Is she big enough to not get eaten or should I put her in the net?

[VioletThePurple]

My platies had babies, idk if I want to keep them all but this is definitely one, I want to keep. Should I throw her in the breeder net for safety? I do have places for them to hide but despite this the fry are out in the open a lot. I would like her to free roam, so it doesn't slow her growth if possible. I think she's big enough to be okay but I'm not sure. Also is it too early to tell the gender?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Platies take a while to be able to sex them, they all look like females at first. Guppy fry mature faster. It's hard to tell her size since there's nothing to use for scale in the pic, but if it's more than 2-3 weeks old, they're usually big enough by then to avoid predation. if they're larger than the other fishes mouths, should be fine. If the other fry are out in the open most of the time, then they obviously feel that they're large and safe enough. Watch the tank for a while and see if you see any adults try to eat the others. If they're usually ignored, then they're likely fine and big enough now to be safe.

Also, well fed adults are usually too lazy to bother chasing fast fry around... Don't go mad and overfeed, but small meals several times a day 3-4 if you manage it, will help the fry grow faster and better, and keep the adults too lazy to hunt fry, usually. No guarantees of course. This increased feeding and stock also means increasing water changes is a good idea, and helps fry grow better too.

 

[VioletThePurple]

Platies take a while to be able to sex them, they all look like females at first. Guppy fry mature faster. It's hard to tell her size since there's nothing to use for scale in the pic, but if it's more than 2-3 weeks old, they're usually big enough by then to avoid predation. if they're larger than the other fishes' mouths, should be fine. If the other fry is out in the open most of the time, then they obviously feel that they're large and safe enough. Watch the tank for a while and see if you see any adults try to eat the others. If they're usually ignored, then they're likely fine and big enough now to be safe.

Also, well fed adults are usually too lazy to bother chasing fast fry around... Don't go mad and overfeed, but small meals several times a day 3-4 if you manage it, will help the fry grow faster and better, and keep the adults too lazy to hunt fry, usually. No guarantees of course. This increased feeding and stock also means increasing water changes is a good idea, and helps fry grow better too.

I'm pretty sure she is older as she's bigger than some of the others. I wondered why I've never seen any of the fry I've counted be eaten, all the ones I've counted since birth are still here weeks later (and more). Maybe it's because the adults are fed and lazy like you mentioned. Whenever I've seen fry in front of them, they have no reaction. Also, I should probably stop calling this fry a girl since there's no guarantee on gender yet.

 

[emeraldking]

That fry looks old enough to be put in with the others.