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View Full Version : Fasle Perculas and Mollies


falesdk
04/21/2006, 01:08 AM
Ok so I have had two false percula clownfish in my 70 gal. Recently I added a black lyretail molly (male) and he and the clowns have been getting along wonderfully for two weeks or so. I just finished acclimating two female mollies (one black one colorfully spotted) and they've been chasing my clownfish around the tank for the entire time they've been in there.

Will this pass or is this bad news?

egdevilboy
04/21/2006, 01:24 AM
i just might be misinformed...but arent lyretail molly (male) freshwater?

falesdk
04/21/2006, 01:28 AM
Yup, all Mollies are from what I've seen, but they acclimate to saltwater very well. Cheaper than Damsels and just as pretty IMO.

kau_cinta_ku
04/21/2006, 01:44 AM
mollies are brackish fish so they can addapt well to salt water. i am sure the chasing will go away they are just getting territory situated.

Fuggles
04/21/2006, 02:08 AM
Wow! I thought brackish water was around sg 1.012ish (more or less). Anybody around here have any experience keeping lyretail mollies around sg 1.026 for the long term? Just wondering.

falesdk
04/21/2006, 11:32 AM
Well, like I said I have only had the one molly in for two weeks, the others for a couple of days. But I've been told by others on here...The original pair will probably die out relatively quickly but any fry they have in the meantime will be unkillable. I'm not sure how long relatively quickly is. I've also heard of quite a few people who have kept guppies in their saltwater tanks.

Cutiewitbooty
04/21/2006, 11:51 AM
i had a molly in my old SW tank and it lived the whole time i had the tank running. I doubt they will die from being in the SW

Travis L. Stevens
04/21/2006, 11:56 AM
Mollies naturally live in brackish, but they can live their full lives in fresh water and full strength saltwater. They are commonly found all along the Gulf of Mexico and up the rivers. They make great community fish that breed prolifically in the home aquarium. Their babies make a nice additional food source. I had five of them in my tank for several months. They did well, but were not very bright at all. I blame this due to several decades of imbreeding. All of them died either jumping out of the tank, getting caught in the overflow, or getting caught in the return pump intake. If it wasn't for that, they would have done fine. In fact they make great algae grazers for small tanks. Though they only eat film algae and the new growth off of macro algaes, they don't compare with the eating power of conventional herbivores such as tangs and lawnmower blennies. I bet if I had wild caught mollies, they would have been a lot better. Smarter and already accustomed to eating saltwater food sources.

Oh, and Cutiewitbooty, clean out your PM box (and sent messages, too) ;) And for those that are reading, the limit is 150 messages. It took me months to figure it out and thought I would pass the information along.

Cutiewitbooty
04/21/2006, 12:20 PM
ok i fixed it lol I forget to clean it out :D

jgoodrich71
04/21/2006, 12:30 PM
Mollies can withstand even higher than sea water salinities. The wild types in my area are often found in tidepools. In these tide pools, they come in with an abnormally high tide and get stranded. Evaporation causes these tide pools to have as much as 35-45 ppt salinity, and the mollies just flourish.

fishfreak2407
04/21/2006, 12:51 PM
interesting, so is it safe to say that ALL brackish fish could be options when choosing stock for your sw tanks?

Travis L. Stevens
04/21/2006, 12:56 PM
Nope. Not all brackish water fish can withstand the limitations of full strength saltwater. But many are. Some must be acclimated VERY carefully. Mollies on the other hand can almost be dropped in your tank. I don't recommend this though

Ti
04/21/2006, 01:41 PM
are these mollies being put in a 1.025 system?

Travis L. Stevens
04/21/2006, 02:38 PM
Mine were.

MCary
04/21/2006, 03:25 PM
Mollies have been found as far as 10 miles out to sea. I have used mollies for algae control in planted discus tanks, TDS 60, pH 6.5 where they have thrived.

Mike