Spotted skiffia
A live-bearing goodeid from a handful of Mexican spring systems, most of which no longer hold it. Males develop irregular black blotching and a golden flush; the species is maintained largely by hobbyist and institutional breeding programmes, which is the honest reason to keep it.
Quick profile
- Scientific name
- Skiffia multipunctata
- Adult size
- 4–7 cm (1.6–2.8 in)
- Lifespan
- 3–5 years
- Temperature
- 18–26 °C (64–79 °F)
- pH
- 7–8.5
- Hardness
- 10–25 °dGH
- Minimum tank
- 75 L (20 US gal)
- Minimum length
- 75 cm
- Swimming zone
- Midwater
- Social
- Loose group — at least 6
- Diet
- Omnivore
- Overall confidence
- moderate confidence
What keeping this species involves
Straightforward to keep in hard cool water and easy to lose through hybridisation, inbreeding or being kept too warm. The difficulty is maintaining a line rather than keeping the fish.
Springs, spring-fed streams and shallow lake margins on the Mexican plateau, in hard alkaline water that is cool by tropical standards.
Identity and names
- Common name
- Spotted skiffia
- Scientific name
- Skiffia multipunctata
- Family
- Goodeidae
- Order
- Cyprinodontiformes
- Class
- Actinopterygii
- Also sold as
- Skiffia multipunctata, spotted splitfin, tiro pintado
Adult size and growth
4–7 cm (1.6–2.8 in) — Females larger than males, as in most goodeids.
Typical lifespan in an aquarium: 3–5 years. Almost every animal sold in a shop is a juvenile, so the tank has to suit the size in the first line rather than the size in the bag.
Shape, which is what the compatibility engine reads instead of length alone: fusiform — the ordinary torpedo with a small terminal mouth. Assigned from what is typical of Goodeidae, not examined for this species.
Water and tank requirements
An active midwater livebearer that needs swimming room and enough floor for females to escape male attention.
Temperature (°C)
Scale: 0 to 36 °C.
pH (pH)
Scale: 4 to 9.5 pH.
Hardness (°dGH)
Scale: 0 to 30 °dGH.
Why these ranges: Hard alkaline spring water on the Mexican plateau, at altitude and therefore cool. The combination of genuinely hard water and a temperature well below tropical is what the trade least expects and what this fish actually needs.
Where these figures come from
Habitat class
Hard alkaline water — spring systems of the Lerma-Santiago basin, western Mexico
Water draining limestone, gypsum or volcanic mineral — Central American rivers, karst springs, hard-water lakes.
These species are usually easy in hard tap water and difficult in the soft, acidic water the hobby treats as the default. The commonest failure is the keeper softening water that did not need softening.
- Conductivity
- 300–900 µS/cm
- Flow
- moderate
- Dissolved oxygen
- moderate
- Seasonality
- moderate
These are figures for the KIND of water body, not measurements of this species. They are AquariumHQ’s summary of the general limnology and are given wide because the water is.
- TemperatureReasoned on this record
- This record states its own reason for this band. See the water section.
- pHReasoned on this record
- This record states its own reason for this band. See the water section.
- General hardnessReasoned on this record
- This record states its own reason for this band. See the water section.
| Requirement | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Temperature | 18–26 °C (64–79 °F) | Stability matters more than hitting an exact figure. |
| pH | 7–8.5 | A stable pH outside the ideal band is usually better than an unstable one inside it. |
| General hardness | 10–25 °dGH | Check your supplier's published figure before choosing species. |
| Minimum volume | 75 L (20 US gal) | A floor, not a recommendation. |
| Minimum footprint | 75 cm long | An active midwater livebearer that needs swimming room and enough floor for females to escape male attention. |
| Water flow | moderate | Match the outflow to this rather than to the filter's rating. |
| Lid required | Recommended | Reduces evaporation and prevents accidents. |
| Structure | Open swimming space with planted refuges at the ends. |
Behaviour
- Nips fins, which is inherited from a genuinely different feeding style rather than from aggression — goodeids graze.
- Males pursue females persistently and without display.
Telling males from females
Males develop black blotching, a golden or orange flush and a notched anal fin used in mating. Females are plain olive.
Feeding
Needs significant vegetable matter. Goodeids kept entirely on protein develop poorly and breed badly.
- Diet type
- Omnivore
- Staples
- Spirulina flake, Frozen daphnia and brine shrimp, Blanched vegetables, Algae
Breeding
- Strategy
- Livebearer with a true placental connection — the trophotaenia — rather than simple egg retention
- Difficulty
- straightforward
- Parental care
- bearer
Broods are small — often under twenty — and the fry are large. This is a fundamentally different reproductive mode from a guppy's and produces far fewer, far better-developed young.
Tankmates and compatibility
Assessments are derived from stored traits by the compatibility engine, with the reasoning shown. A verdict is a statement about probability, not a guarantee — individual temperament can override it.
| Towards | Risk | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Small fish | none | Anything that fits in the mouth is at risk once this species reaches adult size. |
| Adult dwarf shrimp | moderate | Cover reduces losses but rarely prevents them where the risk is high. |
| Shrimplets | high | Determines whether a shrimp colony can grow rather than merely persist. |
| Snails | none | Applies to snails you wanted as well as snails you did not. |
| Long or trailing fins | occasional | Fin damage is an entry point for secondary infection. |
| Plants | nibbles | Tough species such as Anubias and Java fern survive most grazers. |
Any pair in the catalogue can be assessed with the compatibility checker.
Welfare considerations
Points where the way this species is commonly sold or kept differs from what it actually needs.
- Several Skiffia populations are gone from the wild and the aquarium population is a genuine reserve. Keeping a line pure and unhybridised is the point of keeping it at all.
- Do not mix Skiffia species, or Skiffia with other goodeids, if the fry will be passed on. Goodeid hybrids are fertile and indistinguishable.
- Not a community fish for a tropical tank: it nips, it wants hard water, and it wants a cooler winter.
Problems to watch for
Most problems in a tank containing this species are general rather than species-specific. Start with the troubleshooting index and work from the observation rather than from a guess at the cause.
What AquariumHQ does not yet hold
Species-level disease susceptibility is modelled in the graph and is not yet populated. Health pages will not be published until each condition has veterinary sourcing, because health content written without evidence is the most harmful thing this product could publish. The gap is recorded in the coverage report.
Where it comes from
- Native range
- Western Mexico — the Lerma-Santiago basin of Michoacán and Jalisco, in a small and shrinking area
- Habitat
- Springs, spring-fed streams and shallow lake margins on the Mexican plateau, in hard alkaline water that is cool by tropical standards.
Evidence
Every stored value with the kind of support behind it and where to check it. Evidence type and confidence are separate axes: an editorial position held confidently and a measurement held tentatively are different things.
| Claim | Value | Evidence type | Confidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| scientific name | Skiffia multipunctata | Observed / measured | high confidence | Catalogue of Life; GBIF — Global Biodiversity Information Facility |
| native range | Western Mexico — the Lerma-Santiago basin of Michoacán and Jalisco, in a small and shrinking area | Observed / measured | moderate confidence | GBIF — Global Biodiversity Information Facility |
| adult size | 4–7 cm | Aquarium-literature consensus | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| lifespan | 3–5 years | Aquarium-literature consensus | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| temperature | 18–26 °C | Aquarium-literature consensus | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| ph | 7–8.5 pH | Aquarium-literature consensus | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| general hardness | 10–25 °dGH | Aquarium-literature consensus | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| minimum tank volume | ≥ 75 L | AquariumHQ editorial position | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| minimum tank length | ≥ 75 cm | AquariumHQ editorial position | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
| minimum group size | ≥ 6 | AquariumHQ editorial position | moderate confidence | AquariumHQ husbandry synthesis |
Last reviewed 2026-08-10. Values labelled as an aquarium-literature consensus are AquariumHQ editorial positions rather than measurements — see how evidence is handled.
Why we say this
What each figure on this page rests on, and how far that is from being independently established.
Every figure on this page has a provenance. Open any claim to see what AquariumHQ holds for it, which sources say what, and what a claim of that kind actually needs. Different claims need different evidence: an accepted scientific name is settled by one authority, while a legal restriction needs a current primary instrument. A single source is often the right answer rather than a thin one.
scientific nameAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableBased on a verified authoritative source.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: accepted scientific name and classification — 1 authoritative source in an appropriate context. Checked against gbif on 2026-08-30. One authoritative backbone is what this class requires.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
native rangeAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableLimited evidence — treat with caution.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: where the species occurs — 1 authoritative source in an appropriate context. No checklist distribution statement is held for this species. The range on the page is editorial until one is.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
adult sizeAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: size a well-kept specimen reaches — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No external source is required for this class. AquariumHQ's position stands on its stated reasoning.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
lifespanAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: what aquariumhq advises for keeping — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No external source is required for this class. AquariumHQ's position stands on its stated reasoning.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
temperatureAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: what aquariumhq advises for keeping — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No external source is required for this class. AquariumHQ's position stands on its stated reasoning.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
phAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: what aquariumhq advises for keeping — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No external source is required for this class. AquariumHQ's position stands on its stated reasoning.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
general hardnessAquariumHQ's own position, externally checkableAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
AquariumHQ's own position on a claim an external source could support.
What this kind of claim needs: what aquariumhq advises for keeping — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No external source is required for this class. AquariumHQ's position stands on its stated reasoning.
What would improve this: Go and read a source. This is reachable and has not been reached.
minimum tank volumeAquariumHQ's judgement — no authority publishes thisAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
No external authority publishes this. The rationale carries the reasoning.
What this kind of claim needs: minimum tank size — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No authority publishes this. AquariumHQ derives it, and the derivation is recorded with its inputs and assumptions.
What would improve this: Keep the rationale current. There is no source to find.
minimum tank lengthAquariumHQ's judgement — no authority publishes thisAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
No external authority publishes this. The rationale carries the reasoning.
What this kind of claim needs: minimum tank size — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No authority publishes this. AquariumHQ derives it, and the derivation is recorded with its inputs and assumptions.
What would improve this: Keep the rationale current. There is no source to find.
minimum group sizeAquariumHQ's judgement — no authority publishes thisAquariumHQ's own position, derived from evidenced inputs.
No external authority publishes this. The rationale carries the reasoning.
What this kind of claim needs: group size — no external source is required, provided AquariumHQ shows its reasoning. No external source is required for this class. AquariumHQ's position stands on its stated reasoning.
What would improve this: Keep the rationale current. There is no source to find.
Guides relevant to this species
Chosen from this record's own traits rather than listed on every page.
- Schooling and shoalingThis species is recorded as loose group, and the number it is kept in decides how it behaves.
- Wild conditions and aquarium recommendationsThe water band on this page is an AquariumHQ position with a stated reason, not a measurement of a river.
- How to read a compatibility verdictThis animal is recorded as nipping fins, which is one of the few compatibility factors with real reports behind it.
Group size and social behaviour
Lives in loose groups and males harass females continuously. A tank with one female and two males is a tank with an exhausted female.