Baby platies/mollies

Oceane

After setting up a 55 gal tank to which i was going to move my angels who are a bit cramped in their present tank (cycled fishless fo a month) i added 1pair mollies then week after 2 pair platies as i wanted some colour in the tank. Problem 15 babies! so now i can't move the angels as they would consider it as a trip to the restaurant Question (1)can the babies survive if i leave them in the tank can't get anything to put them till monday? (2) what do i feed them? (3) i've turned off the internal power filter and left the aerator, how long can the tank function like this? First babies in the tank, i would like them to survive...

Lupin

Hi Oceane,
If I were you, allow the fry to survive in the community. Locate your angels in the large tank as soon as possible to avoid stunting their growth.
Platies and other livebearers are very prolific anyway. A single mating from a male results to several batches of fry.
Try one female which has been around with males for awhile. Put her in a tank alone and you'll be surprised why she keeps producing without a male.
Their being prolific makes me hated them as they can strain your filter bioload due to added fry which also results to added fish wastes. I never bought livebearers since I came back from the hobby last February.
I knew this fish will give me troubles as the fry can be agile and good at hiding.
I've had it with them. It started with about 20 guppies which then made it to almost 200 in my tank months later. The same will happened to your platies.

Well, it's up to you whether you'd raise them or not. Good luck.

On the food, the livebearer fry will eat anything.

Tracy

I bought some mollies and platys hoping that they might have babies. The little ones are adorable as they look exactly like the adults but just so miniature. How do you keep them alive in the community? In other tanks (not mine) I've seen that the adults go after the babies and eat them, I'd be surprised if the tank became over populated with fry. Any info apprecitated :) (no fry here yet)

crazie.eddie

Provide allot of hiding places for the fry, both floating and also near the substrate. The fry are good at hiding. If you have susbtrate consists of large pebbles, then the fry will also hide in between the gaps. If the adults are fed well, they will avoid eating the fry, but it is their animal instinct to chase prey that are smaller than them. But the fry are quick.

I find that fry grow up healthier and faster when raised in the same tank as the adult, rather than seperated to grow in their own tank.

Tracy

Thanks :D I spotted 2 baby fish tonight when I fed them, but an hour later didn't see any of the babies :( Any idea of how many they have at one time? I would like to see some of the fry born in my tank, survive :)

crazie.eddie

It all can vary, you can have anywhere from 1 to over 50.

I'm not sure if you have a filter in that tank, but if you do, check inside your filter. The fry might have been sucked up into the filter. It's best to put a sponge or cut up a piece of fish net and place it over the intake to prevent the fry from getting sucked up.

Tracy

wow, i better check the filter.......I only ever saw two little ones in the tank, didn't know they could have up to 50

Tracy

Argghh!! I found about six little fry in the filter -- one of them was still alive but when I put him back in the tank the adults were after him. How horrible! I want them to live.

Lupin

That applies to very large livebearers. I have to admit I had a 5 cm Platy who had 30 fry.
Blue_gourami45, there's no need to bother with the livebearer fry. They are very prolific and the question is always "Do you have space to accommodate hundreds of fry?".
I'd say let nature takes its course. Obviously, only the strongest fry will survive thus this lessens the burden of trying to let others survive. This will also mean you obtain healthy adults instead of poor quality and deformed fry.