Dalmation Molly Fry Just Dropped!

[Neon Squid]

After many weeks of watching and waiting my dalmation molly has finally dropped her fry! She's in a nursery tank about 30L with 1 pregnant Endler.

All the molly fry are hiding in the stones at the bottom so I'm unsure how many there are at the moment.

I was wonder how long does it take for the female to drop all her fry? I ask this as she's already chasing the babies round the tank doing what looks like trying to eat them. They're zipping and darting out the way at the moment but I was wondering when it will be OK to put the adult back in the community tank? I don't want them all going back in the big molly

Advice would be much appreciated

 

[BIG BAD BARRY]

If you are not bothered about having anymore fry than you can move her.
Moving them during birth can prevent further fry from being delivered.

I am not sure whether feeding her would be any use or advisable.
If there are sufficient places for the fry to hide where the mother cant get to then they will be fine. Around 30 fry have survived the best part of a day with several adult mollies and platies in my tank.

I personally found using a small breeding tank attached inside the tank better as i simply net the fry and put them in.

Good luck!

 

[Neon Squid]

Yes I tried feeding the female to try distract her but it didn't work. She was just obsessively hunting amongst the stones and pebbles chasing them out and then eating them, so I took her out and put her back in the main tank.

There's a few ornaments in the tank for the fry to hide in and under but the female kept chasing them out.

If she has any in the main tank I doubt they'll survive long, there's plenty of hiding places but quite a lot of hungry fish that will get them sooner or later.

Thanks for the fast response with the info

 

[Neon Squid]

I can count 11 fry in my nursery tank. I'm more than happy with that for now

 

[BIG BAD BARRY]

Well, today i thought there were a few too many fish in the tank when i came to feeding them.
One of the mollies must have given birth during the night/this morning. None looked pregnant.
There is already a mix of adult and various size juvenille mollies in there and they appeared to have been left alone.

I have managed to net 11 into the breeding tank but there may be one or two more around!

 

[Neon Squid]

That's great to hear. Hope you enjoy your new fry! What type of mollys have you got?

I have x3 bumblebee catfish at the bottom on my community tank so hiding fry still only last a few days in my tank. It's kinda their job tho so I don't end up over run with fish. The nursery tank I just need to put some dense plants in for hiding, the stones and 3 ornaments didn't seem to do the job.

Next job will be re-homing them, I've counted up to 13 fry in the nursery tank now. I'll grow them on a little bit then start looking for potential homes for them.

 

[BIG BAD BARRY]

The male is a black sailfin and the females are siller and dalmation. The male and dalmation fish have tiny bits of orange colour which has been coming out in differing patterns on the fish.
Some of the fry have progressed onto adulthood.

Nobody wanted any previously including shops and i'd rather keep them then send them to poorly kept tanks.

 

[Hmalpt05]

Hi
I am waiting for my spotted Molly to have her babies but she gets big about every 5-6 days, and then during the day she still has a bit of a bump but not like she does when she's big, is this normal? I'm waiting to get some babies! Haha I'll have your fry, I love looking after babies, I have never bread mollies before x

 

[KRamgren89]

congrats on your fry!! i (fortunately/unfortunately dunno how i feel about it) purchased 2 female platy 1 male platy, and 3 female molly and of course all the females are NATURALLY big and pregnant!! they looked normal when we bought them, few days layer BAM HUGE!! and of course they are all at various stages some are really huge some are just starting out, should have a bunch of fry over the course of the next 2 months. not gonna move them into my other tank tho, really don't mind either way if babies survive or not, we just finished remodeling our tank so there is now PLENTY of plants and hidey holes for babies to hide so maybe some will survive XD

 

[DarrenEPB]

I currently have over 20 swordtail fry, roughly 20 - 30 guppys and about 15 mollys. I love baby swordtails, they are one of my favourite fish.