System Status on 11/5

Three weeks in and the aquarium set up seems to be going through a nitrite spike. Other conditions such as ammonia and ph are within safe levels. I will be doing a 20% water change tomorrow and will cut feeding to every other day until water returns to normal. Here are my estimated readings:

Nitrate 20 Safe
Nitrite 10 Danger
Hardness 0 Very Soft
Alkalinity 120 - 180 Ideal
pH 7.2 - 7.8 Neautral to Alkaline
Ammonia - Safe

I used jungle lab 6 in 1 test strip kit.

www.junglelabs.com

Breeding Platys Cheat Sheet

Scientific Name:         Xiphophorus maculatus

Platys are hardy, vibrantly colored fish of various colors and patterns. They were among the first tropical fish kept in aquariums and remain amongst the most popular. They are extremely easy to breed – just try to stop them – and this has helped in their popularity.

Sexing the Fish:

The anal fin of mature males looks like a tube or rod and is called a gonopodium. The male uses his gonopodium to impregnate the females. A pregnant, or gravid, female will demonstrate a dark spot in front of the anal fin where the livebearers gestate. A female can hold sperm packets from one insemination for months.

Water Conditions:

Water conditions are not critical for livebearers. They grow like weeds. However, the ideal range is 72 – 78 degrees Fahrenheit.

Equipment:

You do not need special equipment to raise livebearers. However, some java ferns or floating plants are highly beneficial and give the fry a place to hide and feed. Because parents do eat their young, it is best to separate the parents from the fry and raise the fry separately in a rearing tank.

Conditioning:

As stated before just try to stop these guys from breeding, special conditioning is not needed. However, for best results try separating the male from the female for a couple weeks and feed both live food such as worms, brine shrimp, and mosquito larvae.

Gestation:

Gestation is about 28 days. Shortly before dropping her fry the female will develop a dark gravid spot in front of the anal fin. At this point it is best to move her to a breeding tank. I do not recommend breeding traps as they are usually too small, will cause the female undo stress, and cause her to abort.

Fry:

A female’s brood size depends on her size and environmental conditions. The brood size ranges from a few to a hundred. If you are raising the fry in a community tank then be sure to provide plenty of thick plants and floating plants. For best results, move the fry to a grow out tank with a sponge filter and heater. Feed the fry either live baby brine shrimp and/or crushed tropical fish flakes. The fry are sensitive to water quality so be sure to change 10% to 25% of the water daily.

The first two mama bearers

Yesterday, I purchased the first two female platy livebearers for my colony breeding set up. They are of a plainer color but one bears the mickey mouse ears and the other sports a pretty slick tail highlight. The ladies are very friendly and are happy to pose for the camera as you can see here.

 

The large dark spots near the anal fin are the baby livebearers. I bought pregnant or gravid females in order to speed along the process.

Guide to one possible community fish tank

Medium Sized Community Tank

Most of the fish in this group are schooling fish and do best in groups of three or more of the same species.

Tank Conditions:
Temperature 76-78
Basic outside power filter
In tank heater
Air stone or wand with pump
Strip light with lights on 8 hours a day

Feeding:
Feed once a day with a variety of fish foods
Basic flakes and frozen bloodworms

Types of medium sized community fish
Black Phantom Tetra, Congo Tetra, Diamond Tetra, Emperor Tetra, Bleeding Heart Tetra, Longfin White Tetra, Red-eye Tetra, Silvertip Tetra.

Dwarf Gouramis, Moonlight Gouramis, Pearl Gouramis, Honey Gouramis.

Swordtails, Mollies, Cherry Barbs, Harlequin Rasboras, Silver Hatchetfish.

Livebearer Colony Breeding Set Up

After several moves and a two year hiatus from fish keeping, I am starting up a new tank with an eye towards breeding Platy's. I have already talked to my local pet store and they are willing to resell my fish in their store. Having learned from my past successes and failures, I am optimistic that my breeding experiment will be a success. Right now I am in the process of cycling the tank. I already have good algae growth in the filter and I am only 3 weeks into the set up. Here is a picture of the tank when it was first set up. No platys yet.

As the weeks pass, I will update the site with more info on how my breeding set up is doing. Also, I will add tips, resources, and links for other fish keepers and future breeders.