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Love is not in the air

1K views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  Sylverclaws 
#1 ·
i have three swordtails 1 male two female and one female molly that i've had for over a year and despite my male swordtails best efforts the females are not in a mood to mate with him i have witnessed countless attempts but alas no success what could be the cause?
 
#2 · (Edited)
Ah, the breeders Dilemma! I had issues with that too, I also breed livebearers. Some females are just picky! I have also noticed that if you buy them from the same tank, they're usually siblings. Though inbreeding happens, sometimes the fish will try their best to avoid it.


How big is your tank? Less than 25 gallons and they may have decided there isn't enough room for more and will do everything to avoid it, contrary to popular belief that livebearers breed CONSTANTLY, sure the males try and mostly females are happy to pop, but not always. You also have the wrong schools going here a bit. Though swordtails can be ok in smaller groups, it's usually better to have three-four+ females per male, and mollies absolutely need to be in a group of their own with the same numbers. Neither like being in groups smaller than four.

Also, check and make sure your water parameters are set for them properly. If things are off, they may hold back. They also need a lot of hiding places, plants, caves and such, to feel secure.

Feeding them live foods may also help to get them into the mood. Fresh, blanched veggies too. A good diet means healthy fish. And live foods for some reason get them into the mood of breeding sometimes, but you can also just give them brine shrimp and glassworms, or daphnia(it makes a mess since it's so tiny, but it has a similar effect to live foods since it will cause them to chase it about trying to eat it).
 
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