Guppy: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the guppy lives – recorded in 25 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Poecilia reticulata
Group	Bony fish
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	25 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America
Class	Ray-finned fish
Order	Cyprinodontiformes
Family	Poeciliidae

Where does the guppy live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the guppy in 25 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America. Wikidata gives its range as: Belém, Brazil. In Australia, Colombia, Germany, Spain, France, Indonesia, India, Madagascar, Mexico, Malaysia, French Polynesia, Singapore, Thailand, Uganda, Mayotte, South Africa it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Chinese Taipei
Brazil
Colombia (introduced)
Réunion
Australia (introduced)
United States
Guadeloupe
Puerto Rico
South Africa (introduced)
Mexico (introduced)
France (introduced)
Indonesia (introduced)
French Polynesia (introduced)
Martinique
Uganda (introduced)
India (introduced)
Thailand (introduced)
Myanmar
Mayotte (introduced)
Germany (introduced)
Malaysia (introduced)
Trinidad and Tobago
Madagascar (introduced)
Singapore (introduced)
Spain (introduced)

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the guppy endangered?

The guppy’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the guppy?

The guppy (Poecilia reticulata) is a ray-finned fish in the order Cyprinodontiformes and the family Poeciliidae, genus Poecilia. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the guppy

The guppy (Poecilia reticulata), also known as the peacock fish, millionfish or rainbow fish, is a member of the family Poeciliidae and, akin to most New World members of the family, is classified as a livebearer. Male guppies, which are smaller than females, have ornamental caudal and dorsal fins. Wild guppies generally feed on a variety of food sources, including benthic algae and the larvae of aquatic insects.

Native to northeast South America, it has been introduced to many environments and are now found all over the world; guppies are now one of the world's most widely distributed tropical fish and one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish species. They are highly adaptable and thrive in many different environmental and ecological conditions. Guppies are used as a model organism in the fields of ecology, evolution, and behavioural studies.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Guppy (revision 1380548904), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q178202 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).