The Molly: A Classic Fish With A Twist

Tropical fishes are popular because of their shape, color, and behavior.

- Manuel Yap

Fish stores seem incomplete without the livebearer group of fish. Guppies no doubt remain the trendiest of all. They move fast, have graceful tails, and a wide range of patterns and colors. Swordtails and Platys also have a wide variety of colors.

The mollies are peculiarly popular since they contradict the elements of popularity for an aquarium fish. They swim in a regular way, have basic body shapes, and their colors are generally standard in comparison to their swordtail and platy cousins. 

Black mollies were the very first aquarium fish given to me by my uncle Teodoro Sun. The deep black color aroused my curiosity. Without an aquarium tank, I placed my mollies in a small plastic container with a volume of about less than a gallon. Daily, I would watch and feed them. The size of the tank is very important since black mollies can grow more than 3 inches and are active swimmers. Small containers can quickly stress them out, causing them to jump out or die.

Mollies are American fish, found in Central America and the Southern United States. While many fish in this genus can be found in the wild, aquarists have kept three main types for decades. These are:

• Poecilia sphenops - Common or Short-finned Molly