This is not the first article I have penned on this Goodeid (and I doubt it will be the last, the way the editor begs), but a while ago I decided to add a few points to my BAP total and lo and behold I had never submitted a butterfly Goodeid. So last week I took a bagful to the regular meeting of the Aqualand Aquatic Society (ALAS) a nd decided to follow up with an article. Well, that is how it all started.

Ameca splendens gets the minimum points for spawning, and, as far as I am concerned, it is the easiest five points any fish keeper can earn. Okay, maybe next to guppies. But even guppies need heat and the butterfly Goodeid can withstand temperatures than most other fish cannot, and bounce right back.

Let's start at the beginning. The butterfly Goodeid is a true livebearer. That means that the male and female must 'do their thing' for each spawn, unlike guppies where the milt (or sperm if you will) is stored within the female, so one insemination can produce several spawns. The male Goodeid, in general, has a modified anal fin consisting of a few forward rays. Technically, it is called an andropodium. Not much bothers these fish, and they playfully dart about the tank, even when outrunning large African cichlids bent on lunch. This is truly the cichlid keeper's livebearer.

Conditioning the pair requires no more than logical maintenance. They eat anything. I don't mean that they are omnivorous, I mean they eat ANYTHING. I had some Styrofoam packaging chips attacked after they mistakenly fell into the tank of Ameca. But they do appreciate some vegetable matter in their diet. For sure, they do enjoy healthy water changes of 20-25 per cent regularly and harder, alkaline (7.2-7.6 pH) water. The actual spawning usually happens at sunrise, with the female giving birth to HUGE fry, and typically over a three-morning period. That is, she does not just "drop 'em" all at one time. The fry usually take some time to get up and running. That is why it is very important to watch what you put in with the female during spawning. Even a decent-size Corydoras cat will find the fry to be a hearty breakfast. Newly spawned members of the Goodeid family are in general, very much like deadwood for a while. My friend Bob McKeand says they are 'learning how to swim'. And Mother Nature even provides a fishy umbilical, which can be seen if you get lucky. Given the status of the Goodeid family, they are worth a try. Ameca splendens itself was among several Goodeids declared 'Critically Endangered in Nature' by Dr. John Lyons in his paper, published in 2003. Fishkeepers in general will tell you that many Goodeids are easy, some exceedingly difficult, and all are fun.

copyright © 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Richard C. 'Rit' Forcier