six guppies together. You can keep guppies alone, but they might not do as well as they would in a school.
If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below!
Thanks for reading!