Sexing Fish

[sandersj89]

Is there any easy way to tell the different sex of fish. I assume there is possibly a web resource out there with pictures showing the male and female variants for the main species?

Thanks

Jerry

 

[Sharkey G]

Some fish are much easier to decipher than others. Others can sometimes never be identified, as there is no discovered way of telling the sex.
Guppies for example - the males are usually much more colourful and striking then the females, but even in that case, it's not always true.

Check out : http/www.FishProfiles.com

 

[hellstorm]

sexing gouramis is easy, just look at their dorsal fins.
My Webpage

 

[StiX]

We need to know exactly what fish u need to sex, as all species are different

 

[William]

Too true for livebearers its: http/www.fishforever.co.uk/livebearers.html see the pictures.

 

[semper fi]

the most effective way of venting fish is to vent them. to do this you have to net the fish and keeping your hands wet turn the fish over. you will notice two small holes. the male has two round holes while the female has one round and one slightly oval one. have to be familiar to venting to do it 100%. cm or danny should pipe in here. never vented a fish. have seen cm do it as well as stripping fish. he keeps threatening me that he is going to make me touch a fish of my own free will but i have resisted his evil clenches so far. although did grab hold of my devil once, got bit for it also!

sorry wandered a bit. most south americans you can sex by the nuchal hump. although in captivity the females have been known to also grow nuchal humps. africans, the pretty ones are males while the females have the drab colors. if there is no difference in color as with the buttikoferi then you can usually tell by the fins. the males will have pointier and longer dorsal fins than the females. theirs are usually more rounder. but still not effective. color differences are at times not as effective. some fish, as with the kenyi and chippokae the males are born with female coloring. as they mature they get the male coloring. with subdomnant males they can retain their "female" coloring to avoid getting bullied by the dominant male.

so the most effective way is to vent to be sure what it is that you have.

hth

maggie