Mollies keep poping up

[Koh23]

So.....

I had two black molies, they have babies, so probably, one is male, one is female...... No problem there.

One day, one of mollie dissapear, probably jumped out if tank, not long after, another "batch" of babies appeared in tank..... Still, not a problem, aparently female survived, pregnant, had babies, no swet.

After that, on two ocassion i have little molies in tank, to remind you, i have only one fish - guess female molly.

Little fishes dont last long, some got into sump just to end up in skimmer, some are eaten by mom.....

Today i noticed 7-8 babies swiming in tank, so, now i'm officialy confused, how i have babies with only one fish.... And months have passed since i had two of them, and this is third batch since only one molly remain in tank...

What is going on.....

 

[moz71]

How much rock work do you have? Can easily hide without knowing. Many people discover fish months after thinking they had lost. I would suspect the female hiding but can easily tell make to female mollies.!

 

[Koh23]

Not sure, everything is possible, i spend much time observing the tank, theres plenty of rock, but not many places for adult fish to hide easily.....

Water changes, glass cleaning, vacuming sand..... Lot of actions in tank, but of course, i cannot rule out totaly that he isnt somwhere in tank.....

Very strange, babies keep poping out regulary, maybe explanation hides in this:

"Female mollies can store sperm for months and may fertilize eggs as often as every 30 days, even when no male is present in the tank"

Either that, or.... Call ghostbusters

 

[Karen00]

So.....

I had two black molies, they have babies, so probably, one is male, one is female...... No problem there.

One day, one of mollie dissapear, probably jumped out if tank, not long after, another "batch" of babies appeared in tank..... Still, not a problem, aparently female survived, pregnant, had babies, no swet.

After that, on two ocassion i have little molies in tank, to remind you, i have only one fish - guess female molly.

Little fishes dont last long, some got into sump just to end up in skimmer, some are eaten by mom.....

Today i noticed 7-8 babies swiming in tank, so, now i'm officialy confused, how i have babies with only one fish.... And months have passed since i had two of them, and this is third batch since only one molly remain in tank...

What is going on.....

They could be hiding as suggested but I read the females of these fish can hold sperm inside them and can continue to fertilize eggs long after a male has disappeared so you will continue to have babies until the sperm runs out. I had a similar situation in my freshwater tank, that's how I found an article that mentioned this. It also happens when conditions aren't ideal to use all the sperm at once.

 

[Koh23]

Yes, this is probably explanation.....

Sadly, babies dont last long, but theres nothing i can do.....

 

[moz71]

Yes, this is probably explanation.....

Sadly, babies dont last long, but theres nothing i can do.....

By looking at pictures of female and male mollies can you tell what you have been seeing? The dorsal fin is much longer/wide on the males. Pretty easy to tell as when I buy I endure to get one male and harem of females

 

[Duncan62]

They could be hiding as suggested but I read the females of these fish can hold sperm inside them and can continue to fertilize eggs long after a male has disappeared so you will continue to have babies until the sperm runs out. I had a similar situation in my freshwater tank, that's how I found an article that mentioned this. It also happens when conditions aren't ideal to use all the sperm at once.

Baby mollies are so small they can hide in gravel for a couple weeks. Babies are fun.

 

[Karen00]

Baby mollies are so small they can hide in gravel for a couple weeks. Babies are fun.

Absolutely. I always love discovering new life. I just had a bunch of freshwater shrimp hatchlings appear. They were obviously very tiny because I didn't see any of them until they got to a certain size. At first I was like "what the heck has gotten into my tank". It took me a couple minutes to realize they were shrimpettes.

 

[Duncan62]

Absolutely. I always love discovering new life. I just had a bunch of freshwater shrimp hatchlings appear. They were obviously very tiny because I didn't see any of them until they got to a certain size. At first I was like "what the heck has gotten into my tank". It took me a couple minutes to realize they were shrimpettes.

I thought my first baby rfa were majano. Lol. I'm glad I had a magnifying glass. You've got those tiny colorful shrimp? I've been interested in them but afraid to try. They're cool to watch.

 

[Karen00]

I thought my first baby rfa were majano. Lol. I'm glad I had a magnifying glass. You've got those tiny colorful shrimp? I've been interested in them but afraid to try. They're cool to watch.

That is funny about your baby rfa's. Thank goodness for magnifying glasses. Yep, the freshwater shrimp I have are called Dreamy Blue shrimp (aka Dream Blue Velvet shrimp). I started with two babies that I purchased. I guess I lucked out and got a male or female (either that or they're hermaphrodites). Now I count twelve. Haha.

 

[Rmckoy]

If babies are appearing. .
There is still a parent in the tank do mollies not spit their babies out their mouth ?
or are they released from
The body as living fry ?

i don’t think they lay eggs to be hatched later

 

[Preyou]

Mollies are livebearers and, as such, give birth to fully developed fry. No eggs or mouthbrooding.

 

[Duncan62]

That is funny about your baby rfa's. Thank goodness for magnifying glasses. Yep, the freshwater shrimp I have are called Dreamy Blue shrimp (aka Dream Blue Velvet shrimp). I started with two babies that I purchased. I guess I lucked out and got a male or female (either that or they're hermaphrodites). Now I count twelve. Haha.

Do your shrimp require rodi water? I'm looking at doing a planted tank with tiny shrimps. Thanks.

 

[Karen00]

Do your shrimp require rodi water? I'm looking at doing a planted tank with tiny shrimps. Thanks.

No. My freshwater fish and shrimp just have dechlorinated tap water (I use Prime for that as well). RODI isn't used in freshwater unless the tap/well water is really bad but the RODI water would have to be remineralized just like we do when we mix up saltwater. Having said that I would have to assume anyone with really bad tap/well water already has a system to purify it so it can be used in the house.

I still have all of my freshwater planted tanks. I love them! I have no plans to take them down. If would send you some of my shrimp if we didn't live on opposite sides of the border. Good luck and share pics when you get it going.

 

[Duncan62]

No. My freshwater fish and shrimp just have dechlorinated tap water (I use Prime for that as well). RODI isn't used in freshwater unless the tap/well water is really bad but the RODI water would have to be remineralized just like we do when we mix up saltwater. Having said that I would have to assume anyone with really bad tap/well water already has a system to purify it so it can be used in the house.

I still have all of my freshwater planted tanks. I love them! I have no plans to take them down. If would send you some of my shrimp if we didn't live on opposite sides of the border. Good luck and share pics when you get it going.

Thanks. The site I looked on talked about RODI. : )

 

[Karen00]

Thanks. The site I looked on talked about RODI. : )

Well it could be dependant on the type of shrimp. There could be some that need RODI if they're particularly sensitive to certain elements but you would still have to remineralize it regardless. They can't live in pure RODI but I have never had any shrimp that couldn't live in dechlorinated tap water. Which type are you looking at? You could check a couple sites just to see what is recommended but like I mentioned I have never kept any that needed this. Save the RODI for your saltwater tank.

 

[Duncan62]

Well it could be dependant on the type of shrimp. There could be some that need RODI if they're particularly sensitive to certain elements but you would still have to remineralize it regardless. They can't live in pure RODI but I have never had any shrimp that couldn't live in dechlorinated tap water. Which type are you looking at? You could check a couple sites just to see what is recommended but like I mentioned I have never kept any that needed this. Save the RODI for your saltwater tank.

Neocaridina. Cherry and blue velvet. There's so many. I still love freshwater and I think I could really enjoy these shrimp. Thanks so much.

 

[Karen00]

Neocaridina. Cherry and blue velvet. There's so many. I still love freshwater and I think I could really enjoy these shrimp. Thanks so much.

Neither of these need RODI and of course I currently have the Blues. I love these guys. They don't do a heck of a lot (not like the hardworking pistol shrimp in our saltwater tanks) bit they're still enjoyable to have and so colourful!! I look forward to seeing your setup.

 

[Duncan62]

Neither of these need RODI and of course I currently have the Blues. I love these guys. They don't do a heck of a lot (not like the hardworking pistol shrimp in our saltwater tanks) bit they're still enjoyable to have and so colourful!! I look forward to seeing your setup.

Further reading from some sellers says just that. Use rodi then add back traces . Lol. I've found an almost clear one with red spots. I'll be sure to take a pic or 2. All I need is another aquarium. Only one in the living room but the spare room looks like a pet store. Now shrimp addiction. Lol they will fit in somewhere between the snapping and the sps tank. My wife will kill me.

 

[Koh23]

Just quick report, nature took its course, and now i have only one baby mollie left.....