Mary fish

Common name alias

Mary fish

　Latin name

Poecilialatipinna

Geographical distribution

North America, Mexico

　Adult body length

8.0～12.0 cm

　Personality

Mild

Suitable temperature

22.0～26.0 ℃

Acidity and alkalinity

PH 7.2～7.6

Hardness

dGH 9.0～11.0 N

　Activity level

Top layer

Reproductive method

Ovoviviparous

　　Mary fish belongs to the family of ovoviviparous cyprinids. It has various colors such as red, black, silver, and tricolor. Common varieties include tail red mary, tail black mary, tricolor mary, high fin red mary, high fin gold mary, and ball silver mary. The main food is insect fish, but it can also feed on pellet feed. The breeding water temperature is 24-26 degrees Celsius, and the female fish has a clear gravid spot on the abdomen before giving birth. Each time it gives birth to 50-150 fry, and it gives birth once a month. When raising Mary fish, it is important to regularly add salt to the water to maintain weak alkaline water quality.

　　Mary fish has the same ovoviviparous reproductive characteristics as guppy fish. It is also a tropical fish belonging to the family of ovoviviparous cyprinids. It has various species. According to the body shape, it can be roughly divided into two types: normal type and balloon type (commonly known as teapot); According to the shape of the caudal fin, it can be roughly divided into two types: the tail swallow type and the round tail type; According to the shape of the dorsal fin, it can be roughly divided into two types: the low fin type and the sail fin type; There are more varieties according to the color, and the more common ones are black mary, flower mary, tricolor mary, pearl mary, gold mary, silver mary, ball mary, and so on.

　　Mary fish has a mild temperament and is best raised in a weak alkaline hard water environment. Its diet is quite varied and can easily accept various types of animal-based live baits as well as artificial baits. At the same time, it also likes to feed on aquatic plants and algae that grow on the walls of the aquarium, so during the breeding process, it is important to not only feed plant-based feed regularly to help their growth and development, but also pay attention to their feeding habits. In case of poor water quality or mouth injuries, they are susceptible to bacterial infections, leading to the occurrence of mouth fungus disease. Mary fish is relatively hardy and easy to raise. They can even tolerate temperatures as low as around 10 degrees Celsius. However, this does not mean that they can thrive in this extreme temperature. Prolonged exposure to low temperatures can also easily lead to fungal infections and even death.

　　After the fry of Mary fish are born for 35-45 days, they reach maturity. It is relatively easy to distinguish males and females. Generally, the male fish is smaller in size, and the reproductive organ tube for external mating and fertilization—the anal fin—is rod-shaped and slender; The female fish is larger in size, and the anal fin is fan-shaped. Usually, it contains a large number of fertilized eggs and appears swollen.

　　After entering the sexual maturity stage, Mary fish can produce fry approximately every 35 days. Since Mary fish is an ovoviviparous fish, which means internal fertilization, when the fertilized eggs are mature, they are directly released as fry. Therefore, breeding them is relatively easy. Just pay attention to the swelling of the female fish's abdomen and the blackening phenomenon. At the same time, carefully observe the anus of the female fish. If you find that the ovipositor is dotted or obvious protruding, then the female fish will give birth to fry within 2-5 days, and you just need to place the female fish in a separate breeding tank. During this period, it is important not to change the water quality excessively. Drastic changes in water quality will directly lead to premature birth of the female fish, and produce underdeveloped fry or even undeveloped eggs. The number of fry produced by Mary fish depends on the size of the female fish. Generally, it increases as the female fish grows and develops, with a range of 40 to 100 fry, and some fish can produce about 200 fry at a time. After the fry are produced, they will start swimming on their own in a short while, and they will also prey on smaller copepods. They can also be directly fed with small pellet artificial feed.

The Molly fish was originally described and named by naturalist Charles Alexandre Lesueur in 1821 as Mollienesia latipinna, and is often considered to be an important figure in the establishment of an experimental settlement in New Harmony, Indiana in the 1820s. Lesueur described the Molly fish based on specimens from freshwater ponds near New Orleans, Louisiana. However, Lesueur named the Molly fish Mollienesia multilineata in his description of other livebearers in 1821, and later named it Mollienesia Latipina the same year. This conflict caused confusion and ultimately required a ruling by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). In 1959, ICZN deemed Mollienesia latipinna Lesueur 1821 to be the valid name.

There are many other synonyms, most of which are based on specimens from other regions within the large native range of the Molly fish. These include Limia poeciloides Girard 1858, Poecilia lineolata Girard 1858, and Limia matamorensis Girard 1859. In their work on livebearers, Don Rosen and Reeve Bailey (1959) noted that the genus Poecilia Bloch & Schneider 1801 has priority over the genus Mollienesia Lesueur 1821, thus making Mollienesia a synonym of Poecilia. Therefore, the valid scientific name for the Molly fish is Poecilia latipinna (Lesueur, 1821).

Lovers of ornamental fish are advised to keep them. When keeping them, it is necessary to regularly change the water and add a small amount of salt to strengthen their physical condition. Many people have noticed that Black Mollys like to feed on algae. If you want to raise Black Mollys well, you don't necessarily have to raise aquatic plants at the same time. (In fact, having more aquatic plants doesn't necessarily mean more algae in the water.) The aquarium can be lined with sand and enhanced lighting, with regular water changes and a slight addition of salt. If you want to plant grass, select varieties that can tolerate weak alkaline hard water; if you want to mix them with other species, it is recommended to try mixing them with small East African cichlids. Feeding can be done with commercial pellets and blanched vegetable leaves, and live bait should be fed sparingly. Even when there is plenty of algae, a small amount of other feed should still be supplemented.

1. Columnarisk: Columnarisk is a common disease that tropical fish are susceptible to. It is usually caused by fungi parasitizing in wounds after the fish is injured. It is difficult to discover at the early stage of the disease, but white fluffy material will grow later. Since the disease usually occurs under low temperature conditions, it is important to maintain the water temperature above 15°C. In addition, treatment with polyvinyl alcohol iodine solution is also necessary.

2. Fin Rot: Fin Rot is often caused by poor water quality. At the early stage of the disease, the edge of the fish's fins will become opaque and the membrane will come off. Then the fin rays will split, and in severe cases, it can lead to death. After the disease is discovered, water changing, raising the temperature, adding salt, and treating the fish with furanoxillin or erythromycin should be done. Multiple treatments can alleviate the symptoms.

3. Pop-eye Disease: Pop-eye Disease, also known as exophthalmia, causes swelling of the fish's body and the scales are no longer tightly attached, but stand loosely. At the early stage of the disease, symptoms can be relieved by water changing, and the water temperature should be raised to 32-33°C. Additionally, sulfonamides or furan drugs can be used for medicated baths.

1. Preparation of tank and water

   The preparation of the tank mainly involves cleaning and disinfection. I use the method of boiling water for disinfection, which is thorough and does not have the problem of residues left by chemical disinfection. It is also the most environmentally friendly method. It should be noted that when disinfecting, first place the tank steadily, it must be steady, otherwise it is easy to crack. Then add a small amount of boiling water first to let the glass adapt to the temperature, in order to prevent the glass from suddenly being heated to a high temperature and explode. Finally, add an appropriate amount of boiling water for disinfection. The process of raising water is to let tap water stand still for 3 to 5 days to let the chlorine gas in the water evaporate. Then add the water to the disinfected tank, and then add nitrifying bacteria. Use an air pump to aerate continuously for 24 hours. At this point, the nitrification system can be initially established, and the water can be used to keep fish.

   2. Receiving the fish

   After receiving the fish, do not rush to open the package box. Open the box in a dark place after returning home. Avoid shaking or rolling during transportation. Because the fish stop eating and are in a dark environment, after long-distance and long-term transportation, their physique becomes weak and their spirits are tense. Therefore, be especially careful to prevent the fish from being startled and hitting the bag or tank, or causing tail nipping due to fear. Therefore, all work must be done gently and carefully.

  3. Water exchange (also known as water renewal, professional term)

  Water exchange is an important and tedious operation. But if you want to raise fish well, you must be careful and patient to ensure that the fish can initially adapt to our breeding environment smoothly and lay a solid foundation for normal cultivation in the future. The main steps of water exchange are as follows:

   1. Water temperature: The water temperature in the tank should be stable between 22 and 26 degrees. After receiving the fish, do not rush to open the bag. Rinse the bag with water at the same temperature as the tank water. Then put the bag into the tank for about 20 to 30 minutes to equalize the temperature of the water in the bag and the water in the tank.

   2. Opening the bag: After opening the bag, first add an amount of tank water equivalent to 1/10 of the water in the bag into the bag, and then gradually add tank water into the bag to make the fish gradually adapt to changes in water quality such as pH and KH. The whole process takes about 30 to 40 minutes. When the amount of water added to the bag reaches the amount of water in the bag, gently lift the fish and place it in the fish tank. This water exchange process can also be done using an intravenous infusion system, which can better acclimatize the fish to the water quality, and is suitable for more precious fish. After the water exchange is completed, the original water in the bag should be discarded, because the waste and shed substances excreted by the fish during transportation are the preferred food and breeding ground for bacteria, and an important source of fish diseases.

   3. The fish will be very panic after entering the tank. At this time, the light should not be too strong, and do not disturb it. For example, do not point and make big movements when watching it. The preparation work before receiving the fish must be fully done. After the fish enters the tank, do not swim around the tank all the time, and remember not to feed it for the day!

  4. On the first day, do not feed or change water, just observe its condition. Generally, on the first day, the fish's condition will improve, such as looking for food, chasing mates, etc. If the condition is not good, you can add 1% concentrated saline water.

  5. On the second day: If the condition is good and the fish is searching for food and chasing mates, you can feed a little live bait, just a little bit, never overfeed! Live food such as shrimp is best for open-mouthed bait. Artificial bait is not recommended because it is difficult to digest. You can change 1/10 of the water. In winter, the temperature of the water being changed should be 1 to 2 degrees higher than that in the tank, and in summer, it should be 1 to 2 degrees lower. This is the method of controlling the temperature when changing water throughout the year.

  If the condition is not good, do not feed and continue to observe.

   6. On the third day: This is a critical day! If the fish has any problems, it will be obvious on this day. After observing the symptoms, treat accordingly.

If there are no problems and the condition is good, feed the fish the same amount as yesterday, slightly more, and gradually transition to the normal feeding amount within a week. The same goes for water changes.

   7. The water exchange procedure must be carefully completed. Even if you are confident in your water quality, it is not recommended to directly put the fish into the tank without water exchange. Remember this, otherwise, injuries are inevitable.