What is a 'livebearer'?

What is a 'livebearer'?

Marc Grover (Professional Aquarist) gives expert video advice on: Are goldfish easy to take care of?; How many fish should I get to start an aquarium?; How do I choose a healthy fish? and more...

A 'livebearer' is a type of fish, typically Mollies, Swordtails, Pladdies, and Guppies, that literally have live babies. They don't lay eggs like most people imagine fish do. They literally hatch live fry, and they do it constantly. If you're considering purchasing a 'livebearer,' you will have to be comfortable with the fact that they're going to have babies. It's almost a certainty. If you're cool with that, it's a great fish to have. If you don't want to go through that, I would skip that fish and there are plenty to choose from in some other category.