Buying 4 Bolivian Rams Today, How to tell male from female at the FS?

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G

gcis

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Jul 12, 2008
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I am going to be adding 4 bolivian rams to my 55 tonight and I am going to the fish store in a couple of hours. I would like to get two males and two females so that I can hopefully have two mated pairs (nothing is guaranteed but definitely worth a shot). How can I tell the males from the females?

Also, worst case scenario: If they only have males would it be problem keeping 4 males in a peaceful community tank?

Thanks.
 
Pittbull

Pittbull

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Apr 14, 2007
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a 55gal is a nice size for a community of small stuff and the bolivians stay small but with 4 males you will have an issue here and there aye, typical cichlid fashion aggression and it shouldnt pose any problems except the normal fray and tear of a fin so to say, the bigger issue would be if you got 3 males and 1 female your sub dominent males would be pushed to the other side due to female syndrome capacity, hehehe, as for the sexing of these beautiful fishes the males are more slimmer more colorful and have longer fin extensions on the caudal fin, the females are smaller but more robust in size and do not posses the longer caudal extensions pretty neat fish the males reach 4" in size, good luck with these guys..
 
abi88

abi88

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Pittbull said:
a 55gal is a nice size for a community of small stuff and the bolivians stay small but with 4 males you will have an issue here and there aye, typical cichlid fashion aggression and it shouldnt pose any problems except the normal fray and tear of a fin so to say, the bigger issue would be if you got 3 males and 1 female your sub dominent males would be pushed to the other side due to female syndrome capacity, hehehe, as for the sexing of these beautiful fishes the males are more slimmer more colorful and have longer fin extensions on the caudal fin, the females are smaller but more robust in size and do not posses the longer caudal extensions pretty neat fish the males reach 4" in size, good luck with these guys..
Click to expand...


:iagree:.....well said Pittbull!!:D


and Good luck gcis
 
R

Reddog80p

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Nov 18, 2006
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What else you got in the tank? Bolivians are nice, I have a few myself. A pair of keyhole cichlids instead would be a nice addition also... they get a bit bigger but also do well in peaceful community setups.
 
Pittbull

Pittbull

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Apr 14, 2007
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Thanks abi88..

Yeah reddog i have had keyholes before they stay fairly small for cichlids and are very mild mannered pretty much a complete sissy so to say but they do look lovely in a planted tank i have photos of my old ones if you are interested in seeing let me know i will post them..
 
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gcis

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Well, I got the Bolivians the other day and now I am worried. I have 25 neons, 6 peppered corys, 6 ottos, 2 cherry barbs, and 4 rams now. I was looking the rams after a couple days of acclimation and I was paying particular attention to the vent. It looks like either all or at least 3 of them are males. They haven't really had alot of agression (the occassional fin flare and lip locking) but one of them in particular is somewhat aggressive towards my cories during dinner. I will keep an eye on it and I have a 25 gallon tank that I could put a couple of them in if it gets out of hand but it sucks because the place I bought them from only has a 48 hour return policy (should've asked!) so now I will have to find them a new home if it gets crazy but we will see. Thanks for the advice!
 
Dexmaster

Dexmaster

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I would like to see the your Keyholes please!
 
powerkit

powerkit

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good luck with them. bolivians are very nice, i have a pair in my community tank. they are very sweet. just make sure they are getting enough to eat, as they are not quite as pushy as some other fish for food.
 
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gcis

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Yeah, I have pics but the attachment option has changed. Now I have to have a URL. I have pics on my memory card here at my desk but I can't upload them into the thread! Anyone else having the same problem?

Also, I noticed that they are definitely not as pushy as their other tankmates when it comes to feeding time. I bought a turkey baster the other day to push food to the bottom of the tank where they are always hanging out. Any recommendations on what food they like? I got some floating / sinking small cichlid pellets but the rams have been at the bottom of the tank completely oblivious to the surface feeding.
 
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