I Need One Platy Fry Asap!

To my surprise, I ended up with one little platy fry that must have survived when I guess the rest were eaten... I didn't even know my Platy gave birth until I saw this little tot! lol!! Anyway, it's about 2-1/2 weeks old now and I just moved it to a 2.5 gallon tank with sponge filter & heater. I'm hoping to find just ONE Platy Fry to take in so this little one will have a friend. I live in Dix Hills, NY (Long Island-Suffolk County). Is there anyone near me that might have a friend I could have... I'm willing to pay for it if need be.... or... do you know where I can get a Platy Fry? Thanks! Barbara

UPDATE: March/April 2018
A few other females had babies unknown to me, but I managed to save 2 from one litter and 1 from another litter.... so my one fry now has 3 friends! lol! They are all doing great and I'm just waiting for the smallest one to get a little bigger so they can all go back in my female tank. Thankfully all four fry are girls! As for those two male papas that started this crazy situation... they are doing great in my all male tank!

 

Hit up your local pet stores to see if they have one, as soon as your fry is large enough not to fit in the parents mouths it can go back in with them.

 

Hit up your local pet stores to see if they have one, as soon as your fry is large enough not to fit in the parents mouths it can go back in with them.

Thanks!! My Platys are pretty big and this little one is so small and growing slowly.. I'm hoping it will pick-up speed now that's it's in the tank! lol! The little mesh box it was originally in that was hanging inside the big tank accidently tipped over and omg, the fish were going after it like crazy... I was really lucky to get it out before it got swallowed up! I feel so bad that it's all alone... I'll check the Pet Stores, thanks!

 

Sadly mine are only 2 and 1 weeks old or I'd give you one. I can't wait for mine to get big like that!

 

does anyone know if selling livebearer fry would be profitable because I know there is so little people that sell fry if any

 

Not really profitable, the fry are unknown so they aren't valuable or really desired.

 

A few other females had babies unknown to me, but I managed to save 2 from one litter and 1 from another litter.... so my one fry now has 3 friends! lol! They are all doing great and I'm just waiting for the smallest one to get a little bigger so they can all go back in my female tank. Thankfully all four fry are girls! As for those two males papas that started this crazy situation... they are doing great in my all male tank!

 

You won't be able to sex them until they are a month old at least, don't say they are all girls because all fry look like female until the hormones kick in. I have a koi swordtail that is starting to develop into a male despite looking like a female and being larger than the others. (same age, same batch).

 

You won't be able to sex them until they are a month old at least, don't say they are all girls because all fry look like female until the hormones kick in. I have a koi swordtail that is starting to develop into a male despite looking like a female and being larger than the others. (same age, same batch).

Thanks, but they are at least a month old now and I can clearly see that the back bottom fin is flared and down... instead of upright and shaped like a stick. I have become very experienced with sexing Platys & Mollies. Those two boys in my female tank were a complete oversight because I got them when I first started and then was so busy that I didn't take notice until it was too late. I know how to identify gender better than most of the fish staff in the Pet Store! LOL!! I have four girls for sure! It took a while to sex the last one because she was smaller, but now she's more pronounced. Thanks!

 

Thanks, but they are at least a month old now and I can clearly see that the back bottom fin is flared and down... instead of upright and shaped like a stick. I have become very experienced with sexing Platys & Mollies. Those two boys in my female tank were a complete oversight because I got them when I first started and then was so busy that I didn't take notice until it was too late. I know how to identify gender better than most of the fish staff in the Pet Store! LOL!! I have four girls for sure! It took a while to sex the last one because she was smaller, but now she's more pronounced. Thanks!

It is still possible that one or more of your fry is a male. All platy fry are born with the flared down analfin until the male's develops into a gonopodium. I have heard of this taking up to five months in some cases. The males and females will look the same until this happens. I have about twenty platy fry that are seven weeks old and they all currently look like females.

 

The age of an initial male when deforming a V-shaped analfin into a gonopdium does differ from one month till even 8 months (certain strains do develop pretty late). There are several factors in order to develop a gonopodium faster or slower. For example: if a group of platies contains of only or almost females, some male offspring will develop a gonopdium at an early stage. This to ensure that reproduction will be preserved. In this case it will result in smaller sexual potential males. Such "early males" won't grow anymore or still a bit but for sure they'll stay smaller than an average adult male.
"Late males" will keep the female features for much longer and will grow up larger than an average adult male. These will show the male features at a much later stage.
Firstly all xiphophorus strains (swordtails and platies) are born with both female and male gonads. With an initial male the female gonads will be absorped. And with an initial female the opposite. But it's known that not always the opposite gonads will be absorped which makes it possible with a female to create male features at a later stage. So, deforming the analfin into a gonopodium. And with swordtails a possible sword can be developed. Such a female will keep the gravid spot visible. But no more pregnancy possible for that matter. Btw, this doesn't happen with just really old females but also with younger ones. Males with an already developed gonopodium can't change back their analfin.
Another phenomenon is a socalled "pseudo gravid spot". This spot occurs more with male platies than with swordtails. Real gravid spots will show up (how small they might be) after already a couple of days after birth of initial females. But it takes a good eye to spot them. A pseudo gravid spot with males will show up when they're juveniles or even adults. But once a pseudo gravid spot appears, it will never go away anymore.

 

Quick. I need 2 arowana fry!

 

Following. I have late-developing swordtails right now. Frustrating when you think you have two males and four females, but months later discover you have five males and one female.

Mcasella my swordtails are the imperial koi variety, one generation removed from the Imperial Tropicals parents.

Also Thanks emeraldking for sharing your knowledge.

 

Thanks for the explanation, emeraldking. Very interesting.

 

Wow! Great information! This probably explains why those two males were in my female tank to begin with! When I got them from the pet store, they were supposed to be females and being a twin bar sward, it should have been easy to identify because there was no sword on them and I was definitely looking for two females for my female tank. And then as I explained I got really busy and would just put food in, say "hello girls", LOL, and move along, never really sitting and watching until one day I sat down and I saw two of my fish being a little fresh to each other and I thought that was strange because all my girls get along really well and I don't have any aggression... and then I watched them and said holy , LOL, there's two boys in my tank, LOL! I flipped out because I knew they were in there for several months, I immediately took them out and put them in my male tank the rest is history, LOL! Well thanks again for the information and insight and I will certainly keep those four babies in their own tank until they are bigger or I will put them in the female tank and closely watch them!