Glossary

livebearer

A fish species exhibiting ovoviviparity or viviparity.

Used in 233 species profiles

breeding trap
Net or plastic container suspended or floated in an aquarium and used to isolate gravid female livebearers or fry collected from the main aquarium. Available in a number of designs, with plastic ones generally containing two compartments separated by a grille or opening large enough that fry, but not adults, can pass through.
ovoviviparity
Reproductive strategy in which fertilisation occurs internally and the eggs develop inside the body of the mother until hatched, at which point live offspring are born. There is no placental connection between mother and embryo unlike in viviparous species.
shimmies
Behavioural symptom that indicates deteriorating water quality or disease in which an individual appears listless with fins normally clamped to the body and displays an abnormal, 'shimmying' swimming action. Particularly typical in poeciliid livebearers.
viviparity
The state or quality of being viviparous.