Mollies about to give birth in my puffer tank

[ralphie16]

I have two black mollies in my saltwater tank with my puffer. They are left over from teh original cycle and I use them to keep my quanrantine tank up and running usually but they are still in the main tank for now.

Well here is the think. One of them of very very pregnant, so much so that I am thinking any moment and she's gonna explode. The male mollie keeps putting his face near her opening. Why is this? Its making the area turn a little white.

Anyways, when the kids are born, is my puffer gonna eat them? I would think they were to small to even bother with. Are they safe in there?

My only other option is to put them in my isolation tank with my new 1.5" picasso trigger. Myabe he won't hurt the babies. So where do the babies have a better chance to survive? 125 gallon with hermits, snails, and puffer, or a 10 gallon isoloation tank with a baby picasso trigger?

Or maybe a better question would be which tank will the fry get eaten first? I would think sdafer in the big tank because so much rockwork to hide in (210 lbs)

 

[Blindmelonbob]

The mollies aren't shy about eating their own fry if they can catch them. The male's probably waiting for the first to drop. If you can catch the female, and you want to keep/raise the fry, you should isolate her. There are net containers (like a birthing corral) you can hang from the side of the tank to keep them separate until they're big enough to fend for themselves, too.

 

[dc]

Well you can consider them a free lunch.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

Re: Mollies about to give birth in my puffer tank

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8143507#post8143507 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ralphie16
I have two black mollies in my saltwater tank with my puffer. They are left over from teh original cycle and I use them to keep my quanrantine tank up and running usually but they are still in the main tank for now.

Well here is the think. One of them of very very pregnant, so much so that I am thinking any moment and she's gonna explode. The male mollie keeps putting his face near her opening. Why is this? Its making the area turn a little white.

The male is urging her to mate again. This is just what they do. Mollie males are prolific breeders and can even harass one or two females to death. It's good to have about 5-7 females for one male. Three is okay, but if it is an aggressive male, it could kill them all because he's so receptive to his inner urges. (I don't know of a kinder way to say it ) The area that is turning white is probably because she is about to give birth. Their babies are born live. Not from eggs. So, pushing them out is a struggle and can really stretch things.

Anyways, when the kids are born, is my puffer gonna eat them? I would think they were to small to even bother with. Are they safe in there?

Most likely the puffer will chow them down if he shows even a remote interest. They might be able to get to the rocks and hide, but I doubt it. Captive bred mollies aren't very smart. Wild mollies on the other hand do rather well.

My only other option is to put them in my isolation tank with my new 1.5" picasso trigger. Myabe he won't hurt the babies. So where do the babies have a better chance to survive? 125 gallon with hermits, snails, and puffer, or a 10 gallon isoloation tank with a baby picasso trigger?

They will fair drastically better in the 125g with the puffer than they would with the trigger. The trigger will definitely eat the babies. You could always put the female in a large bowl that is about one gallon or more and let her have the babies in there.

Or maybe a better question would be which tank will the fry get eaten first? I would think sdafer in the big tank because so much rockwork to hide in (210 lbs)

You're assumption is correct. See above for a safer way to keep the fry.

 

[ralphie16]

Thanks Travis, your advice is most appreciated.