mollies, platies or swordtails with betta?

My only experience mixing is a brief time when I had swords (1m, 2f) with female bettas. The male sword was a little terror though, so he was gone very quickly. The females were basically like platies though...pretty peaceful and low maintenance. I don't know much about mollies per se, but with livebearers it seems like most of the compatibility problems arise when you add in the overzealous males who want to breed with everything, whether it moves or not.

That being said, a lot will come down to how your betta reacts. Some are fine with certain tankmates and others are best by themselves, or at least with less noticeable tankmates. I think it would be a good idea to make sure you keep an eye on things and have an established back up plan in case things go south.

jpappy789 said:

a lot will come down to how your betta reacts. Some are fine with certain tankmates and others are best by themselves, or at least with less noticeable tankmates. I think it would be a good idea to make sure you keep an eye on things and have an established back up plan in case things go south.

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Exactly. I had a male betta that got along with everyone, even male guppies, and the betta didn't even bother the fry. Then I've had males that would attack anything, even apple snails. Even some of my female bettas have been aggressive, I have one that is just plain evil. Anything smaller than her she goes after. I have her in my 46 gallon tank now, she has enough space to carve out her own territory now.

According to some research I've read on male betta aggerssion, bettas seem to flare at and be more aggressive to darker/bolder colored objects. It might make at least the betta more comfortable if the fish you choose are lighter and paler in color. This isnt a guarantee, but it is not a bad idea to consider.

I've had mixed experience with my bettas and platies. The male that I have with them now could seem to care less that they are there. The other male that I had rescued had nothing to do with them and chased them around all of the time. It comes down to the betta I guess. I hope everything works out because I love having both of those types of fish.


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