# Fat molly



## rjjaxx (Jun 12, 2012)

I have a Molly that seems to be very fat and the other three will not leave her alone, I have to assume its a she. How do you know if a fish is pregnant anyway?


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

First off, go to any site with livebearers and google an image of male and female mollies. You can't miss what sex they are, and you can learn to tell in a few seconds.

Secondly, calculate how long you have had 'her' if you don't have a male. A molly will keep sperm alive internally to refertilize herself for up to six months or so. If you have had her longer than that without a male, she's fat.

Do not go up to her and congratulate her on being pregant, because if she isn't...

When they get fat, their sides expand, but when they are pregnant, their sides expand AND, viewed from the side, their belly gets a bit squared in the front. I say 'pregnant' but they have no umbilical cords or placenta. They carry fertilized eggs internally and do provide some nourishment to them, but technically, they are 'gravid' and not 'pregnant'. It's a small point, but if you look up "Gravid" mollies, you'll find better images and info than you will on "pregnant" mollies.


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