Platies

Name: Platies
Brand: Brooklands
SKU: plat
Price: 10.5 NZD
Availability: InStock

SKU plat

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Platies

Product Details

Platies (Xiphophorus maculatus / Xiphophorus variatus)

NOT AVAILABLE FOR SHIPPING - In-store Only

Overview: Platies are the vibrant, cheerful darlings of the freshwater hobby. Compact, hardy, and boundlessly energetic, they are one of the "big four" livebearers alongside Guppies, Mollies, and Swordtails. They feature a short, stout, oval-shaped body and have been line-bred into an astonishing array of varieties.

Some of the most popular strains you will find include:

Mickey Mouse Platy: Features three distinct black spots at the base of the tail that perfectly form the silhouette of the famous cartoon mouse.
Sunburst / Marigold Platy: Shimmers in blazing shades of gradient yellow, orange, and deep red.
Tuxedo Platy: Features a rich, velvet-black body blanketed by contrasting brightly colored heads and fins.
Variatus Platy: A slightly sleeker, more streamlined variety known for its spectacular rainbow gradients of blue, green, and yellow.

Origins: Platies are native to the warm, sluggish waters, canals, ditches, and swamps of Central America, stretching from Veracruz, Mexico, down to northern Belize.

Personality: Platies are incredibly peaceful, inquisitive, and social. They are completely devoid of malice, spending their entire day actively bumbling around the middle and upper layers of the water column. They are incredibly food-motivated and will quickly learn to recognize their owner, enthusiastically swimming to the front glass to beg for food whenever you walk into the room.

Care Level: Very Easy (The quintessential beginner fish)
Temperament: Peaceful and active
Diet: Omnivore/Herbivore (Very unpicky eaters. Thrives on high-quality flakes and micro-pellets, but they require a high amount of plant matter in their diet. They will happily spend hours diligently picking at natural algae growing on your tank glass and decorations).
Max Size: 5 – 6 cm (Females grow noticeably larger and rounder than males)
Family: Poeciliidae (Livebearers)
Tank Size: 60 Litres minimum for a small group.
Temperature: 20°C – 26°C (Variatus platies can actually tolerate much cooler water, down to 15°C, making them great for unheated indoor tanks).
pH: 7.0 – 8.2 (Like all livebearers, they require hard, alkaline water rich in dissolved minerals to stay healthy and support their immune systems).
Should be kept in groups? Yes. They are highly social and thrive when kept in a group of their own kind.

⚠️ The Livebearer Golden Rules:

1. The Breeding Explosion: Platies are incredibly prolific livebearers. If you mix males and females, they will breed constantly, giving birth to batches of 20 to 80 fully formed, free-swimming fry every 28 days. If you do not want an overpopulated tank, you can easily keep an all-female group (though be aware that females bought from a pet store are often already pregnant and may have a few batches of "surprise" babies!).

2. The Mating Ratio: If you do choose to mix sexes, you must keep a strict ratio of at least 2 or 3 females for every 1 male. Male platies are relentlessly persistent suitors; if a male is kept with only one female, he will chase and stress her to the point of physical exhaustion and illness.