Texas Gulf Coast Fishing

Sailfin Molly

SAILFIN MOLLY - Poecilia latipinna

Description: The body is generally light grey, although breeding males may be greenish-blue. Several rows of spots occur along the sides, back, and dorsal fin. Often, these spots blend together, forming stripes. The body of the sailfin molly is essentially oblong. The head is small and dorsally flattened, with a small, upturned mouth. The caudal peduncle is broad and the caudal fin is large, rounded, and sometimes tipped with black. The pelvic fins originate at a point anterior to the dorsal fin. In mature males, the dorsal fin is greatly enlarged and colorful (it is this feature that gives the species its common name) and the caudal fin is similarly colorful; these conspicuous secondary sexual features play a role in female mate choices. Females tend to be larger and more plainly colored.
Size: The sailfin molly is a small species, seldom exceeding 5 inches in length; however it can attain lengths of 6 inches.
Distribution: The sailfin molly is found in fresh, brackish, and coastal saltwater in coastal lowland habitats from North Carolina to Texas and the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. Preferring marshes, lowland streams, swamps, and estuaries, the sailfin molly is very common in peninsular Florida.
Habitat: The sailfin molly is an extremely tolerant species, which appears to be extremely prolific and adaptable. It can live in fresh as well as saltwater. Sailfin mollies are most commonly observed as the shallow surface waters along the edges of marshes, lowland streams, ponds, swamps, estuaries and even ephemeral water bodies such as roadside ditches. Small to large aggregations of the species are most commonly found under floating vegetation or near structures in the water, minimizing their chances of being observed by potential predators.