Mollies

[tim_s]

Hi,

Right now I have an aggressionless (yes I made a word up for fun) tank.

10 neon tetras
15 rummy nose tetras
15 penguin tetras
1 bushy nose pleco

in a 75 gallon tank.

I was thinking of getting some Mollies ... but I have some questions.

Are Mollies quick swimmers when scared?
Are Mollies fresh waster fish (as i have read they are brackish)?
Are Mollies going to pick on my current tank species?
Are my current tank species going to pick on the Mollies?

[soleil1980]

hi

I think they should be ok.  My mollies are in with neons, guppies, cories, khuli loaches, a male and female betta, swordtails and one huge pleco.  Mollies get big (mine are 5 inches).  the do not pick on anyone and they mind their own buisness.  Especially since you have a big tank, everything should be ok.  Just make sure you get more females than males as the males tend to pick on females.  I suggest one male for 3 females.

[cdylnicki]

I agree with the male/female ratio (1 to 3) as the males can be pains in the rear!

Else, put the females in first and after a few weeks add in a few males.  Yes, the males can be real jerks - I had 2 males that would grab onto each others dorsal fins and spin in circles trying to fight each other.

What about sword tails?

[Fishnut]

They are ideally brackish fish but can live in either extreme...fresh or salt.  They don't live for as long or thrive as much but they can live in your tank.  They are normally peaceful fish but the sailfin mollies tend to have a bit more of an attitude.  Since the rest of your fish are peaceful, they also are not likely to pick on a molly.

[Melody]

Domestic Mollies haven't seen salt for countless generations, but all of my Livebearers like a dash of marine salt as I have soft water.  Tetras and Mollies prefer different environments as a rule, but Mollies are highly adaptable creatures.  The biggest issue with Mollies is they need pristine conditions to thrive.

In regards to behaviour and size, domestic Mollies are mutts so it depends on what is in the mix and what the fish in question inherits from each species.  The short fin Mollies usually favour Sphenops, which is a smaller Molly species.  The 'sailfins' have the potential to get quite large.  If there's a healthy dose of Velifera in the mix, the males may be more territorial.  They don't cause damage, but they can cause a lot of stress.  They're usually fine in a larger tank though.

Unless you want more tanks, you may want to stick with males.  One female can bless you with hundreds of babies/year.

They can certainly swim fast when they want to.    

[wandmangels]

i've had some molly's(10) for just over a week now and they have almost DOUBLED in numbers..now have 17