LA
Note the odd colored platies mixed in.
Platy Name: Some people
call these guys platies because they were originally named Platipoecilius ((flat-headed fish) maculatus (with spots). They’re
now (at least today) called Xiphophorus
(sword-bearer) maculatus.
LA
Still moons to some of us.
Moon Name: Old timers
call them moons because of the crescent moons right in front of their
tails. From this same
“moon” spot, breeders developed the black-tailed “wags” and the
Mickey faces.
LA
Everyone likes the "Mickey moons."
LA
♫ M...I...C... ♫ Go on and
finish. You know the words.
Origins: Slow moving
waters in Mexico and Guatemala
contain these perky little blue livebearers.
Selective breeding developed the bright reds, golds, hifins,
plume-tails, Mickey faces, vari-colored fins and any number of varied and
attractive colors in the platies.
Water Conditions: Moons
prefer a pH above neutral. Our
Des Moines
water works great. They also
like salt in their water – one teaspoon per gallon.
Keep it around 75o although they can stand it colder or
hotter.
LA
Pick from an ever-increasing rainbow of platy colors.
LA
Mix 'em up and enjoy the rainbow.
Appeal: Talk about
easy-to-keep. Platies need no
special foods or care – except clean water.
All the colors of the rainbow except green (green showed up this
year -- 2003) and purple show up in
moons -- a long way from their original sparkly blue.
Their fins and tails come in different colors and different shapes.
Who can resist these colorful little guys?
LA
Moons work great in community tanks.
Size: Most moons
average around two inches in length. You
usually find them for sale at about 1.5 inches.
This means they get along with nearly any other fishes.
Jumpers: Not as bad at
leaping as their swordtail cousins, we’d still recommend a good tank
cover. Platies will jump out –
particularly after water changes.
No Goldfish: Oddly
enough, moons don’t mix well with goldfish.
They constantly pick, pick, pick at goldfishes -- apparently
snacking on their slime coating. When a moon jumps out of his tank
and lands in one of our goldfish tanks below, he bugs every goldfish in
the tank.
Foods: Moons will
eagerly eat whatever you feed them. They
need foods with algae in them. They
also constantly snack on the algae growing on your tank’s surfaces.
Moons also love live foods and frozen foods.
They also respond well to those worm flakes that increase their
litter sizes.
Saving Fry: If you want
baby moons, you need to keep your eyes open.
Females release live fry every six weeks.
Look for chubby moms with a dark anal area.
The “dark” comes from the eyeballs of their babies showing
thru. Put the expectant mom in
a well-planted 10-gallon tank so the babies can hide.
Moon fry taste good – even to their moms.
Feed her well.
Fry Foods: Baby moons
eagerly eat powdered dry food. They
love newly hatched shrimps –
even the frozen ones. They
grow best when fed several times a day (up to a maximum of five times).
Frequency of feeding is more important than type of food. Put in some big snails to clean up the excess.
Filtration:
Baby moons need clean water. Power
filters will suck them up.
Not all survive the trip thru the impeller.
Use an under gravel or sponge filter.
LA
Platies are inexpensive, colorful, easy to keep.
Summary:
You can’t beat moons. In
addition to being nearly trouble free and very colorful,
platies also cost very little. LA.
© 1998,
© 2003,
©
2004,
©
2005
LA Productions
3600
Sixth Avenue
Corner
of Sixth & Euclid Avenues
Des
Moines, IA 50313
515
283-0300
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