Chad April 17, 2012 Share April 17, 2012 Having been a part of or around this hobby for relly my whole life, I have seen a lot of things come and go and sometimes return again. I find it very interesting to watch over time. Something I have seen come up again more recently is discussion on the use of black sailfin mollies in saltwater. For those who don't know, black sailfin mollies are a common freshwater fish that are prolific livebearers and can be fully aclimated to, live, and breed in full strength saltwater. Really, they are almost bulletproof little guys... [i remember when I was a kid adding them in our outdoor pond near Park City, Utah. Years the pond didn't fully freeze through, the mollies overwintered successfully... but I digress]. Since I haven't seen the discussion pop up here, I will throw out potential benefits and uses for saltwater mollies: They are small algae-eaters that have been captive bred for a long time. They are prolific live-bearers with small fry that may have use in breeding/propagation efforts or as a generally tasty snack for tank inhabitants. The acclimation from fresh water to saltwater kills most parasites making them a quick introduction to the aquarium. And they are cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindeeo April 17, 2012 Share April 17, 2012 And they look nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Grenier April 17, 2012 Share April 17, 2012 Personally, I prefer just new live-rock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mogurnda April 17, 2012 Share April 17, 2012 I tried it many years ago as an attempt at controlling hair algae. As with many mollies in pet shops, they looked a little iffy at the start, but transformed into beautiful, healthy fish one acclimated to SW. The only problem I ran into was that the clowns detested them and gave them no peace, so the experiment didn't go very far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunWyrm April 26, 2012 Share April 26, 2012 My sacrificial molly is still alive! I bought a marbled molly because of this thread to try and help with the algae in my chiragra mantis tank. Shocking I know, and I kinda feel bad for picking the cheapest molly for this task, just in case... Today was the first day in the tank after a full week of acclimating. I'm watching her chow down on the algae covered walls as I type. I never imagined they would go after algae like that. I'm very impressed and thank you for this thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad April 26, 2012 Author Share April 26, 2012 ^Glad to hear! And you are very welcome Glad she is doing well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite April 27, 2012 Share April 27, 2012 I used to have some dalmatian mollies in my refugium, years ago. I can't remember who I gave them to. I have heard that they breed faster in salt water than they do in freshwater, though have never investigated the subject. I was actually thinking about getting some a few weeks ago, but still not sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunWyrm April 28, 2012 Share April 28, 2012 Thought I would update, my molly is still doing great. The mantis even came out yesterday to check her out. I'm guessing while he was out he spied the beautiful purple feather duster I put in a week ago, because today I see the feathers decorating his door! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YBeNormal April 28, 2012 Share April 28, 2012 Back in the day, when gas was still leaded and a person could still get a good job with a high school diploma or even a GED, Mollies were probably one of the most common ways to cycle a new saltwater tank. Most people only kept them until the tank was cycled, then sent them on a one-way trip to the county water treatment plant though. This was before we understood the value of live rock and that may be the main reason you don't hear about using them for cycling tanks very often. Using them to help control algae though--I'd never even considered that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 21, 2012 Share June 21, 2012 I just bought 3 pairs of mollies today and have been acclimating them to full strength SW over the course of the last 4 hours. They're at 1.021 in a well aerated bucket and seem to be doing fine so far. I'll be dumping them into the tank at 10pm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 21, 2012 Share June 21, 2012 They are all in now and acting like regular fish. A pair of Dalmation Lyretails, pair of Blacks, pair of Creamsicle Lyretails. Update to follow on progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wogga June 21, 2012 Share June 21, 2012 I'm interested in finding out if they consume substantial quantities (and if so, which different types) of algaes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flooddc June 21, 2012 Share June 21, 2012 I just bought 3 pairs of mollies today and have been acclimating them to full strength SW over the course of the last 4 hours. They're at 1.021 in a well aerated bucket and seem to be doing fine so far. I'll be dumping them into the tank at 10pm. Wow! only took 4 hours? I thought it would takes weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef June 21, 2012 Share June 21, 2012 Mollies tolerate higher salt than most fresh water fish as they are actually brackish water fish (or atleast born in brackish water) so to acclimate them to full SW is much less time and stress intensive... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 22, 2012 Share June 22, 2012 All 6 are alive and well. Eating Cyclopeeze flakes too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind June 22, 2012 Share June 22, 2012 I've kept fingerfish (monodactylus argenteus) and cat sharks (Arius jordani). Both are brackish fish like mollies that convert to full salt with ease. Are there any others that can be converted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 23, 2012 Share June 23, 2012 One of the black mollies gave birth already and there are now 6 or so tiny fry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind June 23, 2012 Share June 23, 2012 That is very cool!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowieReefer84 June 23, 2012 Share June 23, 2012 One of the black mollies gave birth already and there are now 6 or so tiny fry. This is awesome. Congrats! You going to use them as live food? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowieReefer84 June 23, 2012 Share June 23, 2012 One of the black mollies gave birth already and there are now 6 or so tiny fry. This is awesome. Congrats! You going to use them as live food? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k June 23, 2012 Share June 23, 2012 This is awesome. Congrats! You going to use them as live food? Only if they get eaten by something. So far, they just swim around with the Purple Tang that lives in the overflow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDRDATA June 23, 2012 Share June 23, 2012 Only if they get eaten by something. So far, they just swim around with the Purple Tang that lives in the overflow. I got my first saltwater tank in 1987, a 25 gallon setup with an undergravel filter (my, how things have changed...) I remember that a couple of Black Lyretail Mollies were among our first fish. I don't remember them breeding in the saltwater tank (they did in the 30 gallon freshwater aquarium), but they did just fine for around a year and a half before the Air Force transferred me and we had to find them a new home - after converting them back to fresh water. I wonder if they'll eat GHA? - It may be time to try them again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDRDATA June 26, 2012 Share June 26, 2012 I got my first saltwater tank in 1987, a 25 gallon setup with an undergravel filter (my, how things have changed...) I remember that a couple of Black Lyretail Mollies were among our first fish. I don't remember them breeding in the saltwater tank (they did in the 30 gallon freshwater aquarium), but they did just fine for around a year and a half before the Air Force transferred me and we had to find them a new home - after converting them back to fresh water. I wonder if they'll eat GHA? - It may be time to try them again. Well, I went ahead and bit: my frag tank is now home to a pair of creamsicle lyretail mollies. Five hours of slow drip (really slow at first) in a jug in my sump to acclimate. They seem to be doing fine and have picked a little at some of the nuisance algae (although not the worst stuff, at least not yet). I also know I have one each male & female, so there's the possibility (or maybe probability) of babies in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaySailor June 26, 2012 Share June 26, 2012 I have a pair of black mollies I acclimated over about 8 hours or so. They have done fine over many months now, but have shown no interest whatsoever in my hair algae. Too bad, but I got them mainly for their color. What other all black fish can you think of -- i've seen one, a black angel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowieReefer84 June 26, 2012 Share June 26, 2012 I have a pair of black mollies I acclimated over about 8 hours or so. They have done fine over many months now, but have shown no interest whatsoever in my hair algae. Too bad, but I got them mainly for their color. What other all black fish can you think of -- i've seen one, a black angel. Black Tang http://reefbuilders.com/2010/10/20/black-tang-video-shows-perfect-quality-specimen/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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