: This fish carries the Y-link Moscow trait and would be entered in the Blue class.

: This Black guppy has the X-linked half black body trait. Females usually show half black body and fins in this strain type. This would be entered in the Black class.

: This tank entry was entered in the Green tank class at the 2008 IFGA Annual. 1st Green Tank

: This bottom swordtail would be entered in the Single Swordtail class.

: Genetic albino veil tail. This fish would be entered in the veil class.

: Young genetic albino multi color. if it grows a delta tail it would be entered in the AOC Albino class or the veil class if it grows out to be a veil.

: Young genetic albino Half Black Pastel. This fish would entered in the AOC Albino class..

: Genetic albino Red. This fish would be entered in the Red Albino class. Excellent body color. 2008 IFGA annual.

: Genetic gold pastel. The flash brought out the tail’s base color, but is more muted on the show bench, not enabling it to be entered in the AOC BiColor class. This fish would be enter in the AOC class.

: Genetic albino HB Pastel. This fish would be entered in the AOC Albino class

: Purple bicolor which would be entered in the AOC BiColor Class.

: Genetic gold purple bicolor which would be entered in the AOC BiColor Class.

: Pastel bicolor which would be entered in the AOC BiColor Class.

: This Black guppy carries the Moscow trait and possibly the X-linked half black body trait. The typical Moscow trait of changing darkness can make this strain difficult to show.

: This Black guppy has the X-linked half black body trait. Females usually show half black body and fins in this strain type. This would be entered in the Black class.

: A Galaxy type guppy. This fish would be entered in the Blue Green Bicolor class.

: A Blue Metal Head type guppy. This guppy carries the Y-link traits for the Gun Metal head and snakeskin. This fish would be entered in the Blue Green Bicolor class

: A Green BiColor with the Y-linked Moscow trait. This fish would be entered in the Blue Green Bicolor class.

: A Blue Green Bicolor showing the recessive genetic gold trait. This fish would be entered in the Blue Green BiColor class.

: A Green Metal Head type guppy. This guppy carries the Y-link traits for the Gun Metal head and snakeskin. This fish would be entered in the Blue Green Bicolor class.

: This fish carries the Y-link Moscow trait and would be entered in the Blue class.

: A blue with half colored blue body. The half color trait is a recessive trait in this fish. The flash brought out the green highlights stronger but looks blue in room lighting. This fish would be entered in the Blue class. This kind of half colored guppy often results from breeding normal blues to females from Blue Moscow strains

: A blue with half colored blue body. The half color trait in this strain is dominate Y-linked. This fish would be entered in the Blue class.

: A matching pair of blue guppies that were entered in the Blue Tank class at an IFGA show.

: Genetic albino. This fish would be entered in the AOC Albino class. 2009 IFGA annaul.

: This Bronze guppy show the dark scale outline against a dark gold body. The 25% or more “gold color” is located in the peduncle area

: Half black with a butterfly pattern. This fish was entered in the Half Black AOC class. Stan Shubel said that this fish came out of his Half Black Red line. Shown at the 2009 IFGA Annual.

: A pastel guppy that would be entered in the AOC Female class.

: This fish has a gold body with dark edge scales and would be entered in the Bronze Female class.

: This fish with good half black body would entered in the Half Black Female class.

: This fish would entered in the Red Female class.

: A young genetic gold green. This fish would be entered in the Green class.

: This fish carries the Y-link Moscow trait and would be entered in the Green class.

: A green with half colored green body. The half color trait in this strain is dominate Y-linked. This fish would be entered in the Green class.

: This would be entered in the Green class.

: This would be entered in the Green class.

: This fish would entered in the Green class.

: This tank entry was entered in the Green tank class at the 2009 IFGA Annual. Best of Show.

: This fish carries the Y-link Moscow trait and would be entered in the Green class.

: Genetic albino Half Black Pastel. This fish would be entered in the AOC Albino class. 2009 IFGA annual.

: Half black pastel green bicolor. This fish will be entered in the Half Black AOC class.

: Half black pastel white bicolor. This fish will be entered in the Half Black AOC class.

: Unusual colored half black AOC.

: Half black AOC. This fish was entered in the Half Black AOC class. 2009 IFGA annual.

: Half black blue bicolor. This fish was entered in the Half Black AOC class. 2009 IFGA annual

: A Half Black Blue tank entry at the 2009 IFGA annual. 1st place HB Blue tank.

: A genetic Half Black guppy with light blue finnage. This is a F1 cross with a blue male to HB Neon female. This guppy could be entered in the Half Black Blue class but has poor half black body color. It maybe disqualified in the IFGA due to the body color.

: A Half Black guppy with royal blue finnage. This guppy would entered in the Half Black Blue class.

: A Half Black guppy with medium blue finnage. This guppy would be entered in the Half Black Blue class.

: An entry of match Males. These fish would be entered in the Half Black Green Tank Class.

: A light Half Black Green male. This fish would be entered in the Half Black Green Class.

: This fish would be entered in the Half Black Green Class.

: A Half Black guppy with light blue finnage. This guppy would entered in the Half Black Blue class.

: This fish would be entered in the Half Black Pastel class.

: This fish would be entered in the Half Black Pastel class.

: Half Black Yellow tank entry at the 2009 IFGA annual.

: This fish carries the half black body X-linked trait. This fish would entered into the Half Black Purple class.

: This fish carries the half black body Y-linked trait. This fish would entered into the Half Black Purple class.

: This fish would entered the Half Black Red class.

: This fish would entered the Half Black Red class. Impressive dorsal on this fish.

: This fish would entered the Half Black Red class.

: This fish would be entered in the Half Black Yellow class.

: This fish would be entered in the Half Black Yellow class.

: This fish would be entered in the Half Black Yellow class.

: This fish carries the Y-link Moscow trait and would be entered in the Green clas

: This fish would entered in the Multi class. Notice the reticulate pattern in the front part of the body and the strong lace pattern in the tail.

: This fish would entered in the Multi class.

: This fish would entered in the Multi class.

: This fish would be entered in the Multi class.

: This fish would entered in the Multi class. This guppy carries the Y-link traits for the Gun Metal head and snakeskin.

: This fish would entered in the Multi class.

: This fish would entered in the Multi class.

: This fish would be entered in the Purple class.

: Purple males that have the Moscow trait.

: Two matching purple males. They would be entered in the Purple Tank class.

: This fish would be entered in the Purple class.

: Genetic albino Red. Red Albino class type.

: Genetic albino Red. This fish would be entered in the Red Albino class

: Genetic gold Red. Red class type.

: Genetic gold Red. Red class type.

: Genetic gold Red. Red class type.

: This guppy carries the snake body pattern trait. Less than 60% of the body has the snake pattern so it would entered in the Red Bicolor class.

: This guppy has red as the dominant color with purple as the secondary color. This guppy would be entered in the Red Bicolor class.

: This guppy has red as the dominant color with blue as the secondary color and carries the Moscow trait. This guppy would be entered in the Red Bicolor class.

: This guppy would be entered into the RoundTail class.

: Yellow bicolor type. Genetic snakeskin and zebrinous male . The zebrinous bars have masked some of the snakeskin rosette pattern. Since there is less than 60% rosette body pattern this fish is entered in the AOC BiColor class.

: Yellow bicolor guppy. This is a genetically a snakeskin and zebrinous male. The zebrinous bars have masked some of the snakeskin rossette pat

: Green bicolor type. Genetic snakeskin and zebrinous male. The zebrinous bars have masked some of the snakeskin rosette pattern. Since there is less than 60% rosette body pattern this fish is entered in the Blue Green BiColor class.

: Green bicolor type. Genetic snakeskin and zebrinous male. The zebrinous bars have masked some of the snakeskin rossette pattern. Since there is less than 60% rossette body pattern this fish is entered in the Blue Green BiColor class.

: Solid blue tail snakeskin. This would be entered in the Solid Snake class. Notice the matching dorsal and tail color which is rare.

: Variegated Snakeskin type.

: This bottom swordtail would be entered in the Single Swordtail class.

: This double swordtail would be entered in the Double Swordtail class.

: This bottom swordtail would be entered in the Single Swordtail class.

: Genetically gold with gun metal head traits. This fish would be entered the Yellow class.

: Genetically gold with gun metal head traits. This fish would be entered the Yellow class.

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Simple Genetics

Guppies, like humans, have 23 chromosomes. Lined up on these 23 chromosomes are thousands of genes which determine traits that the fish will exhibit. During a mating, genes (one from the male and one from the female in positional order) combine to form the visible and invisible traits that the parents will pass to their offspring. Some traits take the combining of only 1 gene. Others, like the excellent red color in guppies we all work toward, take as many as 4 genes to complete. If your fish have only 1 or 2 or 3 of these needed red genes, you will never produce young which exhibit the super red color without crossing to another unrelated red strain.

There are two terms in genetic theory that it would be appropriate to define at this point: (1) phenotype which is the appearance of the fish and (2) genotype which is the genetics of the fish. When entering your fish in an IFGA show (or any other show for that matter), it is the appearance of the fish that the judges are concerned about. If it is a “gold,” it should look like a “gold.” If it doesn’t look (phenotype) gold, even though it comes from a gold strain (genotype), it is likely to be disqualified.

Here are some simple genetic illustrations:

GOLD is defined as a fish (male or female) that has at least 25% yellow gold color in the body (like a gold wedding band). The caudal can be any color. To obtain 100% genetic golds in a dropping, both male and female must carry the gold gene. It is positional and always appears in the same location on the same chromosome in guppies. That means that you can cross two different gold strains and be assured of always getting 100% gold babies in each dropping. Since there are so many other genes that play into making a quality fish, you may get gold but they may not be good golds. If you outcross a gold with a non-gold, 100% of the dropping will show the non-gold trait in the f-1 generation. However, all of the fish in the dropping will carry the gold gene (its recessive). Crossing brother x sister from this drop of young will produce an f-2 generation with (on average) 25% of the fish being gold in appearance and 75% will be non-gold. Two-thirds of these non-golds, are recessive gold but they all appear as non-gold.

BRONZE is a fish (male or female) that has an “old gold” background color in the body with, at least, 25% of scales with dark edges. Some grey strains have the scale edging but would be disqualified because they lack the background color. You can substitute BRONZE into the GOLD write-up above and it will ring true. Bronze, like GOLD, can have any color(s) in the caudal.

ALBINO is any fish (male or female) that has red or pink eyes regardless of body color. There are presently 2 IFGA classes for albinos: (1) red albinos and (2) AOC (all other colors) albinos. Like GOLD and BRONZE, albinos follow an identical genetic pattern with the gene for albinism being located in the same position on the same chromosome in every albino strain. Thus, cross any two albino strains and you will always get albinos.

The genes for GOLD, BRONZE and ALBINO, while positional on the chromosomes, are at different locations meaning that if you cross a GOLD and an ALBINO, you should get 100% non-gold, non-albino young in the f-1 generation.

SNAKESKIN, by definition, is any male guppy that has an unbroken rosetta pattern covering at least 60% of the body. Females show no snakeskin pattern. The gene for the snakeskin trait can be on the y-chromosome (passed from father to sons) or on the x-chromosome (passed from mother to sons). The only way to determine where the gene lies is to outcross to a non-snakeskin strain and check the f-1 males for the pattern.

HALF-BLACK is any male or female that has a black (any shade) coloration from the edge of the dorsal to the peduncle area with at least 50% coverage. The gene for half-black can be y-linked, x-linked or passed from both parents. The IFGA currently recognizes 7 caudal colors in male half-blacks (red, blue, green, yellow, pastel, purple and aoc) and 2 caudal colors in female half-blacks (red and aoc).

SWORDTAIL is defined as any male having a sword-like extension of the caudal. There are single swordtails (upper or lower) and double swordtails. Females show nothing that would hint that she is from a swordtail strain. Both male and female must carry the swordtail gene to get swordtail young in a mating.

Crosses That Work

If you notice that your current strain is showing some weakness (small size, poor color, bad finnage shape, no resistance to disease, etc.) often to only way to introduce improvement is to outcross to a “compatible” strain. Recall that 85% plus of all outcrosses produce fry that are inferior to their parents. Because there are so many different guppy strains in the hobby, there are literally millions of options open to you but here are some crosses that have produced excellent hybrids in the f-1…

1) another strain of the same color. It makes sense that if you want reds, don’t introduce another color into the mix.

2) red albinos and reds

3) red and h/b red, blue and h/b blue, green and h/b green, etc.

4) purples and greens

5) h/b pastels and pastels (white aoc’s)

6) h/b pastel and blues (to produce h/b aoc’s)

7) solid color and yellow verigated snake females (to produce bicolors)

Note that not every possible cross like those listed above will produce quality young. Unless the parent strains are “compatible,” there is no telling what the f-1 generation will turn out to be. Likewise, there are probably other crosses that are not listed here that will work to produce excellent hybrid young.

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Genetics/Crosses by Tom Allen