Male or female?

[Stacy87]

Hi guys,

I have recently set up my Coldwater rank and now have 3 Danios and 3 platies.

I got the first 2 from MA and told they are both male (in the bigger picture- zebra danio & yellow platy)
The other 4 were from Pets at home but unfortunately were unable to tell me their sex. Please can you help me out. I feel like they are all male except for the orange/gold platy but could be wrong as I am a newbie to his hobby. Mind you saying that the leopard Danio?? Could be female as she is quiet a lot bigger and fatter than the other 2 danios.

Hopfully I have added enough pictures for you to be able to see.

Many Thanks in advance guys x

 

[JuiceBox52]

Pretty sure your platy is female the pics are kinda blurry tho

 

[JuiceBox52]

Also, your platies should have warmer water. Zebra danios can be as low as 65f but are better slightly warmer and platies need at least 72f maybe consider investing in a heater

 

[Stacy87]

Also, your platies should have warmer water. Zebra danios can be as low as 65f but are better slightly warmer and platies need at least 72f maybe consider investing in a heater

Oh ok. I was told that they would be ok in a tank without one. What temperature would you recommend for them then? I will look at getting a heater for them if that is what you advise.

yes I really struggled getting clear pics. I think is is the light as it is really bring in the middle of the tank and kind of casts a shadow of that makes sense.

Thank you for your help.

 

[Stacy87]

Is she pregnant??

 

[Barry Tetra]

Is she pregnant?? View attachment 98895View attachment 98896

Yes she is, Congratulations

 

[Stacy87]

Thanks....wow this is going to be interesting. I did expect to have babies so soon lol

 

[Essjay]

Any female platy that is in a tank with a male will be pregnant, and will have fry at roughly 1 month intervals. Even if there is no male with the female now, if she's ever been in a tank with a male she can have fry for up to 6 months as female livebearers can store sperm.

In the last photos the yellow fish with the orange tail and its head in the decor is male. The platy with the black down its sides may also be male, I can't see the anal fin clearly.
If you do have 2 males, 1 female you either need to return the female or get more females. Livebearers like platies need to be kept with more females than males. If the one with black sides is female, that's OK.
Look at the anal fin, the one on the underside just in front of the tail. if it is shaped like a fan, the platy is female; if it's rod shaped, it's a male.


The danios are more problematic though. They should be kept in groups of at least six of the same species, and you appear to have 2 different species. From your photos, you appear to have one zebra danio (Brachydanio rerio), one leopard danio (also brachydanio rerio) and one pearl danio ( Brachydanio albolineata).
Danios are harder to tell males from females; I'll leave that to someone more experienced with them.


Temperature -
danios 18 to 25 deg C, and that minimum includes the middle of the coldest winter night.
platies 20 to 26 deg C

 

[Stacy87]

Any female platy that is in a tank with a male will be pregnant, and will have fry at roughly 1 month intervals. Even if there is no male with the female now, if she's ever been in a tank with a male she can have fry for up to 6 months as female livebearers can store sperm.

In the last photos the yellow fish with the orange tail and its head in the decor is male. The platy with the black down its sides may also be male, I can't see the anal fin clearly.
If you do have 2 males, 1 female you either need to return the female or get more females. Livebearers like platies need to be kept with more females than males. If the one with black sides is female, that's OK.
Look at the anal fin, the one on the underside just in front of the tail. if it is shaped like a fan, the platy is female; if it's rod shaped, it's a male.


The danios are more problematic though. They should be kept in groups of at least six of the same species, and you appear to have 2 different species. From your photos, you appear to have one zebra danio (Brachydanio rerio), one leopard danio (also brachydanio rerio) and one pearl danio ( Brachydanio albolineata).
Danios are harder to tell males from females; I'll leave that to someone more experienced with them.


Temperature -
danios 18 to 25 deg C, and that minimum includes the middle of the coldest winter night.
platies 20 to 26 deg C

Thanks essjay. I really appreciate you taking the time to reply to me.

yes I think you’re right. 2 appear to be Male and the other obviously female. I will look into getting a couple more females now I know how to tell myself. Well I think I do

If I got a couple more Danios, would they be ok or should I Ideally look at getting a total of 6 of each the same species??

 

[FishGuest5123]

Danios do better in groups of 6. Females are wider bodies and males are more slender.

 

[Essjay]

Zebra and leopard danios are the same species but pearls are a different species. The ideal situation would be to take the pearl back to the shop and get more zebras or leopards, it doesn't matter which as they are the same species. If you like them both, get half and half. However, the pearl is related to zebras & leopards and although it's not ideal if you want to keep it and get more zebras/leopards, that should be OK. But get enough zebras/leopards to make a total of 6.
With danios the male/female ratio is not as important as with the common livebearers. Platies need more females than males simply because males spend all their time chasing females and with more females, each one gets time off while the males chase others.



I forgot to say in my last post that the orange platy with the two black spots next to the tail is a female