Assorted Platy 3.5cm

Assorted Platy
 

Platies are one of the most common and popular aquarium fish in the world for all the right reasons. They come in an array of colours, look super unique, and are quite easy to take care of. The most loved feature of this fish is their incredible vibrancy and bustling personality, they are great species to add to any aquarium and are a fantastic alternative to tetras or Rasboras due to their size as well.

Through the years of selective breeding, the humble platy now comes in an assortment of colours but the most common colours are generally varying shades of red, white, orange, blue, green and black. Because of all the ranging colours, it looks stunning to have a large group of these fish in an aquarium. It’s often a hard choice to select a single strain from the multitude of colours available which is why the assorted platy option offered by LiveFish contains a mix of these fish along with the opportunity to get males and females.

Breeding platies in the home aquarium is a super easy task that often requires no effort from you. Since these fish are livebearers the females will drop fully formed baby platies which totally avoids the process of rearing eggs. Males and females are easily distinguished as male platies have long extensions on their tails whereas females do not. The wild habitat of the natural swordtail is widespread from South America to Mexico.

Tank Recommendations for your Assorted Platy

Platies reach around 6cm when fully grown, the ideal aquarium size to keep a small group of 5 - 7 of these would be a 40-litre aquarium. This ensures there is ample space for the fish and room for potential breeding as well. A sand or gravel substrate would be fine for these fish as well as a lot of plant growth which not only makes them contrast really well but also makes for handy locations where swordtail fry can grow. Platies are in fact considered to be a ‘hard’ water fish meaning they prefer the water to have an elevated PH and are not like a tetra. This higher PH of 7 - 8 can be achieved with a PH buffer or African cichlid lake conditioning salts.

Suitable Tank Buddies

The swordtail is a very peaceful aquarium fish. they are great with a wide range of nano aquarium fish however males can be highly prone to certain fin-nipping species so these should be avoided. The other factor is that platies are fish that need higher PH so keeping them with South American tetras may not be very suitable as these lower PH.

Usually Compatible

Pseudomogil species such as fork-tail rainbows, blue eyes, rice fish, and nano aquarium fish can tolerate hard water conditions.

Sometimes Compatible

Medium-growing or possibly fin-nipping species. Bettas should also be avoided because of their similar flashy nature to platies which could lead to aggression from the bettas end.

Rarely Compatible

Large and aggressive species that would prey on the platies such as oscars, or jaguar cichlids.

Feeding your Assorted Platy

Platies are very easy to feed once they are settled into the aquarium. They will readily take a wide range of foods but would prefer to have a floating nano pellet or flake due to their top dwelling behaviour. Giving them nutritional food with good protein and varied ingredients can result in the colours of the platies being further enhanced.