aernympha
Fish Herder
The "Great Molly Myth" by Kevin Yates © 2001 - 2003
I have recently had reason to review my livebearer pages; certain inaccuracies have been pointed out to me that needed to be addressed. I consider the mollies to need particular attention. It seems I have become, along with a few million others, part of the "Great Molly Myth".
There has been a long running assumption that mollies require the addition of salt in the aquarium if they are to survive in captivity. Fishkeepers are led to believe that their beloved mollies will suffer from the "shimmies" and will succumb to poor health if they are not kept in a brackish environment. After correspondence with Derek Lambert, chairman of "viviparous.org.uk" and editor of "Today's Fishkeeper", and some fact-finding studies, I now believe this not to be the case. In fact water changes are far more important than salt, if water changes are frequent enough, well circulated and aerated, mollies will do fine without the addition of salt. Another benefit of not adding salt is that you can keep a variety of live plants, these will in turn help to control water quality by taking up carbon and nitrogenous waste.
This "molly misconception" emerges from most of our hobby literature, which advocates the use of salt in the molly aquarium, the situation here is that most of this is written by writers who do not have specialist livebearer knowledge. These myths have been guided through the passage of time by writers re-hashing old publications instead of researching into new material, which of course would circulate more up to date information.
Poecilia latipinna and Poecilia velifera are the ancestors to most of our cultivated mollies, and can often be found frequenting brackish or marine habitats, this probably explains why aquarium strains of molly can tolerate salinity levels that would prove fatal to other livebearers, however, it does not mean that this should be considered the standard environment for these species.
Mollies are highly adaptable and ichthyological studies of wild species will tell you that mollies come from just about every type of habitat imaginable. Mollies that inhabit the streams and rivers of Central America will live out their lives without ever venturing into brackish water. Many of these fish derive from the “sphenops” species and include such classifications as Poecilia maylandi, butleri, and salvatoris among others. Aquarium mollies with “short fins", as well as those with smaller dorsals are descendants of that lineage. They inhabit regions where fast moving streams and rivers are fed mainly by rainfall. When these waterways rise through heavy rain many of these species will be washed downstream and into the sea. Some of these fish will perish, however, those that do survive will eventually work their way back upstream and back into their freshwater habitats.
It's impossible to be specific about any one molly and it's "natural" environment, the species are so many and so are their habitats. Even fish of the same species can have different appearances, dependent on their genetic makeup, and come from totally different backgrounds. The South American One-Spot Molly, P. vivipara, consists of subspecies that exist in the soft still water areas of the rainforests as well as hard brackish coastal lagoons of Venezuela right down to Argentina.
Most of our cultivated mollies are descended from Poecilia latipinna and Poecilia velifera, the sailfin species, as well as a number of shortfin varieties, the most familiar one being Poecilia sphenops. Add these to the many more wild forms recently available to breeders and you have a great many morphs to choose from.
Most cultivated stock is bred in neutral to alkaline conditions, this should be confirmed by the breeder or your stockist, and will not easily take to acid conditions. It is better if you harden your water and raise its pH to accommodate the fish. This can done using coral gravel in your filter, coral is the skeletal remains of old coral seas, this will ensure you get the right kind of hardness, calcium hardness, one that will "buffer" pH.
For the average aquarist wanting to keep mollies the bottom line is this, mollies will adapt to captive conditions; however, they will not tolerate poor water quality. There should be no trace of ammonia or nitrite and nitrate must be kept to an absolute minimum. Good filtration is paramount with regular large partial water changes, maintain weekly water changes around 30% ensuring to keep the water calcium hard, give your fish plenty of room, keep the tank clear of any debris. This will ensure good healthy stock without the need for added salt.
Another component of this "Great Molly Myth" generates the question "what do mollies eat"? Again there is this great belief that mollies are herbivores (vegetarians) and can only survive if they have their daily fix of algae. This is not true.
So, what do mollies eat then? Mollies will take good quality flake, which should be supplemented with regular feeds of live or frozen alternative food. Not having salt in the aquarium has its benefits here, you can and should have some healthy plant growth, this will provide your mollies with the minute organisms that grow on the leaves of plants, these organisms also grow on algae, it is these organisms that the mollies are nibbling at and not the algae itself, this is another great supplement to their diet.
8) hehehe i dnt put salt in with mine and all are fine!!!
I have recently had reason to review my livebearer pages; certain inaccuracies have been pointed out to me that needed to be addressed. I consider the mollies to need particular attention. It seems I have become, along with a few million others, part of the "Great Molly Myth".
There has been a long running assumption that mollies require the addition of salt in the aquarium if they are to survive in captivity. Fishkeepers are led to believe that their beloved mollies will suffer from the "shimmies" and will succumb to poor health if they are not kept in a brackish environment. After correspondence with Derek Lambert, chairman of "viviparous.org.uk" and editor of "Today's Fishkeeper", and some fact-finding studies, I now believe this not to be the case. In fact water changes are far more important than salt, if water changes are frequent enough, well circulated and aerated, mollies will do fine without the addition of salt. Another benefit of not adding salt is that you can keep a variety of live plants, these will in turn help to control water quality by taking up carbon and nitrogenous waste.
This "molly misconception" emerges from most of our hobby literature, which advocates the use of salt in the molly aquarium, the situation here is that most of this is written by writers who do not have specialist livebearer knowledge. These myths have been guided through the passage of time by writers re-hashing old publications instead of researching into new material, which of course would circulate more up to date information.
Poecilia latipinna and Poecilia velifera are the ancestors to most of our cultivated mollies, and can often be found frequenting brackish or marine habitats, this probably explains why aquarium strains of molly can tolerate salinity levels that would prove fatal to other livebearers, however, it does not mean that this should be considered the standard environment for these species.
Mollies are highly adaptable and ichthyological studies of wild species will tell you that mollies come from just about every type of habitat imaginable. Mollies that inhabit the streams and rivers of Central America will live out their lives without ever venturing into brackish water. Many of these fish derive from the “sphenops” species and include such classifications as Poecilia maylandi, butleri, and salvatoris among others. Aquarium mollies with “short fins", as well as those with smaller dorsals are descendants of that lineage. They inhabit regions where fast moving streams and rivers are fed mainly by rainfall. When these waterways rise through heavy rain many of these species will be washed downstream and into the sea. Some of these fish will perish, however, those that do survive will eventually work their way back upstream and back into their freshwater habitats.
It's impossible to be specific about any one molly and it's "natural" environment, the species are so many and so are their habitats. Even fish of the same species can have different appearances, dependent on their genetic makeup, and come from totally different backgrounds. The South American One-Spot Molly, P. vivipara, consists of subspecies that exist in the soft still water areas of the rainforests as well as hard brackish coastal lagoons of Venezuela right down to Argentina.
Most of our cultivated mollies are descended from Poecilia latipinna and Poecilia velifera, the sailfin species, as well as a number of shortfin varieties, the most familiar one being Poecilia sphenops. Add these to the many more wild forms recently available to breeders and you have a great many morphs to choose from.
Most cultivated stock is bred in neutral to alkaline conditions, this should be confirmed by the breeder or your stockist, and will not easily take to acid conditions. It is better if you harden your water and raise its pH to accommodate the fish. This can done using coral gravel in your filter, coral is the skeletal remains of old coral seas, this will ensure you get the right kind of hardness, calcium hardness, one that will "buffer" pH.
For the average aquarist wanting to keep mollies the bottom line is this, mollies will adapt to captive conditions; however, they will not tolerate poor water quality. There should be no trace of ammonia or nitrite and nitrate must be kept to an absolute minimum. Good filtration is paramount with regular large partial water changes, maintain weekly water changes around 30% ensuring to keep the water calcium hard, give your fish plenty of room, keep the tank clear of any debris. This will ensure good healthy stock without the need for added salt.
Another component of this "Great Molly Myth" generates the question "what do mollies eat"? Again there is this great belief that mollies are herbivores (vegetarians) and can only survive if they have their daily fix of algae. This is not true.
So, what do mollies eat then? Mollies will take good quality flake, which should be supplemented with regular feeds of live or frozen alternative food. Not having salt in the aquarium has its benefits here, you can and should have some healthy plant growth, this will provide your mollies with the minute organisms that grow on the leaves of plants, these organisms also grow on algae, it is these organisms that the mollies are nibbling at and not the algae itself, this is another great supplement to their diet.
8) hehehe i dnt put salt in with mine and all are fine!!!
) just thought it was intersting article! 
