Platy Bullying

[K2P]

Firstly, I'd like to say hello to all as this is my first time of posting.
I have four platys, three females and one male. My problem is with the male. (Also in the tank are four neon tetras and one large plek)
He is 'charging' for want of a better word at two of the females, but very protective over the third. (The third does a lot of hiding away too which is confusing me)
I'm relatively new to this whole tank experience but have taken a lot of time to set the tank up, introduce the fish, test the water etc.
Having visited the various shops available to me, I thought I would see what advice I could gather from yourselves.
Apologies if this is a very basic topic....

 

[BerryAttack]

how big if your tank? the water stats? usually that is sometimes the reason why fish act out...

 

[K2P]

My tank is 60cm x 30cm x 30 cm (54 litre) rectangular tank which i've been told is more than adequate for the little fish I have.
Ammonia levels, PH, Nitrate and Nitrites have all been good until the last day or two where they rose slightly but i've done a water change today and that's settled it down.
However, the bullying has continued. At first, I thought the one female he was being protective over...but i've not seen offspring and just think he's being protective.

 

[Aquascaper]

Can you answer a few questions:

Is the tank cycled first of all?
When you say your levels are all good do you have values?
Which levels rose and to what level?
Do you know what type of plec you have?

 

[K2P]

Hi,

Yes the tank is cycled. I have a fan filter and air pump...or are you referring to the nitration cycle?
As for values...
PH 6.4
KH 50
GH 125
Nitrate and Nitrate - these were low until a couple of days ago
Nitrate - 100
Nitrite - 10

As for the plec, it's just a common plec! I've tried to search for the actual name and i'm coming back with Pterygoplichthys joselimaianus. I can post a picture if this would help?

The platy being guarded by the agressive platy is currently swimming around in quite a sporadic way. This is new. As in, this evening new. it's almost like she is having a fit.

 

[Aquascaper]

Ok, it sounds like the male platy is just doing what male platys do but the other one sounds like it is suffering from possible ammonia/nitrite poisoning.

My feeling is that your tank is either not cycled (as in the nitrogen cycle) or you are going through a mini-cycle as you should not have any nitrites in a cycled aquarium. This will really affect your fish, possibly kill them, and needs to be addressed immediately. Large water changes using de-chlorinated water are needed to get the levels of ammonia and nitrite to zero and a thorough read of the fish-in cycling topic in the beginners section.

Also there is the issue of the plec. Whether it's the type you posted or a 'common' plec they grow to around 12" and are far too big for your tank. Even whilst small the amount of waste (bioload) of these types of fish is huge and will cause no end of water quality issues. My advice would be to rehome the plec as soon as possible.

 

[K2P]

I did do a partial water change today (50%) but will continue to do so over the next ocuple of days to get those levels down.
i've taken a video to try to provide with you some information, thanks for helping me with this.

How would I go about getting the plec rehoused?? I knew it could grow and i've noticed the amount of waste it produces....funny but nobody has warned me about the plec!!

 

[Aquascaper]

Try and give the plec back to the place you bought it from seeing as they told you it would be fine in your tank when it clearly isn't. If that fails......

It really isnt a case of sorting this over the next couple of days, it needs to be addressed as soon as possible otherwise you will start to lose fish. You need to be testing daily for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Your ammonia and nitrites should be 0 at all times so any sign of either you need to do a water change (remember a 50% water change will only half the ammonia/nitrite level in the tank) and nitrates should be kept below 40ppm ideally. Always de-chlorinate tapwater before adding to the tank and temperature match it as much as possible to the existing tank water.

This will be a long hard slog if you want to save your fish, the alternative would be to rehome all of them and do a fishless cycle (all explained in the beginners section).

 

[K2P]

OK i'll start on the water change now!
The thing I don't understand is, would these levels not be affecting all of my fish...instead of just the one?

 

[Aquascaper]

Different fish can have different tolerances and it's usually the younger, smaller, less healthy, etc. that succumb first.

It may be that none if your fish are suffering yet but I can assure you it will only be a matter of time if the tank is left the way it is. It could still be a case of prevention rather than cure and if so hopefully all the fish will survive.