Platy fry feeding

Hey so my platys had some fry, I was able to save 4 from about 10 that I saw In my community tank. I went out and bought a 3.5 gallon tank for these new fry and now I’m wondering on how they will eat in this tank. I tried feeding them once very tiny crunched up pieces of shrimp brine but nobody came to the top of the tank to eat. They are only 2 days old, should I be worried on them starving? How can I make sure they eat? Also the picture looks weird because the tank is rounded at the front. Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

Try some crushed up flakes and see how they do with that. If the food is in there though, they should find it.

 

Try some crushed up flakes and see how they do with that. If the food is in there though, they should find it.

Okay so they’ll eat of the bottom if it falls down there? And do you think there close to starving yet?

 

Okay so they’ll eat of the bottom if it falls down there? And do you think there close to starving yet?

They should do - if the food is there they shouldn’t starve. Just make sure to remove any uneaten food as it will quickly adversely affect the water quality in a tank that size, and keep up with water changes too.

 

They should do - if the food is there they shouldn’t starve. Just make sure to remove any uneaten food as it will quickly adversely affect the water quality in a tank that size, and keep up with water changes too.

Okay sounds good, also is it normal for them to not come out of hiding for a long time? I haven’t seen 1 of them since I put them in the tank and another only seen once or twice

 

I'm assuming your community tank that you took them out of was an established tank and has been running for some time. A new tank will lack the micro organisms for fry to eat so you will have to be on top feeding them. You should feed very small amounts 4-5 times per day as they are young and growing rapidly for optimal growth.

If you have plants like java moss then move some into the new tank. Other plants like floating plants or water sprite which have bushy roots are good also. The reason is that moss and roots are a good source of food for fry as they are home to lots of micro organisms and other things that the fry can feed off of. If you don't have I highly recommend getting java moss for your new tank. One of the best plants you can get for fry.

Another thing you can try perhaps is putting a sponge from an old tank into the new tank. There should be loads of organisms on an old sponge.

I have platy/guppy fry all the time. I just let them be and do their own thing in my tanks.

 

I'm assuming your community tank that you took them out of was an established tank and has been running for some time. A new tank will lack the micro organisms for fry to eat so you will have to be on top feeding them. You should feed very small amounts 4-5 times per day as they are young and growing rapidly for optimal growth.

If you have plants like java moss then move some into the new tank. Other plants like floating plants or water sprite which have bushy roots are good also. The reason is that moss and roots are a good source of food for fry as they are home to lots of micro organisms and other things that the fry can feed off of. If you don't have I highly recommend getting java moss for your new tank. One of the best plants you can get for fry.

Another thing you can try perhaps is putting a sponge from an old tank into the new tank. There should be loads of organisms on an old sponge.

I have platy/guppy fry all the time. I just let them be and do their own thing in my tanks.

Okay I will make sure to feed them very regularly, I have already fed them 3 times but no sign of any of them actually eating. And yes I was thinking I should get some Java moss for the tank I did a little research and saw others reccomend too. And ya I’m too nice I feel bad seeing them get eaten by my betta and other fish so I saved as many as I could, I saw a lot of people get big mosses or real plants to let them hide in in a community tank which I think I’ll end up doing for next time.

Okay I will make sure to feed them very regularly, I have already fed them 3 times but no sign of any of them actually eating. And yes I was thinking I should get some Java moss for the tank I did a little research and saw others reccomend too. And ya I’m too nice I feel bad seeing them get eaten by my betta and other fish so I saved as many as I could, I saw a lot of people get big mosses or real plants to let them hide in in a community tank which I think I’ll end up doing for next time.

I don’t have substrate though, only gravel, will Java moss do fine with that? If not would any other plants?

 

Or you can buy a big portion of moss and put it in your community tank. They will hide in there and survival rate will go up. You won't have to worry about feeding them the java moss should provide everything for them depending on how dense/big it is.

 

Or you can buy a big portion of moss and put it in your community tank. They will hide in there and survival rate will go up. You won't have to worry about feeding them the java moss should provide everything for them depending on how dense/big it is.

Will every fish like it? Eat it? I’m not too sure how it works, and without substrate will it survive? Thank you

 

No it doesn't need substrate. You can just keep it in a corner as a clump. It grows pretty fast for me and I divide the clump when it gets too big/dense. It will take over your tank if it gets going. It took over my 10 gallon and 20 gallon two years ago and I got annoyed and threw out most of it last year. Apparently one or two small strands survived and I allowed it to grow and now I have about enough to take up 25% of my 20 gallon and I have 5 or 6 small golf ball size clumps in my 10 gallon. I should also mention I had thrown out some a few times. If I didn't throw out any it would have been much more I had now.

If you are new to plants get java fern as well. Another easy to grow plant and it multiplies well.

Java moss and java fern may take some time get used to your tank in the beginning though. So it could be weeks to months before you see them taking off.

 

No it doesn't need substrate. You can just keep it in a corner as a clump. It grows pretty fast for me and I divide the clump when it gets too big/dense. It will take over your tank if it gets going. It took over my 10 gallon and 20 gallon two years ago and I got annoyed and threw out most of it last year. Apparently one or two small strands survived and I allowed it to grow and now I have about enough to take up 25% of my 20 gallon and I have 5 or 6 small golf ball size clumps in my 10 gallon. I should also mention I had thrown out some a few times. If I didn't throw out any it would have been much more I had now.

If you are new to plants get java fern as well. Another easy to grow plant and it multiplies well.

Java moss and java fern may take some time get used to your tank in the beginning though. So it could be weeks to months before you see them taking off.

Okay ya I’m new to having a tank and my community tank is a 10 gallon and I’ve been looking into getting real plants because right now everything is fake and I want it to be more realistic. I will definitely look into Java moss and ferns and hopefully my platys can live inside of that, and if I do get some I’ll get some for my new tank with the fry so they can live there

 

I have tons of moss and ferns. If you want I can send you some for free just pay for shipping.

 

maybe, I’ll message you if my local petsmart doesn’t have it because I’m in Canada and I’m sure the shipping will cost a lot

 

Oh ok. Yes I'm in the U.S. So maybe not worth it.

 

Oh ok. Yes I'm in the U.S. So maybe not worth it.

Ya, do only pet stores sell it? Any chance you think it could be somewhere else just incase?

 

Look on craigslist. I'm sure there may be people in your local area selling it. As far as other types of stores selling it I never seen it in other than stores that sell aquariums/fish.

Best place to get is a local hobbyist if you can find.

 

Look on craigslist. I'm sure there may be people in your local area selling it. As far as other types of stores selling it I never seen it in other than stores that sell aquariums/fish.

Best place to get is a local hobbyist if you can find.

Okay sounds good thanks for all the help man I’m definitely going to go out and get some

 

No problem and good luck.

 

No problem and good luck.

Just picked up 2 batches of Christmas moss because they didn’t have any Java, was this a good decision?

 

I've never tried christmas moss but its supposed to grow in a more tidy/structured way than java moss. I believe (from what I've read about it) that its supposed to grow fast as well. Might be a little harder than java moss but still a easy plant from my understanding. Nevertheless any moss should serve the same function for fry.

 

I've never tried christmas moss but its supposed to grow in a more tidy/structured way than java moss. I believe (from what I've read about it) that its supposed to grow fast as well. Might be a little harder than java moss but still a easy plant from my understanding. Nevertheless any moss should serve the same function for fry.

The moss I got is like half brown, are they unsavable? I put them in the tank spread out on a rock I glued them to, I can send a picture if you want

 

If there is any green on it then yes it should still grow from those portions. Even the brown parts may recover or grow green "shoots".

I've left java moss in a bucket where it dried out for a few days and then tossed it back into my tank. I've read about others who left it out and dry for months and put it back in their tank and it survived. I'm assuming christmas moss would be similar.

A picture would help.

 

If there is any green on it then yes it should still grow from those portions. Even the brown parts may recover or grow green "shoots".

I've left java moss in a bucket where it dried out for a few days and then tossed it back into my tank. I've read about others who left it out and dry for months and put it back in their tank and it survived. I'm assuming christmas moss would be similar.

A picture would help.

This is what they look like, not the best lol

 

Oh man that looks pretty beat up in the first picture but I see some green areas. The second picture looks like it has some green parts on it. It should come back. I would suggest getting a different light though. It should grow in stock lighting but you can get some cheap led lights from amazon or home depot. I use Nicrew lights and they grow my plants well. For a 3.5 gallon you can something under $20-15 or less.

Are those led white btw? It looks pinkish in the picture.

 

Oh man that looks pretty beat up in the first picture but I see some green areas. The second picture looks like it has some green parts on it. It should come back. I would suggest getting a different light though. It should grow in stock lighting but you can get some cheap led lights from amazon or home depot. I use Nicrew lights and they grow my plants well. For a 3.5 gallon you can something under $20-15 or less.

Are those led white btw? It looks pinkish in the picture.

Okay I’ll try to keep them alive, should I get fertilizer? And they are white actually it’s just a pink plant reflection plus the gravel I think that makes it look that way. And I know there really beat up, the guy that sold them to me told me they were in better condition then that so I’m really disappointed

 

Where did you get it from? A store or a person? If its from a store you can just cut off some of the green parts and return the rest.

If its white then it should grow fine in your tank. No don't add fertilizer. Only add fertilizer if you have higher lighting and a lot of plants. If you add to a tank with stock lighting and not many plants you will just grow algae in your tank.

 

Where did you get it from? A store or a person? If its from a store you can just cut off some of the green parts and return the rest.

If its white then it should grow fine in your tank. No don't add fertilizer. Only add fertilizer if you have higher lighting and a lot of plants. If you add to a tank with stock lighting and not many plants you will just grow algae in your tank.

Okay so I should just cut off all the brown stuff, keep the green and leave it how it is and get some new lights? And yes I got it from a store in a city 1.5 hours from me. I really hope I can regrow this moss so I don’t have to go buy more somewhere else

 

Yes you can do that. You can keep the brown stuff too maybe they will come back. Also add some pieces in a very small container/jar and put it by a window in indirect light (not directly getting sunlight) as insurance in case your lights are not enough for the moss. It should grow in the jar for sure. Just change the water with water from one of your tanks every week or so.

 

Yes you can do that. You can keep the brown stuff too maybe they will come back. Also add some pieces in a very small container/jar and put it by a window in indirect light (not directly getting sunlight) as insurance in case your lights are not enough for the moss. It should grow in the jar for sure. Just change the water with water from one of your tanks every week or so.

Okay I’ll do that, should I have the moss in a little jar attached to anything? Thanks so much by the way

 

Nope you can leave it free floating in the jar and see how the rest does with your stock lighting for a month or so. It will probably take a few weeks or so to get established and get going.

 

Nope you can leave it free floating in the jar and see how the rest does with your stock lighting for a month or so. It will probably take a few weeks or so to get established and get going.

Okay I’ll let it be then and hope for the best the brown moss isn’t bad for the tank is it?

 

Could be if it rots. To be safe take it out and put it in a jar as well and place it by a window.

 

Could be if it rots. To be safe take it out and put it in a jar as well and place it by a window.

Okay so I’ll take the rocks out, take off all the green peices and put them in a jar I have and put it next to my window, it doesn’t matter if the water is still does it?

 

If you have an airstone it would help. I meant put the bad pieces in a separate jar instead of throwing them out. It may be that they may recover. Leave the good pieces in the tank.

 

If you have an airstone it would help. I meant put the bad pieces in a separate jar instead of throwing them out. It may be that they may recover. Leave the good pieces in the tank.

Okay sounds good, I also might go buy some new Christmas moss I called a place today and they have it in my town, so I might just put all this moss I have now together to grow together in a jar and I’ll get an air stone. Just don’t feel like waiting a long time for this moss to finally get healthy when I want to have moss right now because I’m excited to finally get some real plants in my tank. And if the moss I have no grows back healthy I have another tank I could put it in. Thanks for all the help

 

The more moss you start out with the faster it will grow because you'll have more pieces growing instead of less.

I would pick up some java fern as well. It should do well in your tank. It grows slow but multiplies quickly.

 

The more moss you start out with the faster it will grow because you'll have more pieces growing instead of less.

I would pick up some java fern as well. It should do well in your tank. It grows slow but multiplies quickly.

This is the new plant i got and is planted in my tank, I also put all my Christmas moss in a jar by my window and I’m going to get an air stone in it to help grow

 

Is that susswassertang or christmas moss??

 

Is that susswassertang or christmas moss??

Susswassertang, only thing the guy at my local fish store had and he said it was very similar and it’d do what I wanted done. Any suggestions on how I have it? It’s near my filter idk if that’s bad I couldn’t find anything on that when I did research

 

I'm surprised your LFS carried it.

I just ordered some for myself from another member here like two days ago. I haven't received it yet so I have no experience with it. From what I've read it can survive in almost any lighting and is also supposed to be very easy to grow.

You did a great job attaching it to the rock. From what people have said it falls apart easy and pieces grow into new clumps.

But it will also be good for fry. I think that plus christmas moss will go well together. You should put a green piece of moss in your tank in case the one in the jar gets covered in algae. Don't keep it all in once place.

Check out ocean aquarium tanks. Owner does a lot of moss/susswassertang and live bearer tanks.

Note - He does no water changes but I would do water changes for your tank.