Guppies are among some of the most popular freshwater fish out there. They are beautiful to look at, intriguing to watch, and relatively easy to breed. But the problem is that the babies can often fall victim to none other than their parents. For this reason, it is advisable to house fry in a separate tank or heavily plant your main aquarium so that they have somewhere to hide. But how long does it take for newborn guppies to fully grow?

As a general rule of thumb, you can expect your baby guppies to grow into full-sized adults within around six months. They are typically born at around a quarter of an inch and will gain around 0.3 inches every month. Most guppies will grow to no more than two inches by adulthood.

There are a lot of other things to think about when raising baby guppies and in this guide, we will be detailing everything you need to know from the right size at the right age through to encouraging growth.

See Also:

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Guppy Age And Size

Male and female guppies may vary in size slightly with the male averaging around two inches in length by the time he reaches adulthood. These are small fish and after around six months, their growth will cease.

However, when the guppy is born, it will measure no more than a quarter of an inch, growing at 0.3 inches per month. This is relatively slow growth for a fish but the guppy will go through several stages on its journey to adulthood.

Newborn Guppies

Many people make an assumption that all fish lay eggs but this is not true. There are lots of livebearing fish and the guppy is one of them. As we have mentioned, when they are born, the guppy fry will be around a quarter of an inch in length.

During the first few hours of their lives, the fry may look a little odd and even deformed. But over time, they will start to look a little more normal as they swim around the tank.

Juvenile Guppies

The second life stage for the guppy is when it is considered to be a juvenile which lasts up until the fish is around two months of age. During this time, the fish will have a serious growth spurt and this is probably the most significant stage of its development.

For this reason, aquarists should take care to provide their guppies with excellent care, offering the correct nutrition and ensuring brilliant living conditions. By the time they finish their juvenile stage, the guppies will measure about three-quarters of an inch.

The Young Guppy

Following the juvenile stage, your guppies will now be considered to be the ‘young’ of the species. This stage continues until the fish are six months of age. It is also at this point that they will become sexually mature and ready to mate themselves. Furthermore, the young period of their lives sees another significant amount of growth with some fish ending up around the two-inch mark.

Adulthood

By the time your guppies are six months old, they are considered to be adults. They will have reached their maximum size and will be ready to breed. Guppies typically live for around two years but this largely depends on their living conditions and level of care. To ensure that your guppies have as long a life as possible, you should make sure that you provide them with good food and plenty of live plants.

Tips For Helping Your Guppies Grow

If you want to ensure that your guppies grow into healthy adults then it is essential to provide them with the right conditions and excellent care. Moving through the life stages, your fish may need varying levels of care but as a general rule, you can adhere to the following guidelines for fish that do not have growing problems.

• Make sure that your guppies have lots of space. While they may be small fish, they still need plenty of room to move around. Not only does this give them the right amount of exercise but it will also mean that the water quality is not affected. When you try to keep large numbers of fish in a small tank, waste will build up more quickly and the water quality will be affected.
• Stress can stunt a fish’s growth so it is important to make sure that your guppies have a stress-free environment. If your fry are housed with larger fish, there is a chance that they may be preyed on, which in itself, can be stressful. That’s if they manage not to get caught. By providing the young guppies with a lot of plants, this gives them places to hide and will limit their stress levels.
• For the first few weeks of their lives, it is a good idea to house your guppy fry in a different tank. The parents won’t think twice about trying to eat them nor will other members of the tank community.
• Guppies thrive in temperatures that sit between 70ºf and 80ºf and when they are forced to live outside of these parameters, they become more susceptible to disease which could stunt their growth. Be sure to maintain a consistent temperature through the use of a water heater.
• Baby guppies need to be fed more regularly than their adult counterparts. Make sure that you provide the fish with high energy foods that are powdered so that the fish can comfortably eat them. You should aim to offer food around three times a day up until adulthood.

Guppy Breeding FAQs

Conclusion

Many people who keep freshwater fish are attracted to the guppy. It comes in bright colors and patterns and has a unique silhouette that provides aquarists with hours of entertainment purely through observation.

If you are going to breed guppies, caring for the fry is an essential part of this. While some fish reach adulthood much more quickly, the guppy takes around six months to reach its full size of two inches. It is vital that you provide suitable nutrition and a stress-free, balanced environment if you want your baby guppies to thrive.