PLUMETAIL
Features
This mutation is best defined by Charles Clapsaddle's definition of the trait as "a plume of elongated fin rays in the middle of the caudal or tail fin of the fish". Males also possess a small “sword”, like a swordtail. I hypothesize that the mutation emerged on a swordtail-platy hybrid, and the plumetail allele is linked to a sword-producing allele. Alternatively, the sword may be a secondary effect of the gene. Like Hifin, the length of the fin extension increases as the fish ages, however unlike other the other known Xiphophorus fin mutations, fish are born with the extension prevalent, while in hifins and lyretails it takes time for the extension to develop. Even though newborn fry can have a plumetail, I wait until the fry are 1 week old and the plume is more apparent to separate fry. It is unfortunate that plumetails are no longer widely kept in the North America.
Nomenclature
The original name of this trait was “Brushtail”, but since then has since been split into 2 poorly distinguished groups: plumetails and pintails. It has been suggested that pintails are thinner extensions that taper to a point, but I find the differentiation unnecessary.
History
In 1934 a male platy was discovered that expressed a mutation similar to plumetail. The male in the picture lacks a small sword like those found on modern plumetail males. Unfortunately, the trait then disappeared for 4 decades. A similar mutation then emerged in the early 70’s in an unknown hobbyist tanks. He sold his fish to a petshop in Germany, and eventually the first made it's way to the Zoological Institute of the University of Hamburg. Unlike Hifin and Lyretail, this gene originally emerged in platys, and not swordtails.
Genetics
Plumetail is a monofactorial autosomal dominant trait, which means there is only 1 non-sex linked gene and it only takes 1 "copy" to express the trait. Unlike hifin and lyretail, plumetails are alive and healthy with 2 copies and males are able to breed on their own perfectly well. Heterozygous fish cannot be differentiated from homozygous plumetails. Like many other fin mutations, plumetail can be affected by other "modifier genes" affecting the length, width, and straightness of the plume, and therefore fish with better tails can be selectively bred for. Breeders used to breed for additional thickness and length, however this is trait is no longer commonly bred whatsoever, and nicer tails are no longer common.
Availability
Plumetails are most often found as platys with the maculatus body type, but occasionally variatus are available. Although it can and has been transferred to swordtails, these hybrids are usually described as being rather unattractive. The availability of plumetails in the United States is very poor from my experience. I only ever heard of it in pet stores a few times and seen it online occasionally. I call on breeders to make it more available.
It’s interesting to observe that the plumetail has fallen out of favor with the larger Xiphphorus crowd. “I imagine it’s due to the popularity of the hifin” paraphrases an e-mail long ago deleted from Rick Graham. However, other breeders believe it is due to the careless selection of breeders, prompting one enthusiast to remark “Dumb breeding ruined them.”
This mutation is best defined by Charles Clapsaddle's definition of the trait as "a plume of elongated fin rays in the middle of the caudal or tail fin of the fish". Males also possess a small “sword”, like a swordtail. I hypothesize that the mutation emerged on a swordtail-platy hybrid, and the plumetail allele is linked to a sword-producing allele. Alternatively, the sword may be a secondary effect of the gene. Like Hifin, the length of the fin extension increases as the fish ages, however unlike other the other known Xiphophorus fin mutations, fish are born with the extension prevalent, while in hifins and lyretails it takes time for the extension to develop. Even though newborn fry can have a plumetail, I wait until the fry are 1 week old and the plume is more apparent to separate fry. It is unfortunate that plumetails are no longer widely kept in the North America.
Nomenclature
The original name of this trait was “Brushtail”, but since then has since been split into 2 poorly distinguished groups: plumetails and pintails. It has been suggested that pintails are thinner extensions that taper to a point, but I find the differentiation unnecessary.
History
In 1934 a male platy was discovered that expressed a mutation similar to plumetail. The male in the picture lacks a small sword like those found on modern plumetail males. Unfortunately, the trait then disappeared for 4 decades. A similar mutation then emerged in the early 70’s in an unknown hobbyist tanks. He sold his fish to a petshop in Germany, and eventually the first made it's way to the Zoological Institute of the University of Hamburg. Unlike Hifin and Lyretail, this gene originally emerged in platys, and not swordtails.
Genetics
Plumetail is a monofactorial autosomal dominant trait, which means there is only 1 non-sex linked gene and it only takes 1 "copy" to express the trait. Unlike hifin and lyretail, plumetails are alive and healthy with 2 copies and males are able to breed on their own perfectly well. Heterozygous fish cannot be differentiated from homozygous plumetails. Like many other fin mutations, plumetail can be affected by other "modifier genes" affecting the length, width, and straightness of the plume, and therefore fish with better tails can be selectively bred for. Breeders used to breed for additional thickness and length, however this is trait is no longer commonly bred whatsoever, and nicer tails are no longer common.
Availability
Plumetails are most often found as platys with the maculatus body type, but occasionally variatus are available. Although it can and has been transferred to swordtails, these hybrids are usually described as being rather unattractive. The availability of plumetails in the United States is very poor from my experience. I only ever heard of it in pet stores a few times and seen it online occasionally. I call on breeders to make it more available.
It’s interesting to observe that the plumetail has fallen out of favor with the larger Xiphphorus crowd. “I imagine it’s due to the popularity of the hifin” paraphrases an e-mail long ago deleted from Rick Graham. However, other breeders believe it is due to the careless selection of breeders, prompting one enthusiast to remark “Dumb breeding ruined them.”
Sources
"Der Pinscelschwantzplaty- eine neue Mutation" by Gunter Entlinger, August 1973 issue of Aquarien Magazin. A translation of this article can be found in the January 1974 issue of Tropical Fish Hobbyist, or on page 16 of ALA Special Publication 2
"Der Pinscelschwantzplaty- eine neue Mutation" by Gunter Entlinger, August 1973 issue of Aquarien Magazin. A translation of this article can be found in the January 1974 issue of Tropical Fish Hobbyist, or on page 16 of ALA Special Publication 2