can molly fish be with other fish?

Question

I have a male betta in a 10 gallon but i want some different fish i love molly's i i'm thinking of getting two.And a algae eater of some sort.Do you know any other types of fish that can be with a betta???

Answer 1

Mollies may be ok but I would recommend having your tank planted (or ornamented) pretty heavily as bettas like their privacy and to hang out in densely planted areas.

On the contrary to the last answer, bettas ARE tropical fish and do best in warmer waters 76-80 degree F and should be provided with a heater in that size of a tank_My betta occupies a 2.5gal tank and does not need a heater because his light provides enough heat for his smaller tank.

Also contrary to the former answerer, I would be more concerned about other tank mates for the betta that may nip HIS flowing fins as they are easy targets for fin nippers like many kinds of tetras are, and bettas are slower swimmers. I haven't seen bettas do much fin nipping myself, rather they have been the ones nipped. I don't believe mollies are the fin-nipping sort and I think they may be a decent match for a betta.

One great hardworking little algea eater that I recomend for your tank would be an otocinclus. These are small suckermouth catfish that never grow larger than 2in but do an awsome clean up job. I have one with my betta and sometimes the betta likes to chase him for kicks but he doesn't do any harm to him.

Happy fish keeping!

Answer 2

Where to start....
Make sure you have a good filter (changed regularly) and a heater. Bettas LOVE plants, be it real or fake. Be careful with plastics though, as they can tear his long fins. Silk plants are best, if you don't want real live plants. Make sure you do partial changes about once a month or more, and have your water tested when you go to get new fish. Don't be heart-broken when they tell you you need to do some work before you can have new fish though... It takes time, and lots of work sometimes...

Whatever fish you get, START SLOW!!! A couple at a time, no more!
The first ones I'd get would be a corycat, and pleco (a kind of alge eater). They are useful and very helpful for the tank. Corys are frisky, and very friendly. I got mine to keep my betta company, and he's now an active part of my big tank! I've also heard of Cory cats sitting below a betta no matter where he is, and they become the best of friends!!! Plecos are harmless, and are perfectly useful in a tank, since they are the "janitors" of the tank. There's many different varietys of both corys and plecos that you can get. It really doesn't matter the kind usually either.

If you want mollies, DO NOT get lyretail or fancy mollies! The betta will think of it as a threat because of it's fins, and will fight the mollies! Any kind of live barrers would be okay, but as I said, NOT lyretail or fancy, long-finned fish! These include Mollies, swordtails, platties, and guppies.

Any small schooling fish would be fun! Neons, Zebras, white clouds, glowlight tetras, (or anything else I've missed,) make great schoolers! Make sure you have at least 4, when you are done forming your school. I'd still say get two one week, and maybe two the next week, possibly from the same place.

NONO - DO NOT get any gouramis! I've had split sucess in my 55 gal tank with bettas and goruamis. But in reality, the gourami is the betta's cousin, and doesn't like it in his territory! I've got betta GIRLS in my tank, and my male gourami ripped them up! I wouldn't risk your precoious betta for them...

Another NONO, don't get chichilds, barbs, oscars, or any other mean agressive "fin-nipping" fish. Your betta won't last!

Goldfish are another nono. they're nasty cold-natured fish! They should never be put in a tropical tank, like what a betta requires.

Wherever you get your new additions, make sure the place has a return policy AND KEEP YOUR REICIPT! Watch your betta, and make sure everything is cool with him FIRST, since he's the only fish in the tank now. Some betta's can't stand being with other fish, after being alone for so long. (that's what happened to my male... RIP... He got depressed, and died...)

Things to do when you get your fish:
Take some tank water with you, and maybe some tap water too! Let them test both to make sure everything's cool for your fish. Find out what fish can tolerate the conditions of your tank's water. Ask LOTS of QUESTIONS! Find out which fish are fin-nippers, and which your betta could tolerate. Ask about the return policy! If your betta don't like the new ones, take them back! Don't risk their lives, just to give your Betta company, like I did...

Good luck, and I hope you find some Mollies to put up with your Betta - and visa versa!!!

;o)

Answer 3

I've seen some mollys that are aggresive with bettas, while some are fine.

I have my betta with tetras, swordtails, platys, cory cats, and white clouds. Stay away from any fish with flowing fins, as the bettas tend to attack them.

You will have a heater in the tank with those fish right? Bettas don't require heaters, but tropical fish, like the molly, do.

Answer 4

Bettas can do great with other community fish. There are hundreds of commonly kept freshwater aquarium fish so I won't go into which are good and which are bad, but here are some general rules of thumb.

1. Don't place bettas with other brightly colored fish or fish with large flashy fins like guppies or mollies. They occasionally react to them as though they are another betta and sometimes show aggression toward those fish.

2. Don't place bettas with other Anabantidae fish such as Gouramis. Anabantidaes are fish that possess a labyrinth organ allowing them to breathe air from the water's surface when dissolved oxygen levels are low. Because they are close cousins, bettas generally will be aggressive to these fish as well.

3. Don't place bettas with other aggressive fish or fin nippy fish. Nipped betta fins can become infected or generally stress out your betta leaving him open to other ailments.

4 Bettas are tropical freshwater fish and shouldn't be mixed with cool water fish like, goldfish.

5. As I said, some bettas will attack anything you put in the water with it. The only way to know is to try. Some fish that usually work well with bettas are, small catfish like Otocinclus and Corydoras, Snails, ghost shrimp, and Neon Tetras.

If you're considering adding other fish, be sure to check the tank size requirements for the total fish load and have proper filtration and aeration in place.

:-D

Answer 5

All colorations of platys can interbreed with each other, but you'll need to get a separate fry tank if you want to keep the babies, and if you're dedicated probably a grow-out tank because your females will just keep having babies. :P If you don't want to deal with all of that, find a local fish store that will take them when they're old enough or just leave them in the community tank and let them get eaten by the adults. Careful not to keep too many and overcrowd!

Answer 6

you definitely need a heater with any other fish, Betta's are fine with it 76-82
If you want to go with mollies, get ballon mollies or the dalmatian mollies
I also have zebra danios with my Betta as well as a pepper Cory
Here is a chart of compatibility
http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/fwcompatibility_chart.cfm
Good luck
hope that helped

Answer 7

yes you can add some molly but they will fight with your betta especially the male molly

Answer 8

yes, i have had male and female (at different times) with my mollies. the mollies did suck the fins of the male so i took him out.

Answer 9

supposedly these two species are peaceful with each other.

how's about getting platies, guppies, goldies, or whatever other kinds of xfish.

Answer 10

use this link. http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/fwcompatibility_chart.cfm