Poecilia wingei
True wild-type Endlers (N-class) are a different species from common guppies, keep them apart or they hybridise. Hard alkaline water lovers. Breed prolifically: stock all-male groups if you don't want a population explosion.
Endler's Livebearer (Poecilia wingei) reaches 2.5–4 cm as an adult and needs a minimum tank of 40 L. Native to Laguna de Patos, Venezuela, it lives in the mid to top water column with a peaceful temperament. Aim for 22–28 °C, pH 7.0–8.5, and 8–25 dGH hardness. Lifespan is 2–3 years with good care. Keep endler's livebearer in groups of 6+, loose group schoolers need numbers to display natural behaviour. Diet: omnivore, Crushed flake, micro pellets, baby brine shrimp, blanched veg. Plant-safe: Yes. Shrimp-safe: Yes (adult shrimp).
Care at a glance
True wild-type Endlers (N-class) are a different species from common guppies, keep them apart or they hybridise. Hard alkaline water lovers. Breed prolifically: stock all-male groups if you don't want a population explosion.
By Mike ElmiraUpdated 3 min read
Part of our complete guide to aquarium fish for the planted tank.
The parameters that decide whether endler's livebearer fits in your tank.
Mid to Top
No
Small group of 6+
Poeciliidae
Omnivore
Crushed flake, micro pellets, baby brine shrimp, blanched veg.
2–3 yrs
Very easy
Hyper-warm coastal lagoons of north-east Venezuela
Laguna de Patos, Venezuela
Tank-mate safety and the species this one is documented to thrive (or fail) alongside.
Other hard-water nano fish: white cloud mountain minnows, cherry shrimp adults, otocinclus, celestial pearl danios. Or species-only for breeding.
Soft-water blackwater species (cardinals, chili rasboras) — they need opposite parameters. Fancy guppies (will hybridise, destroying pure lines). Anything aggressive or large.
Hard-won lessons from the tank.
Keep all-male groups (5+) for stunning colour displays without the population explosion of mixed groups. If you DO want breeding, expect to thin the colony every 2 months — or accept that your tank is now an Endler farm.
Genus 'Poecilia' from Greek 'poikilos' = 'varied'. Species 'wingei' honours Danish biologist Øjvind Winge who described the species in 1937 from specimens collected by John A. Endler.
What can go wrong and how to spot it.
Failure modes, in order of how dramatic the fix is.
Robust. Susceptible to bacterial infections in soft water (they're hard-water specialists). The classic livebearer issues: fin rot in dirty water, ich in temperature swings.
Treated as 'fancy guppies' in most pet shops — they're a separate species and crossbreed irreversibly with guppies. 'Endler-guppy hybrids' are common in the trade and sold (often unknowingly) as pure Endlers. Buy from a hobbyist breeder, not a chain store.
The practical routine, read top to bottom.
40 L+. Hard alkaline water — pH 7.2–8.5, dGH 10–25. Crushed coral or aragonite sand in the filter raises hardness. Heavy planting (java moss especially) provides fry cover and shelter. Wide temperature tolerance (22–28 °C) makes them flexible.
2 weeks. They ship robust and acclimate quickly.
Where it comes from, how it behaves, and the variants you'll see at retail.
Where it lived before it came home.
Laguna de Patos and surrounding small coastal lagoons in northeastern Venezuela. Hard, alkaline, mineral-rich water often with high evaporation rates concentrating dissolved salts.
Mosquito larvae, daphnia, small crustaceans, biofilm, plant matter.
Endler's wild population is reduced due to habitat loss and competition with introduced guppies. Pure wild-type lines exist almost entirely in dedicated breeders' collections — buying from these breeders preserves the genetics.
How they pair, reproduce, and grow.
Extreme dimorphism — male and female look like different species. Males are 2.5–3 cm with vivid orange/black/green/blue patterns and a sword-like gonopodium. Females are 3–4 cm, plain silver-grey with no markings, dropper-shaped from the gravid spot.
Livebearers — females give birth to 5–30 free-swimming fry every 20–30 days after a single mating (sperm is stored). Mature at 6 weeks. Fry are large enough to eat crushed flake immediately. Female cannibalism is mild but present — dense planting protects fry.
The named cultivars and the lookalikes worth flagging.
Wild N-class (numbered original lines from Patos), K-class (Cumana-region wild lines), P-class (hybrids with guppy genes — explicitly NOT pure Endlers). Within wild N-class: 'Black Bar', 'Tiger', 'Snakeskin', 'Red Stripe', 'Japan Blue', and many more. Keep N-class isolated from guppies and other fancy strains.
Direct answers to the questions search engines and AI assistants surface most often about this species.
Endler's Livebearer (Poecilia wingei) needs a minimum tank of 40 L. They live in the mid to top water column and should be kept in groups of 6+, so a longer footprint matters more than depth.
Target 22–28 °C, pH 7.0–8.5, and 8–25 dGH hardness. Acclimate slowly when moving them between water sources.
Shrimp safety: Yes (adult shrimp). Plant safety: Yes.
Endler's Livebearer are omnivore. Crushed flake, micro pellets, baby brine shrimp, blanched veg.
On Fin & Stem's 1–5 difficulty scale this species rates 1/5. Almost unkillable, a solid first-tank choice. Breeding difficulty: very easy.
Typical lifespan in a well-maintained tank is 2–3 years.
A planted tank is a system. Pair this fish with one entry from each other pillar to plan the whole scape.
