Pregnant platy?

[Deeznuts]

Can I expect babies anytime soon?

 

[Colin_T]

Any chance of a picture showing the fish from the side?

Assuming the fish is gravid (pregnant), she should give birth any day.

Have lots of plants in the tank and feed the fish well. She will do her thing when she is ready.

 

[Deeznuts]

Any chance of a picture showing the fish from the side?

Assuming the fish is gravid (pregnant), she should give birth any day.

Have lots of plants in the tank and feed the fish well. She will do her thing when she is ready.

I don’t know if these help due to the reflection.

Already have 3 small platty’s that appeared randomly a couple weeks ago, so if she drops some, I’m sure they’ll survive as long they’re not all the same colour as the new babies are.

Sort of all black with specks of yellow

Ill show you a picture tomorrow

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Yep, you have a heavily gravid female.

Anytime you have both male and female livebearers like platies, you're gonna get babies! The red wagtail is a male, and I see another platy behind them in the background - if you can get nice clear photo from the side like the above ones of any others you're not sure of the sex, just get those clear side photos that include the anal fin. It's pointy (and called the gonopodium) in males, and more fan shaped in females.

No telling what colours you'll get, since females retain sperm packets from any male they've mated with, and sometimes arrive already gravid when you buy them, and the genetics can get a little complicated when you're mixing colours, but that's part of the fun of it!
If you ever want to know more, @emeraldking is our livebearer expert!

The floating plant cover is great! I recommend not moving the female to give birth, let her birth in the main tank, and most/all of the fry stand a good chance of making it. Congrats!

 

[Deeznuts]

Yep, you have a heavily gravid female.

Anytime you have both male and female livebearers like platies, you're gonna get babies! The red wagtail is a male, and I see another platy behind them in the background - if you can get nice clear photo from the side like the above ones of any others you're not sure of the sex, just get those clear side photos that include the anal fin. It's pointy (and called the gonopodium) in males, and more fan shaped in females.

No telling what colours you'll get, since females retain sperm packets from any male they've mated with, and sometimes arrive already gravid when you buy them, and the genetics can get a little complicated when you're mixing colours, but that's part of the fun of it!
If you ever want to know more, @emeraldking is our livebearer expert!

The floating plant cover is great! I recommend not moving the female to give birth, let her birth in the main tank, and most/all of the fry stand a good chance of making it. Congrats!

I believe I have 3 males and 4 females. Don't recall all their breed names other than one is a female Micky. I have 3 female orange and white stripe platys that I believe they call tiger platys. I also have what I believe is a parrot platy but I could be wrong. The 3 small fry look like parrot, too.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I believe I have 3 males and 4 females. Don't recall all their breed names other than one is a female Micky. I have 3 female orange and white stripe platys that I believe they call tiger platys. I also have what I believe is a parrot platy but I could be wrong. The 3 small fry look like parrot, too.

Most of those are just colour variations of two species of platy usually found in the hobby, Xiphophorus maculatus and Xiphophorus variatus - but there are a lot of colour varities of both species, and those colours get named and so sold as a Sunset Platy, Santa Platy, endless variations of Mickey Mouse platies.. so lots and lots of options! And you have a variety of colours, so it'll be fun to see the fry grow and colour up!

Congrats on the babies you already have, and hope you update when your next batch arrives and how they're colouring up as they mature.

 

[Deeznuts]

Most of those are just colour variations of two species of platy usually found in the hobby, Xiphophorus maculatus and Xiphophorus variatus - but there are a lot of colour varities of both species, and those colours get named and so sold as a Sunset Platy, Santa Platy, endless variations of Mickey Mouse platies.. so lots and lots of options! And you have a variety of colours, so it'll be fun to see the fry grow and colour up!

Congrats on the babies you already have, and hope you update when your next batch arrives and how they're colouring up as they mature.

I see. I do try and find the more unique coloured ones. It’s surprisingly hard to find some colourful community fish in the uk.

I will keep you updated as they grow

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I see. I do try and find the more unique coloured ones. It’s surprisingly hard to find some colourful community fish in the uk.

I will keep you updated as they grow

Roughly where are you based? I'm UK too, and see a wide range - but I also don't keep platies anymore... I used to breed and loved the blues:

My mollies were hybrids, but had a gorgeous blue specking that often came through in the young. Mix of black mollies and sailfins, so young could be jet black, silver dappled, with varying amounts of silver and blue specking. You can see one of my stud male (blue, of course) male guppies, and below the giant mollies is what was named a mickey mouse santa platy. But these are common names rather the scientific names. Colour variations of the two scientific named species mentioned, and sometimes the same colour variety will have more than one common name!

Xiphophorus variatus and Xiphophorus maculatus are also closely related enough that they can easily interbred, so hybrids are not rare in the hobby.

Then of course when I started off with guppies, I was drawn to the blues! I just like blue fish Which is why despite swearing I'd never have a betta, I now have a blue betta, lol.

This was a girl I bred from my first group of six chunky, healthy females with blue tails, but the young were even better with their markings and tail shapes:

Breeding livebearers is a lot of fun! I always have to resist getting more, just because the numbers can get overwhelming! Though I found platies and mollies not as prolific as guppies at least!

I haven't been reading threads much recently as real life stuff has kept me away from the forum apart from messaging with friends, and I see you joined a couple of months ago. So a belated welcome to the forum from me!

 

[Deeznuts]

Roughly where are you based? I'm UK too, and see a wide range - but I also don't keep platies anymore... I used to breed and loved the blues:

View attachment 346424View attachment 346425

My mollies were hybrids, but had a gorgeous blue specking that often came through in the young. Mix of black mollies and sailfins, so young could be jet black, silver dappled, with varying amounts of silver and blue specking. You can see one of my stud male (blue, of course) male guppies, and below the giant mollies is what was named a mickey mouse santa platy. But these are common names rather the scientific names. Colour variations of the two scientific named species mentioned, and sometimes the same colour variety will have more than one common name!

Xiphophorus variatus and Xiphophorus maculatus are also closely related enough that they can easily interbred, so hybrids are not rare in the hobby.
View attachment 346429

Then of course when I started off with guppies, I was drawn to the blues! I just like blue fish Which is why despite swearing I'd never have a betta, I now have a blue betta, lol.

This was a girl I bred from my first group of six chunky, healthy females with blue tails, but the young were even better with their markings and tail shapes:
View attachment 346433

Breeding livebearers is a lot of fun! I always have to resist getting more, just because the numbers can get overwhelming! Though I found platies and mollies not as prolific as guppies at least!

I haven't been reading threads much recently as real life stuff has kept me away from the forum apart from messaging with friends, and I see you joined a couple of months ago. So a belated welcome to the forum from me!

I am based in Kent myself. I did see a few blue ones but to me they just didn’t have wow factor. At least the blue that I saw weren’t as strong blue as I would have liked. Although, I may have to add some to the mix lol.

Wait, did I read it correctly that, mollies and platys are the same fish?? Or same gene pool? Or, the mollies that you had were hybrid bred of the both? The blue hybrid molly looks really cool. Where can I get some?

I recently bought a few guppies but they died roughly one a week which I thought was due to some barbs that I had, so I removed those barbs but they kept dying one by one. I don’t know if I had a bad batch but the last one just died yesterday. Only the guppy’s though.

The other fish were from another place and I’ve never issues with those. All my parameters are perfect, so I have decided, no more guppies.

Do you only have the seimese now?

Thank you

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I am based in Kent myself.

Best advice I can give for sourcing fish, apart from finding the nearest good, privately owned local fish store and making a long drive, is to join as many local fish hobby groups as you can!

I joined the Tropical Fish Club for my city (didn't cost anything) which has a FB page. While I loathe FB generally, it is useful for connecting with other local hobbyists! They had a buy and sale event last weekend, and I got a lot of healthy, locally bred, beautiful fish for much cheaper than they usually sell them on Ebay or wherever, since it was an in person, local hobbyist event. Was good fun, got to learn from much more experienced people than I, and didn't have to pay retail prices for some smashing fish! Totally worth it.

Trading with local hobbyists means you're more likely to get fish that have been born here, are more hardy than the mass farmed, weak, chain store livebearers that are often riddled with disease, and just generally weaker due to poor breeding. I'll explain more further down, but you and your barbs very likely did nothing wrong when it came to the guppies!

Where have you been buying your fish from?

I did see a few blue ones but to me they just didn’t have wow factor. At least the blue that I saw weren’t as strong blue as I would have liked. Although, I may have to add some to the mix lol.

Everyone has different taste in fish! Just gotta find what appeals to you most! Fortunately in this hobby, there's a wide range to choose from!

Wait, did I read it correctly that, mollies and platys are the same fish??

Nope, sorry, I didn't explain that very well! Didn't mean to confuse you.

There are different sub-species of platies - like the two I listed that are most commonly available in stores and in the hobby. Those platy species are closely enough related to interbreed, and produce hybrid offspring.


(there are other sub-species of platies/mollies/swordtails/guppies too... but more often bred by specialist hobbyists like EmeraldKing, just to confuse you even more!)


Mollies cannot cross with platies. Too distantly related.


But there are several sub-species of mollies that can interbreed and cross with each other, so my three inch mollies were a cross between a sailfin molly and a black molly. They lived for a good 7-8 years so got huge, and I was gutted when they passed! But I still have a few of their offspring.

Platies can cross with swordtails though...! LOL. But if they each have male/female of their own species, then it's unlikely to happen. Happens more often if someone had say, a single female platy and a single male swordtail. Then they might well breed and produce hybrid offspring.

Or same gene pool? Or, the mollies that you had were hybrid bred of the both? The blue hybrid molly looks really cool. Where can I get some?

Since mine were hybrids and I inherited them from my father, I don't know I'm afraid! Ours likely came from someone's home tank where they kept both types of molly that crossbred and produced these. But there are plenty of gorgeous varieties of molly out there, and since all of these fish tend to breed easily and fairly prolifically, if you join hobbyist pages on places like FB, the BAND app, or gumtree, you'll often see people advertising their fish for free or super cheap, just because they're swamped.

A word of caution with mollies though - they can get large if given enough space. Not good to keep them in small tanks as that can stunt their growth. I would only keep them in a tank that's a minimum of 30g. My molly trio lived in a 220L (57g) tank, and used all of it! Also short fins and hardly fish mean they really use that space since they're strong swimmers.

They also absolutely require harder water than even guppies and platies. Mollies need it to be over 250ppm GH (mine is 253ppm GH, phew!). So if your water is softer than that, I'd avoid mollies for now.

It would be useful to know the GH of your water, to give you the best chance of success! Platies and guppies like hard water too, just don't need it to be quite so hard as mollies do.

I recently bought a few guppies

Where from? Was it a chain store that happened to have the words "home" and "pets" in the name?

but they died roughly one a week which I thought was due to some barbs that I had, so I removed those barbs

What kinda barbs? Can post a photo if you're unsure, someone will know.

but they kept dying one by one. I don’t know if I had a bad batch but the last one just died yesterday. Only the guppy’s though.

I went through the same thing when I first set up my own tank, apart from my dad's tank. I just wanted a little tank with some guppies and shrimp.


Lots of live plants, perfect parameters, I worked hard to make it perfect before I got any!
Kept buying store guppies that looked beautiful in the store, then they'd up and die on me. Some within 24 hrs, most usually with a week or two. I cried over those fish! Had a little guppy graveyard in the backyard before I learned to only dispose of anything from a tank, including fish, into the wheelie bin. Feels harsh to do it, but aquariums and our non-native fish can introduce all kinds of bacteria, diseases and nasties into our groundwater and waterways. So bin only.

I managed to get a trio of guppies to last for a while- female was heavily gravid and I was getting excited for fry, but she keeled over just as I was expecting fry. I even tried a C section in the hopes I could at least save the fry, but nope.

I was tearing my hair out and felt like a fish murderer. Almost quit the hobby then! Posted photos of my tanks and water test results etc, no one could find anything wrong, just suggested I try again. Wasn't until I came here that I learned more about the trade.

Many of the fish we buy in store - especially 'cheap' fish like guppies/mollies/platies etc are being farmed abroad in huge stock tanks, then shipped to stores before making it to your home tank. Each move to a new tank, and being shipped, is very stressful for fish anyway, but a lot of these farms harbour diseases, worms etc that wind up infecting most of the fish. Given how inexpensive the fish are, they're hardly going to spend a fortune on medications, or fuss about introducing new blood with unrelated fish to keep the fish healthy and robust. So inbred, diseased, mass farmed fish often arrive in stores riddled with disease and worms. Stores often get a bad shipment where the fish are dead or dying. That always happens at times, but it's a real problem with guppies.

Quarantining (QT) new stock is essential. If I were to buy livebearers now, I'd worm them in QT. Lot cheaper to medicate a ten gallon tank than my main tanks, and better safe than sorry! I also always check all the tanks in the store (I want to browse anyway!) for signs of disease and how well the tanks are maintained.

I aim for LFS's or fish from other hobbyists. The big chains import from those fish farms, for these types of fish anyway. The LFS might also be buying from the same supplier, but good ones are also more likely to not display and sell obviously diseased fish. They're also more likely to accept fish from hobbyist, when yours have produced a ton of fry! I checked my LFS would be willing to take the youngsters once they were old enough to sell before I bought a single guppy!

The big chains won't take livebearers bred by home hobbyist. They can buy them from the fish farms abroad super cheap anyway, and the risk of disease means they won't.

The "home" & "pets" store - I haven't yet seen one I'd buy a fish from. Maindenhead is usually better since it's specialist, but depends on the particular store, and their livebearers will be from the same suppliers too. Having said that, I bought some guppies from them last year, and they're still going strong! They've been healthy as heck.

But in general, fish store guppies are incredibly weak now. 30 years ago they were regarded as one of the hardiest fish, so great for beginners, but lately I suspect they've put more people off the hobby than they've helped! But! You can have success with fish store guppies. Just select carefully, worm for both flat and roundworms while in QT, and if you get some fry from them before they die, then you're doing well! Fortunately, the fry from them should be much hardier. So once you've got them started breeding, you should be fine!

The other fish were from another place and I’ve never issues with those. All my parameters are perfect, so I have decided, no more guppies.

Fair enough! I still love them, just don't want to be swamped with guppies again now my LFS has closed down, so I when I couldn't resist, I got males only. They're usually fine in a male only tank!

Having said that, I took in some fish from someone shutting down their tank because I wanted the mollies, but had to take the guppies too. He swore they were only males, and I could only see males in the picture. But when I got them I think it was eight or 12 male guppies - and one poor, stressed young female! So I got her out of there and popped her in a different tank. Was going to try to find a home for her, but she began popping out babies before that happened!

I'm looking at that tank now, that female is still going strong and is now a large healthy mature female, and she's named Susan. She's surrounded by her kids/grandkids/great great grandkids, and I have an uncountable amount of guppy/Endler's Livebearer crosses to find home for! Guestimate is 200 plus..!

Do you only have the seimese now?

Oh no, I currently have five tanks up and running, and plans for more! I dived deep into the hobby and had five tanks at one point, but then real life problems meant I couldn't give them the time they needed, and my hobby had to go on the backburner the last couple of years, so I shut down three of the tanks and only kept the two running with essential care and maintenance, but not much else! But circumstances have changed now, so I can give the fish and tanks the attention and work they deserve.

So still have a variety of fish, I started to list them in my signature yesterday, but there are still more to add! I also have a thread running for my tank plans... have more tanks and fish I'm in the process of planning and preparing for! Happy to be getting back into it. Can really get into a kinda of zen state, or a state of flow, with aquariums and maintaining them.

Thank you

You're very welcome! I hope some of it is helpful to you, sorry for confusing though, hope this post isn't even more confusing! But happy to answer questions or clarify anything!

 

[Sparx]

I’m also in Kent

The "home" & "pets" store - I haven't yet seen one I'd buy a fish from. Maindenhead is usually better since it's specialist, but depends on the particular store, and their livebearers will be from the same suppliers too. Having said that, I bought some guppies from them last year, and they're still going strong! They've been healthy as heck.

When I first started out in the hobby back in September 2022 I bought a batch of neon tetras and a batch of guppies from that “home” “pets” store… all of the neons died within about a fortnight. The guppies probably lasted about 6 months but they all died eventually too.
Around March 2023 I bought my mollies from Swallow Aquatics in Gravesend, along with more guppies and a couple of other different species and apart from the guppies, I still have all of them today.
I discovered Maidenhead in Dartford which is much closer to home, and I get everything from there now. Being a specialist they really do know their stuff, and since the other half went to school with one of them we’ve developed a great relationship with the whole team down there.
Any fish I’ve bought from them have all been healthy, and touch wood - I haven’t had any losses in a while!