My Plants Keep On Disappearing, Helppp

[tinynikki]

my two platys keep tearing apart my plants, not eating them just completely ripping them apart for no reason.
i recently just bought a really big anacharis, and literally two days later it was down to a little bare stub.
the platys pick at the leaves with such voracity, and pull at the leaves while they twist their bodies to get the leaves off.
anyone know why they're doing this?
they're not eating the plants only destroying them, and now the bottom of my tank is covered with the leaves of murdered plants.
it's quite frustrating, if anyone could give me a little insight into this it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Truck]

Platys are renowned for picking at plants, they pick at the algea on them and they do occasionally eat them, the only thing you could do is but silk plants or buy tougher plants

 

[TylerFerretLord]

My platies never did this, and I've never heard of them doing it either.

You sure they're platies?

 

[Truck]

ive heard of them doing it in a book on livebearers

 

[tinynikki]

yes, i'm sure they're platys.
but i hardly think they were picking at algae because i had just bought the plant and there was no algae on it.
it's almost as if they're doing it just to be destructive?
i just wish there was some way to prevent it.

 

[Truck]

its just what they do, there will be algea on the plants, it ,may not be visable, but they do pick at plants, and there isnt much you can do.

 

[aaronnorth]

mollies are the same, they do eat minimal amounts of algae so there should be a little damage caused, however i have never heard of 'plant destroying platies' lol.

 

[Athena]

Can't say I've ever seen any of my platies (and I have two tanks of platies) do any plant wrecking, either. Cichlids are the notorious plant destroyers - seems quite funny to think of little platies doing it LOL (although not funny when you're constantly paying out for new plants, I know).

If your platies are trying to get at any traces of algae on the plants, or bits of the plants themselves, it could be that they are needing a bit of greenstuff in their diet.

Do you give them algae wafers to nibble on? They love these. I give mine at least one wafer per day (they all crowd around it, having a nibble), along with their normal foods (which is a variety of live, frozen or dried foods). You could also give them a squashed pea once a week, too.

Try that and see if it stops them attacking your plants.

Regards - Athena

 

[Nick16]

i would just buy some plastic plants tbh

 

[OldMan47]

I have only ever seen plants affected slightly by mollies. In that case it was only the most tender of new growth. I have never had platies do even that much damage. There are fish like the rainbow cichlids that seem able to eat their own weight in plants but not platies.

 

[tinynikki]

i'm sure platys do pick at algae i'm not arguing that, however i don't think it's normal for them to destroy plants like mine are.
if that was the case i think lots of owners would be ditching their platys and no one would be buying them.
and i'm giving them plenty of algae and green stuff, so i don't know what the deal is.
i'm still trying to figure it out.