Molly fish breeding

[Aquaticfrog32]

I would like to breed my two molly fish. The male is new to the tank, but the female has been in the tank for a few weeks. The male molly is quite a nice, calm fish. The female, on the other hand, is not. I do want them to breed, but I'm afraid they won't because of the female molly's aggressive nature. She picks on the male ( and every single other fish in the tank ) , so will they still breed? Do I need to follow instructions? If I do, please post simple steps to breeding my mollies below!

Thanks!

 

[Tifftastic]

First off you should never have a pair of any livebearing fish. They require a minimum of one male to two females. They spawn quite readily, and males will constantly harass females to the point of stress and possibly death. Right now you are seeing territorialness because of the female being in there first. But once the male establishes he will be the boss for sure. There's also a very real chance he will harass your female betta (if these are still in the same tank) as IME male mollies will run a tank. I even had a customer return two particularly large male mollies because they chased and killed her full grown angel fish, within a week.
Secondly, are you sure you have the sexes correctly identified and were maybe not misinformed on the sex of each fish?
Third, once they establish they will spawn roughly every three weeks and you will have tons of babies. You'll need to have another tank or a plan in place for someone to take them. A lot of LFS won't take them because there are simply too many people trying to give them away.
Lastly, you don't have to do anything special. Just have the right ratios, give them good food, shelter and water quality, and then wait. You'll have too many babies in no time.

 

[Kannan Fodder]

I'm actually pretty confused that you now want to breed mollies given your posts in other threads. You were first horrified that the first molly fry was eaten by a tankmate, and quickly removed the surviving fry to a different tank. You now seem to hate your female molly because of her aggressiveness, yet you first bought a school of lemon tetras to curb her aggression, and when that didn't work, you bought a single male molly. Your female then proceeded to pick on the male,... and now you want to breed them.

Just so you understand, livebearers - including mollies - breed readily without anything special. It's just their nature. There are also other fish in your tank, and most fish will readily eat newborn livebearer fry - including your mollies. This too is fish nature. Any surviving fry will grow up and join the breeding population. You are going to find yourself with a tank full of mollies, some of which will probably exhibit the same aggressiveness you are already seeing toward each other and other tankmates.

Are you prepared to handle this?

 

[Tetar]

I would like to breed my two molly fish. The male is new to the tank, but the female has been in the tank for a few weeks. The male molly is quite a nice, calm fish. The female, on the other hand, is not. I do want them to breed, but I'm afraid they won't because of the female molly's aggressive nature. She picks on the male ( and every single other fish in the tank ) , so will they still breed? Do I need to follow instructions? If I do, please post simple steps to breeding my mollies below!

Thanks!

I suggest using the ratio of 3 females to 1 male. I personally think that's the safest for everyone. And, as stated above, you don't have to do anything special to get them to breed. They'll do it on their own.

 

[Aquaticfrog32]

Oh great! And yes, I am positive I have the genders correct, replying to Tifftastic's question. I am prepared, and I was thinking of using a breeding trap. I just thought breeding them would be kinda fun! ( extra work, but fun! ) I also know who will take my molly fry. And plus, pregnant fish can't really chase very well can they?


Thank you for all your answers!

 

[Tifftastic]

Oh great! And yes, I am positive I have the genders correct, replying to Tifftastic's question. I am prepared, and I was thinking of using a breeding trap. I just thought breeding them would be kinda fun! ( extra work, but fun! ) I also know who will take my molly fry. And plus, pregnant fish can't really chase very well can they?


Thank you for all your answers!

You'd be surprised what determination they have lol

 

[Kannan Fodder]

And plus, pregnant fish can't really chase very well can they?

It's easier to move in water, so she'd still be just as active and belligerent.

You're keeping these in a 20 long, right? Just FYI, I have a friend who set up a custom built 65g several years ago, and only added 6-8 Dalmatian mollies. Those fish quickly overpopulated the tank, and that's all she's ever kept with the exception of a pleco or dojo loach. The tank is FULL of mollies of all sizes. It's a really nice tank, but every female fry that makes it to adulthood immediately enters the breeding population, and the circle restarts.

I'd recommend lining up several options for your extra fish! It's kinda like growing zucchini squash. At first all your friends are super excited to get your surplus, but then they quickly get tired of zucchini every night for dinner, and it gets harder and harder to give it away.

 

[Aquaticfrog32]

Okay! I have a few options for homes for my mollies so far, but I will try and find more!
Thanks!

 

[Tifftastic]

I'd recommend lining up several options for your extra fish! It's kinda like growing zucchini squash. At first all your friends are super excited to get your surplus, but then they quickly get tired of zucchini every night for dinner, and it gets harder and harder to give it away.

Hahaha! That is one of the best analogies I've ever heard for livebearers. I'm definitely going to keep it.

 

[Aquaticfrog32]

Thanks for all the help!