How to Breed Platy Fish?
Chances are that if you have platies of both genders in the same aquarium, they have already reproduced at some point.
However, you may have not noticed any baby platies since they’re very small and adults will eat them if they’re kept together in the same aquarium.
If your aquarium is set up in a way that there’s enough foliage to hide baby platies from adults, you may be lucky and have the population in your aquarium increase with a few extra fish.
breeding-platy-fish
If you’re looking to have your platies reproduce and you want to raise platy fry, this guide on how to breed platy fish I put together will walk you through everything you need to know about breeding these fish.
Platy Fish Tank
Unlike many other fish species, platy fish are easy to please when it comes to breeding conditions. That’s because they don’t require any special adjustments for breeding.
Their home aquarium, where optimal water conditions are provided for them, is enough for them to start breeding as soon as you put male and female platies together.
Optimal water parameters for platy fish are:
20 Gallon Fish Tank Stocking Ideas
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Water temperature: 72-78 F
Water pH: 7.0-8.3
Water hardness: 4 - 12 dGH
Ammonia and nitrites should be at 0 ppm, while nitrates should be at maximum 40 ppm.
Platy fish are tropical fish and they enjoy warmer water. Keeping them at room temperature is unlikely to meet their requirements, therefore, I strongly suggest investing in an aquarium heater.
You may have read that platies will do fine in small aquariums of 10 gallons or so, however, if you’re looking to breed or keep more platies, having a spacious 25-30-gallon aquarium is better.
Make sure you set up the aquarium with live plants, which not only help along the nitrogen cycle, but also help in keeping the water clean of toxins that will accumulate once you add fish to the aquarium.
Other than these benefits, live plants are also a great food source for platies that like to nibble on algae and a great place to hide for pregnant platy fish and platy babies.
While live plants may help to absorb some of the toxins created by fish, you should also get a filter for your aquarium as well as perform regular water changes.
Platies are sociable creatures, so don’t keep them by themselves, they prefer being kept in small groups of at least 3-5.
Platy Breeding Pair
Once your aquarium is cycled and set up with the necessary equipment, you can get started on the breeding process.
You’ll need two or three females and a single male platy. Adding more male platies is not a good idea as it can stress out female platies.
As is typical for male live-bearers, male platy fish will constantly chase female platies to reproduce, which can put a lot of stress on females. To avoid this, limit the number of females.
Choose platies that are active, colorful, healthy and don’t have any deformities. Don’t breed platies that are sick or with deformities as they can pass those traits to their offspring. Source your fish from reputable breeders or trusted pet stores.
Sexing Platy Fish
It’s easy to tell the difference between a male platy and a female platy, especially once they reach reproductive age.
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Male platy fish are smaller than females and they’re slenderer compared to female platies that have a rounded abdomen;
Male platy fish have a gonopodium, which is the sexual organ they use to fertilize females;
Female platy fish feature wider anal fins.
Plus, if you keep them in the same aquarium, you’ll notice that male platies will chase female platies, which is another tell-tale sign of their gender.
You should make sure that you meet the dietary requirements of your fish by feeding them good quality flakes and frozen, freeze-dried or live brine shrimp or bloodworms.
How to Tell if Platy Fish is Pregnant?
The gestation period takes around 24 to 30 days. The reason you may want to know if your platy fish is pregnant is to estimate the time when she will be giving birth because you’ll need to take measures to save baby platies or else you risk them getting eaten by adults.
Some of the signs of platy fish pregnancy include an enlarged abdomen and dark spots on the belly. As she’s preparing to give birth, the belly of the female platy will have an angular shape and she will spend her time hiding a lot.
The female platy will usually spawn around 20 to 80 platy babies that will be ready to swim and feed.
It’s crucial that you separate them from the adults as soon as possible or else they’ll end up as a satisfying snack for the adults.
Saving Platy Fry
There are a few ways to go about preventing adult fish from eating the fry. Here are the best methods that you can apply:
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