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djtypykuhl

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
Oct 13, 2011
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165
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Preston county, WV
I have 8 mollies, a neon tetra (which i hope to re-home soon) 2 plecos, and a snail. I've been doing research and the general agreement is that mollies, platties, swordtails, and guppies can all interchangeably cross-breed. I would like to test this for myself and wondered if I could get any advice on how to go about doing this. My step-dad thinks that all I will need is a couple of those clip-on mesh baskets to seperate, breed, and keep the fry in, and that's it. If you have any advice please share! :)
 
Platys and swordtails can be breed together, because they are the same species. Mollies and guppies are different species and can't be cross bread with the others I believe? A breeding net is fine to keep the fry in!
 
FreshwaterTropical said:
Platys and swordtails can be breed together, because they are the same species. Mollies and guppies are different species and can't be cross bread with the others I believe? A breeding net is fine to keep the fry in!

Actually Mollies and Guppies will breed together on the rare occasion to form Gollies or Muppies, LOL. I just learned this about two months ago, I was very surprised! :)
 
I have 8 mollies, a neon tetra (which i hope to re-home soon) 2 plecos, and a snail. I've been doing research and the general agreement is that mollies, platties, swordtails, and guppies can all interchangeably cross-breed. I would like to test this for myself and wondered if I could get any advice on how to go about doing this. My step-dad thinks that all I will need is a couple of those clip-on mesh baskets to seperate, breed, and keep the fry in, and that's it. If you have any advice please share! :)
Platys and swords breed together pretty freely, no big deal there. Mollies and guppies breed together on occasion, but its not extremly common. Also, platys and mollies might be able to as well in rare istances.
Just a note, these fish all make tons of babies, so I hope you have a plan for the fry, or you will be drowning in them very soon.
If you want 2 species to breed, your best bet would be to only get males of one species and females of another. If they have therir own species to breed with, it seems they usually choose that instead of some other species. Sometimes, it can happen randomly in different situations, but I wouldn't bet on it.
 
It really matters what types of plecos! If they are 2 common plecos in a 30 gallon tank! Common plecos get about a foot long.
 
Ya i hope you have bn plecos or rubber lip. They are much smaller then common
Plecos and are much cooler.
 
Platies and Swordtails are both in the same genus, Xiphorous (28 species total). I have a really nice book published by TFH that covers all the species in the genus. The commonly seen ones are the Green Swordtail (X. hellerii), Common or Southern Platy (X. maculatus), and Variable Platy (X. variatus). These three, and well the practically the whole genus, can and do interbreed easily. With these three though you'd probably have to work to find some that aren't already hybrids. Many of the colors commonly seen in them are a result of hybridizing.

Guppies and Mollies also share the same genus, Poecilia. Guppy (P. reticulata), Endler's Livebearer (P. wingei), Short finned or Black Molly (P. schenops), Sailfin Molly (P. latipinna), and Giant Sailfin Molly (P. velifera) are the common species. The three molly species can and will interbreed and again this can be another case where depending on what color/form you're buying you're already getting a fish that is a hybrid. Same can happen between the Endler's and the guppy. Some Endler's might already be hybrids with guppies. From what I read before Molly/ Guppy hybrids only occur through artificial insemination and never live to reach adulthood. I've also never heard about a cross between a member of each genus. As far as I know it's a myth.
 
Platies and Swordtails are both in the same genus, Xiphorous (28 species total). I have a really nice book published by TFH that covers all the species in the genus. The commonly seen ones are the Green Swordtail (X. hellerii), Common or Southern Platy (X. maculatus), and Variable Platy (X. variatus). These three, and well the practically the whole genus, can and do interbreed easily. With these three though you'd probably have to work to find some that aren't already hybrids. Many of the colors commonly seen in them are a result of hybridizing.

Guppies and Mollies also share the same genus, Poecilia. Guppy (P. reticulata), Endler's Livebearer (P. wingei), Short finned or Black Molly (P. schenops), Sailfin Molly (P. latipinna), and Giant Sailfin Molly (P. velifera) are the common species. The three molly species can and will interbreed and again this can be another case where depending on what color/form you're buying you're already getting a fish that is a hybrid. Same can happen between the Endler's and the guppy. Some Endler's might already be hybrids with guppies. From what I read before Molly/ Guppy hybrids only occur through artificial insemination and never live to reach adulthood. I've also never heard about a cross between a member of each genus. As far as I know it's a myth.
No, mollies and guppies can interbreed on their own sometimes and reach adulthood. Multiple members have seen them, one has even owned them. Since tyhey are part of thye same genus, their "plumbing" is close enough to allow hybridization in the home aquarium. I do not know whether or not those hybrids are steril however. Also, we had a thread on here a while ago where a member posted a video of paty/ mollie hybrids. It does seem to have happened several times, but it is not a common occurance by any means. I will try to find that thread and link it so you guys can all just judge for yourselves.
 
No, mollies and guppies can interbreed on their own sometimes and reach adulthood. Multiple members have seen them, one has even owned them. Since tyhey are part of thye same genus, their "plumbing" is close enough to allow hybridization in the home aquarium. I do not know whether or not those hybrids are steril however. Also, we had a thread on here a while ago where a member posted a video of paty/ mollie hybrids. It does seem to have happened several times, but it is not a common occurance by any means. I will try to find that thread and link it so you guys can all just judge for yourselves.

I certainly wasn't calling you or anyone else a liar, absolutangel04. I was just saying what I had always heard. I know it's hard to confirm a definite hybrid since females can store sperm for months. I'm definitely interested in learning something new though :)
 
I certainly wasn't calling you or anyone else a liar, absolutangel04. I was just saying what I had always heard. I know it's hard to confirm a definite hybrid since females can store sperm for months. I'm definitely interested in learning something new though :)
Oh, i didn't think you were. Sorry if I sounded angry or anything. No, I am just sharing.:) I am bummed because I cannot find the thread I was looking for. I agree with you about sperm storage making parentage hard to identify. A little bit ago on here, we had a thread about this and a handful of really knowledgable members said they had read the same sort of things as you. But then, a couple people popped up who really, genuinely claimed to have seen platys and mollies interbreed. At first, not everybody believed it, but then one person put up a video of their friend's tank and you could very clearly see a rainbow wagtail mollie. I have to admit, it threw people for a loop. Then, the more I have looked into it, there have been other posts by other people who have had it happen in their home aquariums as well. Sometimes, I can see where it is not likely, but a few storie that offer no other explanation, and I am a believer now! But, I have never had it happen when keeping all these different mixes of liverbearers, and never had it happen.
I do not know why it seems to happen every once in awhile, but I wonder if the labs tests done with this were only purebred fish and the ones in te average home aquarium (like you mentioned) are usually a bit hybridized already... Don't know, just a theory I have.:)
 
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