Good Golly from Miss Molly

[scruffy]

Is it true that guppies and mollies can have babies together? What about guppies and platies? Both my brother and I have seen our male guppies chasing after girls (and in my case both girls and boys) of other species. I have only found one photo on the internet, but it looked kind of like a fat two month old molly with guppy coloring. Has anyone ever seen one of these hybrids? My brother's two female mollies both look pregnant and they have spent most of their lives with male guppies.

S

[gm72]

Not possible, different species. Coloring can be very, very similar though.

[Yajimari21]

It's possible because they are closely related (mollies and guppies anyway) and does happen successfully sometimes. The big issue with the muppies, however, is that they are very genetically weak, die easily as fry and are sterile. Post some pictures when your brother's mollies give birth!

[gm72]

Is there research you have seen that supports this? I have never heard of such a thing.

[Lady Hobbs]

I also do not believe it.

[nanaglen2001]

Guppies and Mollies belong to the same family "Poecilia". Theoretically its possible that they can crossbreed. But its extremly unlikly.

I really cant imagine a tiny Guppy male having fun with a big Molly mama. That big Molly female is much too strong for that little Guppy, and then she just doent look right, and of course vice versa, a female Guppy just isnt interested in a Molly male.

You have lots of crossbreeding between Swordtail and Platies. But thats about it.

[scruffy]

I think the platies and swordtails are much closer. Part of the same genus. I've heard that a great deal of platies have swordtail in them especially wagtails. They are not sterile. I'll have enough of them to last awhile. My brother's girls might just be chubby, but I think it would be funny if they were pregnant since he gave me my first molly because he couldn't handle all her baby making. This is the one that had a drop 4 days after he put her in my tank.

S

PS My experience with male guppies is that any girl looks good to them. The platies and mollies seem more particular.

[Tolley]

If you have swordtails and platies then they will breed.

[kkevvy]

Its not that strange that they would breed at all.

Mules are a cross between a donkey and a horse. It is sterile, so can not have children of its own.

Same thing with mule deer and white tail deer.

Wouldn't surprise me if mollies and guppies did it either.

[gm72]

I am still asking for documentation to support the claim. I'm not saying that it has never happened, I am saying I have never heard of such a thing. So, where's the proof?

[Yajimari21]

http://www.myfishtank.net/forum/live-bearers-forum/37190-my-guppy-molly-crosses.html

Besides that though there was a really interesting study done by this freelance fish blogger who isolated her female guppy for 3 months to make sure that she wasn't storing any sperm from any previous exposure at the fish store and then introduced her to a male molly in a separate tank. A few weeks later there were fry, but they eventually all died after a few weeks (hybrid weakness), despite her continuous water changes, etc. I can't find the page anymore though (which would have been interesting since she said that she was going to try again after isolating the guppy again).

[gm72]

Interesting. Not sure I see the point, but interesting. Thanks for sharing!

[tropfish]

That's cool, but i don't think people should be making too many hybrids. I know blood parrots are and i love them, but somehow they'll be introduced into native waters or something like that. Also, they'll usually end up being sterile, causing many fish "mutts"

edit: 2000th post!