Recently added a male balloon molly.

[Metallust]

Hello there!
Just looking for a little advice here. I have a five gallon tank with a corydora,a few tetras and a female balloon molly. I just recently added a male balloon molly. I've heard of males chasing the females around alot but it seems the opposite has occured. My female, who is alot larger than the male, relentlessly chases him around the tank and tries to nip at him. I was just wondering why this may be. I don't think she's pregnant and she isn't aggressive towards any of the other fish. He looks pretty stressed out. I tried removing her and then putting her back in, in hope of re-establishing the pecking order but she is still bothering him.

 

[BigJim]

Welcome to AA!

You're probably seeing the aggression because the tank isn't big enough for those fish. In the wild, a fish will stop chasing when the other fish is far enough away. In a small aquarium, the other fish doesn't have enough room to get away.

I hate to have to tell you this, but you'll be best off either upgrading to a 10g tank or rehoming your fish. A 5g is big enough for a single betta and that's about it. A 10g opens up a whole new world of possibilities. If you're willing and able, an even larger tank is better. Something in the 20g-75g range would be fantastic.