Lyretail Silver Molly 5.5cm

Lyretail Silver Molly

The silver molly is already one of the world’s most popular aquarium fish because of how bright, easy to care for, and how readily they are available. Silver mollies make for a downright fantastic fish to add to a community aquarium or a species-only aquarium as they are filled with activity, and personality and look stunning. The lyretail moly takes all these features and enhances them with a beautiful crescent-like tail. As their name suggests silver mollies are bright flashes of silver from nose to tail.

These fish can be so bright and reflective that they are arguably more of a platinum colouration which can often be whiter than silver. These fish look like little pearls swimming around the aquarium and look amazing against plants or a dark background. To take this further the lyre tail Molly has a pair of extensions on their tail fin which essentially look like streamers. these fish look amazing against lush green plants. Mollies are one of the larger growing livebearer fish meaning they give birth to live young and are closely related to guppies and platies.

The lyretail silver molly can be expected to reach around 10 cm which makes them a great larger peaceful fish to add to community aquariums. Mollies are also great fish to add to planted aquariums as they make for surprisingly good hair algae eaters, they constantly peck at plant leaves and almost scrub plants and rocks clean with their mouth but are overall just great fish for both beginners and well-seasoned aquarists to enjoy and experience. One other amazing fact about these fish is that mollies can live in full fresh, brackish, and saltwater which just shows how hardy they are. The wild habitat of the Molly is widespread from South America to Mexico.

Tank Recommendations for your Lyretail Silver Molly
Being a fish that grows to around 10 cm but remains relatively easy to care for. The lyretail silver molly can be kept in a fairly small aquarium with the minimum being 70 Litres. However, a larger size is always recommended for these fish due to their size and active nature. A sand or gravel substrate would be fine for these fish as well however because of mollies like alkaline or high pH. environments a crushed coral or aragonite sand would be optimal.

They will also enjoy plants in the aquarium with great options being ferns, Anubias, Pogostemon, and Vallisneria as these are large and denser growing plants that allow for great natural breeding grounds and places for fry to grow. As mentioned mollies are 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 lyretail silver molly is a very peaceful aquarium fish that can get along with a wide range of tank mates both in fresh and saltwater conditions. They are great with a wide range of community aquarium fish however slower moving fish should be avoided as mollies may outcompete them. As the lyretail silver mollies have extended tail fins, any fin-nipping species should be excluded as they may pester the mollies.

Usually Compatible
Rainbow fish, mudskippers, platies, danios, loaches, and a lot of other common aquarium fish.

Sometimes Compatible
Smaller-sized fish such as neon or cardinal tetras, bottom-dwelling fish such as Corydoras, and certain slower-moving species like Apistogramma. Tiger barbs and similar fin-nipping species should also be avoided.

Rarely Compatible
Large and aggressive species that would prey on the mollies such as Oscars.

Feeding your Lyretail Silver Molly
The lyretail silver molly is very easy to feed once it is settled into the aquarium. It will readily eat a wide range of foods but would prefer to have a floating nano pellet or flake due to its top-dwelling behaviour. Giving them nutritional food with good protein will ensure optimal health.