Tiger Teddies - Neoheterandria elegans

[Ron Sower]

I picked up these live-bearing fish from a friend who tends to acquire "different" species than the norm, and let's them breed and then gives them away to friends or sells them to LFSs. I and a few others are fortunate to be in his list of friends!!!...

Here is one site for a good description... https://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/neoheterandria-elegans/ ...
Tiger Teddies were described to me as being the smallest live-bearer known. I haven't been able to confirm that, though...

When I received them they were small...I've been feeding finely crushed dry foods, microworms, decapped brine shrimp eggs, and another small fry food...which name I cannot remember ATM, and I'm too lazy right now to get up and look!... . After a few weeks and they started reaching their full size, I began to notice 1, then 2, young fry...they were big enough to take microworms...

I have them in a 5.5 gallon tank with the bottom covered with Susswassertang about 3"-4" in depth...I'm using a mix of RO and tap water...we can break teeth if we try to chew the water here in this part of Arizona...I don't test water for parameters...

It appears to me, and the site above may corroborate this, that they gestate the internal eggs similar to goodeids, in that the eggs aren't all developed at one time and they may derive nourishment from some organs of the female...and they drop fry one or 2 at a time...

All-in-all, I'm enjoying these cute little livebearers from South America...! I would like to hear from any other Muggers out there that have experience with this species...

[LizStreithorst]

This part is cool:
It appears to me, and the site above may corroborate this, that they gestate the internal eggs similar to goodeids, in that the eggs aren't all developed at one time and they may derive nourishment from some organs of the female...and they drop fry one or 2 at a time...

I guess I was wrong in thinking that mosquito fish were the smallest live bearer.

[Ron Sower]

Liz, so far I believe you're correct about Heterandria formosa being the smallest livebearer...