mollies

[awesome kid]

what size tank would i need to breed mollies in?

[Damon]

A 10 gallon will work fine.

[amelia]

You need at least two tanks. 10 gallons each with adequate filtration will normally work fine.

I suggest using sponge filters in planted tanks for mollies.

One tank should be for the adult pair(s). One tank should be for fry-holding. A planted for the adults should allow hiding places for the fry if you don't want to seperate the mother from the tank she's used to before she gives birth. You may lose a bunch of fry this way, but it's also less stressful on the mother.

A fry net, air pump run breeder box, or just a regular breeder box can suffice for the other tank if you want to seperate the mother. These will allow for the fry to escape hungry jaws. I believe there is a penplax brand breeder box that hooks up to an air pump. There is a grate in a large compartment of it, where the mother is placed. The fry fall down under the grate and are pushed through to a smaller compartment by the air pump, keeping them out of ANY danger. It's hard to find, but well worth it from my experience.

Once fry are born, they should be fed a mixture of live, crushed, and liquid foods of high quality to promote proper growth and developement. The larger tank will also allow for them to grow faster.

A sponge filter in each tank will prevent fry from getting sucked into canisters and killed. They're the way to go when you're thinking about breeding, but if you are insistant upon a canister, you can use a rubber band to secure pantyhose over the suction tube of the filter. This does impare flow into the filter, but saves fry's lives.

A planted tank is also a good choice for an extra tank to put newborn fry in if you would rather not keep them in a bare birthing tank. Don't use edged rocks--Smooth rocks are easier for them to escape from. If the fry are startled, they try to hide everywhere they can.. including in the gravel. Planted tanks also provide tons of fresh, nutritious foods for fry. Microoraganisms that you don't even know are there can be fed upon, and fry will also nibble at the plants themselves. Mollies are BIG plant and algae eaters.

A little bit of salt can be added to make for happy mollies. Aquarium salt--not table or epsom. Aquarium salt is fairly cheap and readily available at pet shops and wal-marts nation wide. Mollies are found in estuaries in the wild, where rivers meet the ocean. They can even be slowly introduced into a completely saltwater aquarium.. NEAT, huh!

Hope this helps a bit!

[awesome kid]

thanks, this is really my first time actually breeding mollies. when i got my first 2 fish, balloon mollies, i accedentaly got fry in a couple of days, which im assuming was because the female was already pregnent. however none survived :'(

[amelia]

Good luck on your breeding venture! It's fun and rewarding, as long as you're ready for TONS of fry. Some pet stores will take them, but be ready to house them on your own. Mollies have been known to drop from 30-100+ fry per drop.

[awesome kid]

thats a lot

[awesome kid]

i have a 35 hex tank. would that work, and instead of haveing a seperate raising tank could i put in cabomba in a thick mat so the fry could hide, also i made coconut caves (from the diy section) and i could put java moss on that and on the substrate, most likely flourite. i will have a flora-gro bulb and probably some liquid ferts. will this work or will i still need another raising tank?

[ronnfive]

it really depends on you, if you want more fry then, you will need another tank to separate the fry once you see them... do not forget floating plants coz the fry are always hanging at the top of the plants to avoid get eaten, and also near at the food, and can practice flipping their fins and resting at the top. a 35g hex will work but i prefer long so that more spaces to venture for the fish. do not forget the ratio, 1m/3f the more female the better(just in case u didn't know).

hope that helped,
ronn

[amelia]

Just as ronnfive said, if you want quantity out of your breeding then yes, you do need another tank. If you just want to breed for the fun of it and for the sake of watching the fish grow up, then you don't need another tank and your ideas for the 35gal hex are wonderful.