Platys

[Bigman]

Hi everyone,
 
Do Platys interbreed?
 
I.e.     a Red Platy with a Hifin Rainbow Variatus Platy or a Black Sword Tail or another combination?
 
Regards
Tony 
 

 

[Jay0173]

Hi everyone,

 
Do Platys interbreed?
 
I.e.     a Red Platy with a Hifin Rainbow Variatus Platy or a Black Sword Tail or another combination?
 
Regards
Tony 
 

 
Not only will platies breed with other platies, but they will breed with swordtails as well, as they are all from the same genus. They will not, however, breed with guppies or mollies as those belong to an entirely different genus all together.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

But mollys and guppies can interbreed... So never keep male mollys with female guppies - not good for the guppies.  Keeping male guppies with female mollys is better.

 

[ncguppy830]

yea their babies are stertlie i beleive

 

[Paradise3]

But mollys and guppies can interbreed... So never keep male mollys with female guppies - not good for the guppies.  Keeping male guppies with female mollys is better.

 
There is no conclusive scientific evidence of this though. Not that I've found.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

http/img.photobucket.com/albums/v407/summer41/hybrid_of_guppy_and_molly.jpg

 

[fishlearner66]

they do i have a platy/swowdtail baby fish that i am raising
 

 
 
 
 
i think 

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Oh yeah... its hard to find some swords that haven't gotten some platy in them - or vice versa.

 

[fm1978]

Oh yeah... its hard to find some swords that haven't gotten some platy in them - or vice versa.

 
I'd imagine that's along the same lines as the most common fishy chat-up lines in aquariums round the world...
 
"Do you have any platy in you, darlin'?"
 

 

[Paradise3]

they do i have a platy/swowdtail baby fish that i am raising
 

 
 
 
 
i think 

 
Platies and Swordtails - Yes. Guppies and Mollies - Maybe. I've had a virgin female molly with male guppies for over a year before and not had a single fry from her. She never even got pregnant. Put a male molly in and BAM! Babies all over from her. All pure molly. I've seen fish like the one above(the "Muppy" or "Golly" in the link) come from totally normal molly parents. It's not conclusive scientific evidence, it's a picture. It would be Photoshopped or it could(like I just mentioned) be a deformed molly or guppy.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Indeed.  Maybe... I think it takes some effort, and that only some will do it.
 
 
I've never had it happen in my tank, but then again, I've never wanted it to happen either.

 

[Paradise3]

Indeed.  Maybe... I think it takes some effort, and that only some will do it.
 
 
I've never had it happen in my tank, but then again, I've never wanted it to happen either.

 
I tried two different female mollies with a multitude of well experienced male guppies and got nothing. I think if I wanted to know for definite, I would attempt it again but only under the circumstances that I was well prepared if it did happen. Right now, I'll stick with "It may be possible but it's not definite" until some scientists somewhere decide to put out the truth and experiment with it to prove one way or the other.
 
I think the only things that can be agreed on that definitely hybridize are Platy x Swordtail and Guppy x Endler. Right now, they are the only ones I've seen true crosses of and actually owned true crosses of before.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I agree... but I think the caution is worth being taken with the mollyxguppy possibility.

 

[fm1978]

There seems to be quite a bit of info saying that it is possible to cross Mollies and Guppies. One interesting forum post said that a male molly and female guppy (female could die???) is a no-no but the other way around is plausible.
 
Interesting argument...

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Well... what's possible doesn't always happen.
 
 
For example, horses and donkeys CAN interbreed (using artificial insemination) but don't do it on their own.