I did have mollies and platies in one 30 gallon tank, but they reproduced to the point that they were at risk of over crowding the tank, so I removed the males and put them in their own 30 gallon.
In the "boy's tank", there are 2 mollies, 3 platies and an angel. The mollies and angel are happy and active, but my platies tend to hide. There are 2 juvenile ones that are more active than their father, but still, they tend to hide most of the time and even dug a hold under a bit of driftwood to hide in. I never knew platies would do that.
Is this normal? When they were in the other tank they were active and almost never hid. Also in the other tank, they didnt divide themselves, but now they seem to be in separate small schools...the mollies and platies really dont associate with each other, whereas in the "girl tank" they dont seem to even notice they are different.
Are platies naturally more shy than mollies? Or do I have to worry about them being ill?
2007-10-30 11:56:23 · 3 answers · asked by Annie 5 in Pets ➔ Fish
Thanks:)
Its been about a month though, and I thought they'd be happier by now.
Do you think I should get a few more male platies?
We were planning on getting a group of tetras (probably neons), but I dont want to add more fish if my platies are still stressed.
2007-10-30 12:33:19 · update #1
Before I divided them we had more than 20 platies and mollies together plus a pleco. And I still have one platy and 2 mollies that are pregnant.
The conditions were too good. On the last birthing one of my platies had, 5 fry survived, with that many fish, thats a lot. I ws just nipping it in the bud.
Plus we wanted to try and get angels and maybe gouramis or rams and couldnt do that with a tank full of mollies and platies.
2007-10-30 15:12:22 · update #2
Angels can often be bullies, especially to such peaceful fish as Platies. They could also still be stressed from the move, or insecure because their previously large group has just been diminished (similar to what a predator might do), which can be very stressful. Just give them time to acclimate to their new surroundings, and they should soon be swimming happily again.
Soop Nazi
EDIT: Don't get Neons... The Angel will soon gobble them up (they are far from angelis)... You may want to consider getting them a few more Platies (if you've had it up for a month, they are already long done adjusting)... Email me if you have any questions.
2007-10-30 12:27:33 · answer #1 · answered by nosoop4u246 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
How many fish did you have in the platy/molly tank before dividing them up? I maintained numerous 20 gallon tanks with usually 50 platies or mollies in each with no problem. I can't get over the fact that so many people on here are so worried about the number of fish they have to the point of obsession. If you have a healthy tank of platies and mollies, and they reproduce, nature will dictate how many is too many. The majority of the babies will never make it. Let them keep their romances going and be happy. Do a partial water change every week if you are worried about them. As long as the fish are living and are healthy, you are not doing anything wrong. The seond tank you described sounded boring, and that's not why you have fish!
2007-10-30 14:37:25 · answer #2 · answered by Dr. Kalyfran 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
hmmmm, I am no fish expert but it could be your angel fish since it gets bigger than mollies and platies(may be bullying them a bit). Or, it could be the fact that their all males.
2007-10-30 12:05:34 · answer #3 · answered by E J 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋