My Platy fry

[AilyNC]

I've 5 that were born in August, 4 from September, 3 from late Sept/early October, and another 3 this month too.

The oldest 9 are from same dad that we never met as Mom arrived pregnant.

The next 6 are from a dad I had in tank. I returned mom + dad to fish shop. I just can't be getting fry every 3/4 weeks.

 

[vanalisa]

Why do I have the urge to laugh maniacally?

 

[AilyNC]

Mom and dad (of youngest 6).

 

[AilyNC]

Why do I have the urge to laugh maniacally?

Because this is exactly what Platy do?

I really wished I'd researched before setting up first tank. I suspect the fry will start knocking each other up before I can send them or re-home them. And this tank will eternally be a platy fry tank.

 

[vanalisa]

Still laughing maniacally...
(And I know nothing about platy)!

 

[seangee]

The next 6 are from a dad I had in tank.

Not necessarily. Livebearers will store sperm and can keep "using" it to fertilise their eggs for the next six months. One of the reasons why they are so prolific, and why removing the males doesn't help.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Because this is exactly what Platy do?

I really wished I'd researched before setting up first tank. I suspect the fry will start knocking each other up before I can send them or re-home them. And this tank will eternally be a platy fry tank.

I was going to say, your older fry look like they'll be breeding soon, you want to donate, sell or rehome them pretty sharpish!

 

[AilyNC]

Not necessarily. Livebearers will store sperm and can keep "using" it to fertilise their eggs for the next six months. One of the reasons why they are so prolific, and why removing the males doesn't help.

I think they are his fry because they're different in colour to all the others and they're very pale/silvery. The first 9 are all very dark orange, black fins, very like the mother.

I'll be sad in a way to re-home all as the newest batch are very light and look like they'll be quite pretty. But I have to get out of this fry cycle

 

[AilyNC]

I was going to say, your older fry look like they'll be breeding soon, you want to donate, sell or rehome them pretty sharpish!

I've been keeping a close eye and I do think some are getting male bits now. I must check if fish shops were allowed to stay open as we're in a new lockdown.

I'd rather not move any to my bigger tank but I suppose I could if stuck

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I think they are his fry because they're different in colour to all the others and they're very pale/silvery. The first 9 are all very dark orange, black fins, very like the mother.

I'll be sad in a way to re-home all as the newest batch are very light and look like they'll be quite pretty. But I have to get out of this fry cycle

Once the newist batches are big enough, you could sex them, sell/rehome all the females, then keep just the males for a while longer until they're fully mature to see how they turn out. I've done that with guppies before, kept back a few males to see which ones I liked the most and wanted to keep.

 

[AilyNC]

Once the newist batches are big enough, you could sex them, sell/rehome all the females, then keep just the males for a while longer until they're fully mature to see how they turn out. I've done that with guppies before, kept back a few males to see which ones I liked the most and wanted to keep.

But could I keep all males without them fighting all the time?

 

[emeraldking]

Not necessarily. Livebearers will store sperm and can keep "using" it to fertilise their eggs for the next six months. One of the reasons why they are so prolific, and why removing the males doesn't help.

Actually, they can store sperm packets for over a year and not just six months.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

But could I keep all males without them fighting all the time?

Sure, when it's planted enough! I have six male guppies together right now. Some chasing and displaying happens, but nothing aggressive with these guys. I've had 36 males in a grow out too, and only one was a problem. If you get one that is... a jerk, basically, just more driven to mate and chase and bully other males, you'd want to take that one to the store, but most of the time they establish a pecking order and that's it, they're okay

 

[emeraldking]

Actually, they can store sperm packets for over a year and not just six months.

A lot of people make the mistake thinking that the sperm storage is only a number of months. And that a female should be clean by then. But that's a mistake a lot make. Even if a female would mate with another male while she's still storing sperm packets of another mating, it will be unclear which one will be the father. For the spermpackets she will release is randomly. So, the batch that will be born could be of more than just one father. Not everyone also know how such females store sperm packets. With ovoviviparous livebearers, the mating is not something where the gonopodium inserts the female sexual organ. Not at all even... Gonopodiums of ovoviviparous male livebeares differ in shape. They can only mate with a female which sexual organ is compatible with a specific shape of gonopodium. Otherwise, no actual mating will take place (how often a male may chase and direct his gonopodium into her direction). The male's gonopodium actual tips the female sexual organ and leaves his sperm packets at the opening of the female genitalia. The only connection of both sexual organs is at both tips.The shorter the gonopodium, more hooks or flaps are present at the tip of a gonopodium top make this connection. A large gonopodium is in general smooth at the tip. Males with a long gonopodium won't do any courtship. Only males with a short gonopodium will have a courtship to pursuede the female to mate. When the male have left his sperm packets at the opening of the females sexual organ, she sucks it in. Each sperm packet will be stored in one of the folds of the Fallopian tube (also known as uterine tube or oviduct). She only releases one or more packets if she wants her eggs to be fertilized. Therefore, a female is not pregnant is she's only storing sperm packets. For I do read so often that a female is always pregnant. Or she's mated, so... she's pregnant. That's a misunderstanding.
Even when it comes to mating... it's the female that will decide if she let's a male mate with her. No matter how often a male chases her. Only very young females may be a bit naive and let a male go his way.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

A lot of people make the mistake thinking that the sperm storage is only a number of months. And that a female should be clean by then. But that's a mistake a lot make. Even if a female would mate with another male while she's still storing sperm packets of another mating, it will be unclear which one will be the father. For the spermpackets she will release is randomly. So, the batch that will be born could be of more than just one father. Not everyone also know how such females store sperm packets. With ovoviviparous livebearers, the mating is not something where the gonopodium inserts the female sexual organ. Not at all even... Gonopodiums of ovoviviparous male livebeares differ in shape. They can only mate with a female which sexual organ is compatible with a specific shape of gonopodium. Otherwise, no actual mating will take place (how often a male may chase and direct his gonopodium into her direction). The male's gonopodium actual tips the female sexual organ and leaves his sperm packets at the opening of the female genitalia. The only connection of both sexual organs is at both tips.The shorter the gonopodium, more hooks or flaps are present at the tip of a gonopodium top make this connection. A large gonopodium is in general smooth at the tip. Males with a long gonopodium won't do any courtship. Only males with a short gonopodium will have a courtship to pursuede the female to mate. When the male have left his sperm packets at the opening of the females sexual organ, she sucks it in. Each sperm packet will be stored in one of the folds of the Fallopian tube (also known as uterine tube or oviduct). She only releases one or more packets if she wants her eggs to be fertilized. Therefore, a female is not pregnant is she's only storing sperm packets. For I do read so often that a female is always pregnant. Or she's mated, so... she's pregnant. That's a misunderstanding.
Even when it comes to mating... it's the female that will decide if she let's a male mate with her. No matter how often a male chases her. Only very young females may be a bit naive and let a male go his way.

I'm pretty sure the batch of guppy fry I'm rearing now have two fathers. I'm 80% the female was virgin, a blonde female, only exposed to a yellow snakeskin male, and a half black blue male. Half the fry are yellow, half are grey, starting to develop their black and some colour. I'm pretty convinced both males were the fathers here.