We have just obtained very attractive offspring of the “Northern Mountain Swordtail”. The fish are young adults, i.e. the sword of the males is still relatively short. For comparison we show here also an adult pair of another strain.
In former times X. nezahualcoyotl was considered as a local variant of X. montezumae. The name refers to Nezahualcoyotl,the poet philosopher emperor of Tezcoco (Texcoco), considered to be coequal with Montezuma, monarch of the Aztecs in the Aztec Triple Alliance, because the species is to be considered a sister taxon of X. montezumae. X. nezahualcoyotl is found only in the headwaters of some rivers in the state of San Lous Potosi in Mexico. The water there is clear, the soil stony, the temperatures moderate (22-24°C). Care of this small-bodied swordtail – body length rarely exceeds 4 cm (the largest wild-caught male measured had 48 mm standard length), plus fins – is not very difficult, but care must be taken to maintain good water hygiene.
The species may appear with or without black mottling. The black speckling, as shown by the animals of our currently stocked strain, is linked to the Y-chromosome, so it is inherited from the father.
For our customers: the animals have code 476562 on our stock list. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
