Gender Confused

[wirralbull]

today i picked up 3 females, now that there in the tank together one is alot more aggressive and flares at the other two. it is more coloureful and slimmer. however it is also smaller so could just not have filled out yet and when it flares it doesnt seem to have as large a throaght as my males. reading a couple of recent posts regarding male plakats mixed with females this seems quite a common mistake. could the people who have had this problem post pics of there mistaken identity males. my camera isnt taking good enough pics to identify the fish. could it just be an aggresive female? if i show another male to it can its behaviour determine to me its sex. still a novice with these fish really. is there an easy test?

 

[marieukxx]

I had the same problem. A male is more torpedo shaped, has the noticable beard. Females have a white egg sopt underneath between the ventricles. can you put a pic on here?

 

[lilfishie]

try and get a picture if you can, most of us can spot them these days as theres so many popping up

You could also issolate it and show it a mirror, see if theres any reaction, most females ignore it but never had a male ignore it before

 

[wirralbull]

best pic i cud get. cant see an egg spot. by beard do you mean the extra part of the gill they extend when they flare?

 

[Fishy friend2]

Have you put up a mirror does he/she flare

 

[wirralbull]

hadnt until now and i think thats the question answerd. definatly aggresive towards a mirror.

 

[Fishy friend2]

Most likely a male do you have anything to separate it from the females you should separate it fast even a fry net would work

 

[wirralbull]

its in a breeding trap already. had been looking into getting a plakat male not a blue one mind you. fink i will keep him anyway

 

[Fishy friend2]

Good thing that there seperated

 

[lilfishie]

100% male from the pic, the ventrals on PKs are longer, if you check the link in my sig it also helps show how to tell a PK from female

 

[wirralbull]

i see it all now youre link has been very usefull.

 

[lilfishie]

i see it all now youre link has been very usefull.

thought it was handy to keep hold of glad you found it useful

 

[marieukxx]

hadnt until now and i think thats the question answerd. definatly aggresive towards a mirror.

You can't really go by that, one of my feamles flares at a mirror and she's defo a girl.

 

[loraxchick]

Based on the photo id say male. Long ventrals and pointy anal fin. 2 giveaways. Full beard while flaring would confirm the suspicion.
cheers

 

[wirralbull]

the full beard thing gets me i see the long ventrals the pointed anal fin. its abit too colourful for a girl. it flares at a mirror and other fighters of either sex, but it doesnts seem to have the extra throat flaps. are these under developed in young fish?