50+ Different Types of Guppies – Common and Rare Varieties
Guppies are renowned for their vast diversity in patterns, colors, and tail shapes. This diversity gives rise to an array of guppy fish types, each offering unique aesthetics to an aquarium. In this article, I’ve compiled a list of over 50 guppy varieties stemming from selective breeding practices.
While I’ve tried to be thorough, the world of guppy breeding is ever-evolving, with breeders continuously introducing new varieties. If you notice any omissions, please feel free to bring them to my attention.
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Shop on AmazonDifferent Types of Guppy Fish Species
Guppy fish are part of the Poeciliidae family, which includes the following guppy fish species:
1. Poecilia Reticulata (Common / Fancy Guppy)
Characterized by a wide global distribution and a popularity among aquarists, the common guppy fish is a hardy and adaptable livebearer thatâs easy to breed and raise.
Theyâre also known as rainbowfish and millionfish, because of their variety and propensity to breed quickly and in large numbers.
2. Poecilia Wingei (Endler Guppy)
Also known as Endlerâs Livebearer and Endler Guppy, itâs a close relative of the common guppy so much so that theyâll easily crossbreed, therefore, if you want to maintain the purity of each species, you should not allow them to hybridize.
Endler guppies are also strikingly colorful, easy to care for, and peaceful fish that will thrive on an omnivorous diet.
Unlike the common guppy, Endler guppy fish arenât as readily available in pet stores, although you may find some pet stores that carry them.
3. Micropoecilia Picta (Swamp Guppies)
Unlike the other two types of guppies, the swamp guppy is not an exclusively freshwater fish, and can be found mostly in coastal swamps and brackish marshes.
Swamp guppies are also called Scarlet Livebearer. Theyâre small fish that are native to Central and South America. Theyâre omnivores and theyâre rarely found in home aquaria.
Guppy Types by Tail Shape
Based on their tail shape alone, we can distinguish around 13 types of guppy fish. This variety is the result of years of selective breeding, and the list is continuously expanding as breeders succeed in developing new varieties:
1. Veiltail
Veiltail guppies have a tail that resembles an isosceles trapezoid. The tail can be colored in a single color or multiple, pattern-like colors. Dorsal and ventral fins are usually elongated and flowy.
2. Triangle-Tail
Also known as the Delta tail guppy, their tail shape resembles a triangle.
The triangle-tail guppy has an impressive tail size thatâs beautifully colored or showcases interesting patterns.
Dorsal fins are long and flowy, ventral fins are usually smaller.
3. Fantail
Fantail guppies have elegant-looking tails that resemble an open fan. This tail type is actually typical of fancy guppies. Dorsal fins can be elongated, ventral fins are usually smaller.
4. Scarftail
The scarf-tail guppy is also known as the flag-tail guppy. This tail shape is much narrower on the edges compared to the other tail types I mentioned so far but remains just as impressive in terms of colors and patterns.
5. Double Swordtail
The double swordtail guppy has a unique tail shape that sets them apart from other guppy fish.
Itâs very similar to the tail of the swordtail fish, but instead of one elongated tail, the double swordtail guppy fish has two elongated tails shaped like a sword on either side of the tail base.
When the tail itâs elongated only on the upper or lower side of the tail, it creates two different guppy varieties.
6. Top Swordtail
Some swordtail guppies donât feature double tails; instead, the tail is elongated in only one edge like in the case of the top swordtail guppy, which features a tail thatâs elongated at the top of its tail base.
With only one edge of the tail being elongated, itâs easy to see how these fish can resemble the swordtail fish.
7. Bottom Swordtail
The bottom swordtail guppy is a mirrored version of the top swordtail guppy, since only the bottom edge of their tail is elongated.
The edge of the tail which is not elongated is narrow and shaped like the tail of flagtail guppies.
8. Lyretail
The lyretail guppy is not very different from the double swordtail guppy. In fact, itâs a variation of the double tail guppy.
In case of the lyretail guppy, the tails look like theyâre independent of each other but upon closer inspection you may notice that in fact theyâre connected by a small transparent membrane.
9. Cofertail
Guppies with a paddle shaped tails are called cofertail guppies and theyâre part of the short tail guppy category. This type of tail shape is featured in the Judging Standard for World Guppy Contests.
10. Speartail
With a tail shaped like a spear, this type of guppy doesnât have a particularly large tail, but itâs still an impressive-looking tail that gets your attention. Of course, there are variations within this category too with some tails being larger than others.
11. Roundtail
Well-rounded and usually on the shorter side, the roundtail guppy is another impressive specimen that can be an interesting choice for those interested in aesthetics and breeding unique and distinctly shaped guppies.
12. Pintail
A bit similar to the spear tail guppy variety, the mid section of the pintail guppyâs tail is much more elongated, hence the name pintail.
Because of the long pointy tail, this guppy type is also referred to as the needle tail guppy. The tail sets out wider at the base and becomes more slender as it reaches the pin-like section, where it narrows out.
13. Halfmoon Tail
When it comes to guppy tail shapes, the halfmoon tailed guppy is my favorite. The tail starts out wide at the base and widens even further until it resembles a halfmoon.
Itâs one of the more impressive-looking guppy tails, especially when it features an amalgam of colors and shapes.
These are some of the tail varieties youâre likely to come across when researching guppy tail shapes, but the list is not complete as breeders are constantly coming up with newer shapes, each more impressive than the one before.
Next, letâs see other guppy varieties based on body patterns, tail patterns and body colors.
Guppy Types by Body Pattern
In this category, we can distinguish the following guppy body patterns:
1. Tuxedo Guppies
These guppies usually feature two contrasted colors between the front and back of their body. The front of the body is a lighter color, while the lower section of the body is much darker, just like the color scheme on a classic tuxedo.
2. Cobra Guppies
These guppy varieties feature both vertical patterns and rosettes spotted throughout their body. Female cobra guppies will also show these patterns, although in a more subdued way compared to male cobra guppies, which showcase these patterns the best.
In terms of colors, they can be white, black, greed, bright orange, resulting in interesting and striking combinations of colors and patterns.
3. Snakeskin Guppies
Snakeskin guppies have a vertical pattern that spreads throughout their entire bodies. Sometimes, these patterns resemble the patterns of a tiger and the colors too featuring colors such as gold, orange and black.
Guppy Types by Tail and Body Pattern
While tail shapes are of course impressive, when it comes to tail patterns, things get turned up a notch. Here are the tail patterns youâre most likely to see in guppy fish:
1. Glass Guppies
Glass guppies have a genetic peculiarity that prevents the production of guanine, making them transparent. Guanine is essentially the silver dye that makes fish glisten and has the role of reflecting light and thus preventing transparency.
It may happen that in glass guppies, black melanin also falters, which further accentuates the transparency of their bodies. Glass guppies are bred like albino guppies.
2. Leopard Guppies
The pattern of leopard guppies vaguely resembles the spots on leopards.
These patterns are dark-colored, which results in a great contrast with brighter and lighter colors.
3. Mosaic Guppies
The tail of mosaic guppies features irregular patterns linked together in unique and distinctive ways.
This type of pattern lends the tail an attractive vibe, especially when itâs combined with colors that complement or contrast each other.
4. Lace Guppies
Youâre most likely to find this pattern on guppies that feature the snakeskin pattern. This delicate, lace-like pattern extends to the entire body. The tail is usually fan-sh