Lyretail Red Leopard Molly

Lyretail Red Leopard Molly

Common Names

• Lyretail Red Leopard Molly
• Red Leopard Molly
• Leopard Lyretail Molly
• Lyretail Molly

 

Identification

The Lyretail Red Leopard Molly is a striking freshwater livebearer featuring a beautiful combination of red, orange, silver, and black leopard-like markings across the body and fins. Its most distinctive feature is the elegant lyre-shaped tail, with elongated upper and lower fin rays that give this Molly a graceful appearance.

This selectively bred variety is an active and attractive addition to community aquariums and is particularly popular with hobbyists looking for something more colourful than the standard Molly varieties.

 

Behavior & Role

Lyretail Red Leopard Mollies are generally peaceful, active community fish that spend much of their time swimming through the middle and upper portions of the aquarium. They are social and can be kept with other peaceful livebearers and community species.

Like other Mollies, they are livebearers and can reproduce readily when males and females are kept together.

 

Compatibility & Caution

They are excellent community fish and can be kept with other peaceful species of similar size.

 

Suitable tank mates include:

• Guppies
• Platies
• Swordtails
• Other Mollies
• Corydoras
• Tetras
• Rasboras
• Peaceful Gouramis
• Other peaceful community fish

Avoid aggressive species and fin-nipping fish that may harass their flowing lyretail fins.

 

Care Level

Easy

• Tank Size: Minimum 20 gallons
• Temperature: 72–80°F (22–27°C)
• pH: 7.0–8.5
• Water Hardness: Moderate to Hard

Lyretail Red Leopard Mollies are hardy and adaptable, making them an excellent choice for beginner aquarists. They generally thrive in stable, well-filtered aquariums with good water quality and benefit from harder, mineral-rich water.

 

Provide a varied diet consisting of:

• High-quality flakes
• Micro pellets
• Spirulina-based foods
• Algae wafers
• Brine shrimp
• Bloodworms
• Other high-quality frozen or freeze-dried foods

Regular vegetable-based foods are beneficial because Mollies naturally graze on algae and plant matter.

 

Tank Mates

Ideal companions include:

• Guppies
• Platies
• Swordtails
• Corydoras
• Tetras
• Rasboras
• Peaceful Gouramis
• Other Mollies
• Other peaceful community fish

 

Fun Fact

Mollies are livebearers, meaning females give birth to fully formed, free-swimming fry rather than laying eggs. A healthy female can produce a surprisingly large brood, so a mixed-sex group can quickly result in a growing population.