Platy with a black belly?

[Feline]

On top of the whitespots of my new fishies that came home only 6 days ago, I found my Platy has a black belly, not on the skin. Since it's semi-transparent, I can see the black belly inside. From the position, I guess it's the intestines that turned black.

The other fishies don't have. So I guess it's a constipation. It rests a lot on the substrate and doesn't eat as much as the others. But yet, I can see it pooping this afternoon. What happened to it?

 

[Dubby]

It seems you have a pregnant fish thats ready to pop

 

[jumpman]

Sounds like a pregnant one to me too. However one of mine was like this before and did eventually die (maybe due to the stress of pregnancy?) Anyone else heard of this

 

[bigfish]

Is it a blue mickey mouse platy?

Whats your water chemistry like (ammonnia, nitrite, nitrate)?

 

[William]

Sounds like a gravid spot is it a female fish? http/fish.orbust.net/livebearers.html > for iding your fish . Good luck with your imminent babies

 

[Feline]

It's very strange now ... From the link from William's post, my Platy is a male (with the "elongated gonopodium") but then, yup, the black belly looks like a "gravid spot" to me.

A transexual fish here ay?

Jumpman, sorry I dont know what kind of Platy it is. The colour is yellow, with orange fins and tail.

Ugh ... water chemistry ... as I discovered my tank hasn't been cycled as pointed out by forum members, the chemistry is horrible! Ammonia sky high 5ppm, 0 nitrite 0 nitrate ......

It's hiding the whole night (except meal time) inside the castle ornament!

 

[Dubby]

A transexual fish here ay?

Thats worth seeing

Are its fins clamped....and hence the elongated gonopodium?

 

[Feline]

Erm ... I'm not sure as it always hides away, near the plants or inside the castle. Well I've taken a picture yesterday night sorry it's not that clear.

I have a female Swordtail and I can cleary see her fin instead of the "elongated gonopodium". But for the platy, I can't tell.

The Platy is the second one from the right. (The two on the left are just a reflection from the Platy and the Swordtail)

What do you think of the black belly?

 

[William]

Definately a pregnant platy, good luck with the babies The hiding could be linked to her dropping her fry - they rarely do it all in one go - usually over a couple of days and sometimes a week

 

[bigfish]

check inside the castle oranament and in the gravel coz they can hide quite well.

 

[Feline]

I don't know what to say?! Will she hold the babies until the tank condition is better? (I've already had too many fishies with the horrible uncycled tank) Can I tell when she'll due? She's acting very strange today, like very jumpy. Is she ill?

 

[bigfish]

could be due to an ammonnia spike or nitrite spike

 

[Feline]

Yeah I tested ammonia and nitrite today for the main tank and it's dropped to 2. So perhaps it's started to drop but nitrite will start to spike. At night time the Platy returned to her normal self, hiding as usual except in eating time.

 

[Dubby]

Thats a beautiful color I have a male platy with a similar color and the females are sunset mollys, but none of the babies have got the beautiful coloration.

They can hold until the right conditions..... I put a lot of floating plants so the fry can hide. Try feeding them live foods as that will trigger the birth.

 

[kevin007]

i have a platty that also has a black belly but it looked like it was a pattern on his scales......

i have 3 platties in total, my 2 hi fin platties have the same color and the other one is see trough yellow with blacklines on it's tail, i have had these plattys or a month and if they r pregnant then why din't they give birth yet?
oh well, if they do give birth then i'm gonna be in a deep $h!t because my tank is gonna get too crowded, and do platties eat their own frys? do i need to buy another tank?

Kevin