Baby mollys, heavily planted tank?

Question

My Molly has recently had about 40 babies very cute but what can io do with them ??? I had a very heavily planted tank, but the fish destroy this pretty much immediately. I am getting through so many plants. Any ideas????

Answer 1

You might try fast spreading plants like Hornwort. They may not destroy that quite as easily as they will the more delicate aquatic plant life.



As another mentioned - fresh veggies are also good for your fish. They sell pretty cheap veggie clips that just suction cup to the inside of your tank so that you don't have the veggies floating all over the place. You can have one very low in the tank for the babies and one higher up for the adults, etc.



Just don't forget to take the uneaten stuff back out after a few hours, or you'll end up with rotten veggies in the tank, which will cause water quality issues.



Adding some silk plants for cover for the fry might be something to consider as well, since nobody will be able to eat those - but if you like the look of natural, most of those really do not look very realistic.



Good luck. :)



EDIT:



Yes - the females will be fine on their own. My 40G has only female mollies in it (3 of them). One of them is the mother to the other two, and I did not keep the rest of the babies. They either became dinner for other fish, or were given to someone with a tank setup for them.



Just be aware that even if they're on their own, it's possible that they are still holding fertile eggs and can continue to release them on approximately a monthly basis until they are empty (which can be up to 6 months).

Answer 2

If you haven't got a nursery tank a small percentage will reach adulthood. Small ornaments with in and out entrances give them some protection



Mollies aren't notorious for destroying plants, so what other fish do you have? Plecs are known to eat plants though certain plants can survive, it's a matter of choosing the right plants. Floating plants is another option depending on what is destroying what you are buying. Plastic is an option, I've got a couple of Oscars that like to rearrange their tank and plastic is the only thing that will last in with them.



Most of the pet stores that stock live plants have somebody behind the counter with a degree of knowledge on the subject, but it's often a case of adapting what they have to what you want, put an African Sword in a well lit 5 gallon tank and you will never see the fish.



Edit: Emms has the Molly breeding bit covered, the only thing in your tank that will actively destroy plants is the plec assuming because you have a plec the catfish are Cory's.



I feed mine cucumber, blanched cabbage leaves and occasionally peas, but that colours the water. All fish will have a nibble at cucumber and the swords will eat cabbage once the plec has done the hard work and created a raggy edge.



I only feed my pair of L137 greens, it's cheaper than buying plec tablets and algae wafers as they are eating the same things as me. Mind they ate all the real plants first.

Answer 3

Not all of the babies will survive, thats for sure. Like in the wild, only the stronger make it to adulthood. Get some fake plants, and then when you don't have so many babies (when they have found good homes) you can add live plants once more.

Answer 4

put a couple of chunks of cucumber in the bottom of the tank, fish love cucumber believe it or not, just slice it longways and not the traditional slices that you have in sandwiches in lenghts of around 3 inches,you may have to anchor it to the bottom of the tank though as sometimes cucumber floats but it will take there minds off of your plants

Answer 5

get a nursery tank or mesh that hooks on the side of the tank (inside obviously) and put them in there. Other wise there is a good chance that the adults will eat the fry.