Molly - Amazon

[afireinside]

Common Name: Amzaon Molly

Scientific Name: Poecilia formosa

Family: Poeciliidae

Origins: Believed to be the wild hybrid of Pacific Mexican Molly (Poecilia butleri) and Sailfin Molly (Poecilia velifera)

Maxiumum Size: 7 inches (18 cm)

Minimum Tank Size: 20 US Gallons

Water Conditions: Temperature: 73-82 degrees Fahrenheit; hard (100/150 mg/l) and alkaline (pH 7.5)

Temperament: Placid and generally social, though over observation by me, may chase weaker fish

Care: Fairly Easy, though not recommended for beginners

Feeding: Prefers Live foods and Veggies, will eat flakes though.

Sexing: Just like all other live bearers, look for the gonopodium in the male, or the gravid spot in the female

Breeding: Impossible, males are sterile

Other Additional Information: This is one of the rarest Mollies out there. It was named after the all fabled, all female tribe, for the females are the only ones who can reproduce. Only one out of every 10,000 of these fish are male.

Picture:A remote picture can be seen here, we have no correct picture as was stated by Lateral line in the next post.

http/www.utexas.edu/tmm/tnhc/fish/na/poecilii/poecilia/pformosa/pformos1.jpg

I give credit to Aquarium and Pond Fish for some of the information

 

[Lateral Line]

>>> Breeding: Impossible, males are sterile

This is not true. The Amazon Molly has a very unusual reproduction system. Females produce eggs with two full sets of chromosomes, they are, in effect, "pre fertilised". The species is thus parthenogenic - all of the genetic material comes from the female and all specimens are female. They will not produce young however, until they have mated with a male of related species. The sperm from this mating does not join with the eggs, but it's presence stimulates the eggs to develop. Thus it is quite easy to breed P. formosa as long as it is kept with males of a related species, (P. latipinna P. mexicana P. sphenops P. chica, and P. vittata will all court and mate with P. formosa).

The fish in the picture is not Poecilia formosa, it looks like Poecilia latipinna or velifera. P. formosa has short fins, and is a grey fish with just a few darker scales.

 

[OldMan47]

The statement by afireinside that P. formosa is a possible cross has been shown to be incorrect. P. formosa is its own species by any measure. It originates in the Atlantic side of Mexico in close association to other molly species. It has been shown, as Lateral Line suggests, that a breeding process by another molly is needed to induce the P. formosa to develop its clones. Although the fry are clones of the female P. formosa, the breeding process seems to somehow stimulate that process to begin. The male mollies which are normally found near the P. formosa in a natural setting are the ones that can be used to begin the process. Lateral Line has provided us with a listing which I am unable to check for accuracy except to say that P. mexicana is the most common of the mollies found in close association with the P. formosa.

 

[emeraldking]

Oh yes, Lateral Line and OldMan47 are both right. The person who made this description is giving incorrect info about the Amazon molly. The Amazon molly concerns an asexual species. I've written an article about this molly and it's been published in a dutch and german livebearer magazine. I can state that both mentioned members overhere are giving the correct info about the Amazon molly.

 

[emeraldking]

To the topic starter:
Your source should really rectify the information that's been given. Like I've mentioned before in my former reply, I've written an article about the Amazon molly which has been published in Holland, Germany and also in France. And I can assure you that the info you've posted is not totally correct.

 

[Colin_T]

Don't get too carried away with this thread. It was written in 2005.