Pregnant molly

[Beth_obrien2424]

yesterday my molly looked very pregnant and squared off, like she was about to pop. Today I bought some floating plants to allow for the molly fry to hide in as they are in a community tank.
today, the pregnant molly looks a lot smaller again. I know she could have had the fry overnight but her behaviour is very weird. She did not eat this morning and is being very subdued and hiding a lot, which is not her common behaviour. She is displaying labour behaviour but does not look like she is pregnant anymore so I’m not sure what’s happening.
I looked for any fry in hiding but can’t find any so if she had them I think they must have all been eaten. I just don’t understand her behaviour is she had them already

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

They can continue having fry over a couple of days, so it's possible that she's had most of them, but she's still in labour.
It's also possible that something went wrong during labour which happens sometimes, birthing fry can be hard on them and internal damage isn't unheard of, so keep an eye on her. Do you have a quarantine tank you could move her to if she's still like this tomorrow?

I'm sorry no fry made it so far this time But keep checking, sometimes they're good at hiding, and if they're down among the substrate they can be hard to spot.

 

[Beth_obrien2424]

They can continue having fry over a couple of days, so it's possible that she's had most of them, but she's still in labour.
It's also possible that something went wrong during labour which happens sometimes, birthing fry can be hard on them and internal damage isn't unheard of, so keep an eye on her. Do you have a quarantine tank you could move her to if she's still like this tomorrow?

I'm sorry no fry made it so far this time But keep checking, sometimes they're good at hiding, and if they're down among the substrate they can be hard to spot.

It is possible that I am missing them and they’re hiding. I’m just not sure where they would be hiding or how they would be able to eat if they’re hiding that well!
I do have a spare small tank that I could set up as a hospital tank if there is something wrong with her

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

It is possible that I am missing them and they’re hiding. I’m just not sure where they would be hiding or how they would be able to eat if they’re hiding that well!
I do have a spare small tank that I could set up as a hospital tank if there is something wrong with her

For the first 24 hours, the fry are still absorbing the last of the yolk from the egg, so they won't need to come out to eat anyway. Get up close and look down at the surface and stay still, look for little darting movements. They tend to stay still, only moving a little now and then at first. When they're still, they can be hard to see. Then look closely underneath the floating plants. Lastly look closely at the substrate, they'll sometimes hide down there too, even right in between grains of gravel, and if they're at the back they'll be hard to see. Just keep an eye out for babies over the next few days, it's entirely possible that a few made it, and if they're a dark fry among dark substrate, they can hide well! It's not unusual for me to suddenly see a fry that is at least 2-3 days old when I haven't been monitoring who is due that closely.

But, they might also have been eaten I'm afraid. A females first few batches tend to be smaller too, so if she only had 5-10 fry and she ate them quickly, you might never know. One of my female guppies had her first batch recently, and I only ever saw 3 fry, and only two have made it to a good size, it happens sometimes. But provided she's okay, it won't be long until she has another batch And you have other female livebearers too, don't you?

 

[Beth_obrien2424]

For the first 24 hours, the fry are still absorbing the last of the yolk from the egg, so they won't need to come out to eat anyway. Get up close and look down at the surface and stay still, look for little darting movements. They tend to stay still, only moving a little now and then at first. When they're still, they can be hard to see. Then look closely underneath the floating plants. Lastly look closely at the substrate, they'll sometimes hide down there too, even right in between grains of gravel, and if they're at the back they'll be hard to see. Just keep an eye out for babies over the next few days, it's entirely possible that a few made it, and if they're a dark fry among dark substrate, they can hide well! It's not unusual for me to suddenly see a fry that is at least 2-3 days old when I haven't been monitoring who is due that closely.

But, they might also have been eaten I'm afraid. A females first few batches tend to be smaller too, so if she only had 5-10 fry and she ate them quickly, you might never know. One of my female guppies had her first batch recently, and I only ever saw 3 fry, and only two have made it to a good size, it happens sometimes. But provided she's okay, it won't be long until she has another batch And you have other female livebearers too, don't you?

There are definitely plenty of hiding places. Both of the parents are black molly also, so they would definitely be dark. I’ll keep an eye out over the next couple of days.
I did have other female Livebearers but unfortunately my Male molly was aggressive to the others, except for the now pregnant one for some reason. I lost one and had to move the other to a different tank. So she is all I have left.