Sexing my new betta

[nik_n]

Yesterday I went to my LFS, looking to buy some supplies, and as one does, spotted a betta which I just had to have. It was a short finned galaxy koi betta, living in a community tank. I asked about it and was told that it was a male. I bought it and introduced it to my community tank and he seemed to love it. The next day, he showed no aggression to any of the fish, all of them small community schooling fish, and seemed to be adjusting well.

I still am not convinced about the gender. The girl working there seemed inexperienced (she even put the plants in a plastic bag instead of a fish bag and handed it to me) so I'm not entirely convinced. I don't know how to sex short finned bettas and hoping that someone here does.
Anyway here are some pictures:

 

[Sully38]

Female

 

[dhjaksu]

looks female. keep an eye out for an egg spot

 

[betta4ever!]

Looks like a male imo....

 

[dhjaksu]

Looks like a male imo....

looking atthe fins I first thought male but in the second photo the body shape looks more female

 

[betta4ever!]

looking atthe fins I first thought male but in the second photo the body shape looks more female

Οh you're right...! Does indeed look like a female in the second pic...

 

[betta4ever!]

Οh you're right...! Does indeed look like a female in the second pic...

But still.... the ventrals are really long for a female... Now that's confusing.

 

[dhjaksu]

But still.... the ventrals are really long for a female... Now that's confusing.

it is confusing. the fins did initially make me think male but im leaning towards female. if you zoom in on the first photo theres also a possible egg spot. we'd need more photos to be able to tell for sure

 

[Essjay]

If you can get the fish to flare, look at the gills. A female usually has gills puffed out only at the sides while a male will usually have puffed out gills under his chin as well making it look as though he has a beard.

 

[nik_n]

it is confusing. the fins did initially make me think male but im leaning towards female. if you zoom in on the first photo theres also a possible egg spot. we'd need more photos to be able to tell for sure

I will be sure to upload more photos soon.

If you can get the fish to flare, look at the gills. A female usually has gills puffed out only at the sides while a male will usually have puffed out gills under his chin as well making it look as though he has a beard.

I haven't seen the fish flare often, making me suspect it might be a female, as my other male bettas seem to flare quit frequently. On top of that, I haven't seen any form of bubble nest being built. I suspect it's a female

 

[Back in the fold]

That's a tough one. Some of the newer varieties with shorter fins can be hard to tell. Look closely for the ovipositor . That's a sure way to tell.

 

[Nuttawet]

Male, with all this big shapes.

 

[emeraldking]

Could be a young male... The tips of the anal and dorsal fin haven't grown pointy enough yet which is also normal for a young male.
Don't look at the colors to determine the sex. For a female can show them as well.

 

[Freshyfishy]

what was the results?

 

[dhjaksu]

Did you ever work out what it was? By now it should be really obvious what the gender is