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Can Guppies and Angelfish Live Together?

Aaron Boyd June 28, 2023

An aquarium completely changes the look and aura of the room where it is placed. The variety of fishes and their different color adds vibrancy and brightens up any space. And needless to say, as these fishes swim here and there, they look absolutely adorable. You would not mind just gazing at them for hours.

However, maintaining a fish tank is not as easy as it seems. You have to make sure the water remains clean and healthy and the fishes get food on time. The light and temperature of the tank also always have to be perfect. Furthermore, you have to ensure you are introducing the right combination of fishes in your aquarium.

Guppies and Angelfish are among the most popular species and usually, people want to have both of them in their tank. But, are they a safe combination?

Can they live safely together?

If these are the questions running in your mind, then continue reading and discover your answer.

Can You Keep Angelfish And Guppies In The Same Tank?

Angelfish and Guppies might survive together but it is still not suggested to keep them in the same tank.

And, the various reasons why you cannot keep them together have been discussed below.

Can Cause Stress To Your Guppies

Angelfish have an aggressive nature. Aggressive fishes are known to chase the peaceful ones. So, if you keep Guppies and Angelfish together in a tank, Guppies are going to be chased around for sure. This will cause a lot of stress for them, which is not good for their health.

In those tanks that keep Angelfish and Guppy fish together it is common to see that the Guppies remain confined in a smaller area. They do not mostly swim around freely and happily in the entire tank in fear of the aggressive nature of the Angelfish.

So, if you keep both these species together, the Guppies will not even enjoy any freedom and remain in stress in a corner. This is definitely not an ideal condition for their growth.

Angelfish Grow Quite Big And Are Territorial

Angelfish grow nearly 8 inches tall and 6 inches long. A Guppy fish, on the other hand, grows barely 1.5 – 2 inches long. If you have a 20-gallon tank then you will not be able to add more than 4 Angelfish. You may think your tank looks empty and will plan to introduce some Guppy fish.

The big Angelfish will completely wipe out the Guppy population in no time at all. Angelfish, owing to their territorial behavior are known to fight with any other species for territory. But the Guppies will simply try to hide and save themselves, and eventually become their meals.

Guppies May Become The Next Meal Of Angelfish

Angelfish grow quite big in size and they grow pretty fast. Be it in the wild or even in the tank it is common for the larger fishes to eat those that are smaller to them. Angelfish too can make Guppies their next meal. Thus, Guppies can never be safe around Angelfishes.

If your Guppies breed, then too there will be a problem. Angelfishes are going to eat the fry. You may work hard and offer some nice hiding places for the fry. Even then, the fry is not safe at all, not until they grow to become adults.

The chances of fry growing into adult Guppies are anyway rare if they are in a community aquarium that holds Angelfishes too. So, if you do not want one fish species of your tank to be the meal of another then keeping Angelfish and Guppies together will not be wise.

Guppy Fry Will Be The Favorite Prey

Guppy fry is very small when it is born, just about 0.25 inches in length. This is very attractive to the Angelfishes. Forget the adults, as even the little Angelfishes will eat the newly born fry.

It can fairly be said that while the adult Guppy fish will always be followed by the bigger Angelfish, the Guppy fry will be handled by the smaller Angelfishes.

Angelfish are quite swift and finding the Guppy fry, even if they are hiding, is quite easy for them. You may add enough decorative items and plants to ensure the safety of the fry, but Angelfish will eventually find them.

And once they do so, there are no chances of survival of the fry. Thus, letting the Guppy fry stay in the same tank is not a good idea.

Even if you plan to use a breeding box where you will grow the fry, you later will introduce them to the main tank. By that time, the Angelfishes too will have grown bigger and the Guppies still will be at risk.

Will Using A Bigger Tank Solve The Problem?

If you plan to use a bigger aquarium you might keep Angelfish and Guppies together. But, you still cannot be sure that your Guppy fish will not be eaten by the Angelfish.

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In case you like both these species a lot it will be a good idea to place them in two separate aquariums. If you have a big tank, of about 55 gallons, then you can use a divider.

This way, both your favorite fish species will be in the same tank, yet not in contact with each other. You will also not have to worry about investing in two different filters and heaters.

Conclusion

Angelfish have a fascinating personality because of which people love introducing them to their aquarium. But they are also aggressive and can be unpredictable most times.

Guppies are very peaceful in nature and this makes them very attractive. They are also very compatible with almost all types of tank setups. These fishes will not mind coexisting with almost any other species and cause no harm at all.

Clearly, Guppies and Angelfish have a completely different nature. While Guppy fish will not mind sharing specie with Angelfishes, the same cannot be said about the later.

Angelfishes, owing to their aggressive nature, will not let your little Guppies ever live in peace, and eventually will eat them. So, keeping these two fishes together is just not a good idea at all.