Are these all swordtails?

[SwampFins]

I got a few swordtails about 5 months ago _ already full grown- hoping to breed them but I have yet to see them spawn.

I was under the impression these guys bred like rabbits, so I wondering if maybe I got some hybrids or molly females?

I can tell the males apart really easy, but I'm not entirely sure about the females.

Tank is an established 20 long, heavily planted with a sponge filter.

 

[kno4te]

Looks like you got 3 females there in the first pic. Red wagtail and gold platys.

 

[duanes]

Agree with Kno4te.
Most live bearers drop 1 or 2 fry at a time, my guess is your Ram is eating them as soon as they are born. For fry to survive in a community tank with cichlids, you would need lots of floating plants for the fry to hide in, and plenty of escape room.
And because you have chosen a line bred color form that is bright orange, they cannot hide easily because they stand out.
I have kept many live bearers as dither fish with cichlids, but I remove the females to a separate tank, when she appears to be close to dropping fry.
Below is a gravid female Xiphophorus maya, you can see the dark area in her abdomen indicating she is ready to give birth, her fry easily blend in with the environment in this natural color form, so many survive.

In nature, the fry head for very plant choked shallows to avoid predators, often in water that is only a coupe inches deep.

As they grow and large enough, and fast enough, they share waters with larger fish.

In a fry tank they grow up unmolested.

males, longer thinner bodies

 

[SwampFins]

Thank you guys for the clarification! ^^

That explains a lot. I think shelter wise they are good at the moment as I have a lot of plants in there for them (I even added a sweet potato plant for surface cove) but I did not account for the little ram.. nor the the fact I did not get the same species.

So , I can rehome the ram no problem. But if I were to keep one of the live bearers, which one would yield more fry without much intervention in a tank like this?

My intention with this tank was primarily to keep plants and a fresh source of live food for my bigger fish.

 

[SwampFins]

This is the tank.

(Note the rainbow shark is not there any more)

 

[J. H.]

That male with the long fins may not be able to breed. Some fancy males can't becsuse the gopnopodium is too long. Platties, m0ollies, and swordtails should hybridize quite readily and produce fertile offspring. most fish in the trade (probably including yours) are hybrids.

 

[SwampFins]

I think I'll add one or two more platies since that's been cleared up and see if I can get them to breed.

I have since removed the ram so it should be a species only tank now.

I'm thinking of not trimming the sweet potato roots anymore to offer more coverage on top along with some floating water Sprite.

Quick question, since I have removed the ram, is there a temp sweet spot for breeding I can shoot for? Right now I have it setup to 79

 

[J. H.]

I think I'll add one or two more platies since that's been cleared up and see if I can get them to breed.

I have since removed the ram so it should be a species only tank now.

I'm thinking of not trimming the sweet potato roots anymore to offer more coverage on top along with some floating water Sprite.

Quick question, since I have removed the ram, is there a temp sweet spot for breeding I can shoot for? Right now I have it setup to 79

Don't know about a temp, but they like hard water and a bit of salt. Most of these molly/platy/swordtail/guppy fish can handle, and like brackish all the way up to full seawater, your plants may not lol. They'll probably breed no matter what.