Baby Mickey Mouse Platy Found!

[orangefish]

I went to my LFS on monday to get 2 young mickey mouse platy (I'd say they were about 3 weeks/1 month old). Anyway, the young platy were all in a tank together at the LFS, so I got home, to find 5 mickey mouse platy in the bag- 2 of them being baby's (I think not much past newborn), and another 2 a week or 2 old! I'm not sure if the staff gave them to me by accident or whether it was as a suprise for me! I was shocked! I wasn't sure what to do with them as I have never had babies before, so I just let them into the tank and hoped for the best as I have lots of plants for them to hide in. The youngest 2 hide amongst the plants, and every now and then they will pop their heads up, however, I think I may have lost 1 of them The other is really well camoflaged so I doubt he will be eaten (fingers crossed...)- but I'm worried he won't get any food. Will he simply eat off the bottom? Any advice about baby platy is welcome as I have 4 young ones now and I have no experience with young fish at all! :L

 

[OldMan47]

A single platy fry will find food to eat in any mature tank. There are lots of small organisms that live in the waste at the bottom of the tank and as you have surmised, there is a bit of food that always ends up going uneaten. If you had a full drop of 30 or more fry, the available food from waste by other fish would soon be gone and the fry would end up needing some kind of supplemental feeding. Your tiniest fry will do fine if they can make it through the first week or so.

 

[Night61]

thats a pretty cool surprise though, if they survive you have free fish.