Everything I've read says that the only way to sex angel fish is by their sex organs when they mate, but are the females generally more plump than the males? Has anyone noticed this? I ask because I have two similarly sized angels, and one is more plump than the other. Could this be an indication of different sexes, or generally not?
Sexing angel fish?
- Thread starter chazzbo77
- Start date
i was wondering the same thing. I don't know if it applies to angels, but with most other fish, the male has more showy fins. For example, the males fins are more colorful and larger than the females. The same thing though, i really cant tell my angels apart. The only difference between the two is that one has really really colorful and large fins, and the other does not.
There are a few who have kept angels a long time who can sometimes tell which is which when they are not spawning. For the average person though, unless their breeding tubes are down, there is no sure way to tell. Sometimes the male is bigger, sometimes the female is, sometimes the males fins are prettier and sometimes not. As far as being thicker, my female angel would get a somewhat rounder/fuller belly (full with eggs) right before spawning, but within the day her breeding tube would show. You won't even know you have both male and female unless you see the breeding tubes. Two females will pair and spawn, the eggs just won't be viable.
It is hard to tell the sex of angels - I have been breeding them for 3 years now and I still struggle at times. Most all my males develop a hump on their crown when they reach breeding age and are vying for a female's attention. It makes them look tough I suppose - I would say 85% or higher get this hump. Also, where the males bottom fin attaches to their body, it is a straighter angle than the females in most cases. It is hard to describe, but it is close to 90 degrees, the female would not be as severe - like say 120 degrees w/more of a curve where it attaches. Veiled angels are harder to figure out because of the type of fins they have.
All that being said - it is still difficult until the tubes drop. The female's tube is larger and blunted at the end, the males looks like a little triangle.
HTH,
All that being said - it is still difficult until the tubes drop. The female's tube is larger and blunted at the end, the males looks like a little triangle.
HTH,
Andy is dead on about sexing Angels. It's a matter of working from the two extremes towards the middle. If you show me a tank with 50 Angels with bodies 2" in diameter and ask me to pick a pair you can be pretty sure you'll get a pair. But with each selection the differences get less and less, and the odds of my being wrong increase.
OK, here are some pics. Can a trained eye tell me what I may have here?
The pictures aren't that great, sorry about that.
They're both fairly young still. They're about 2", maybe a bit larger (from nose to tip of tail). Can anyone help me out here? Thanks!
The pictures aren't that great, sorry about that.
They're both fairly young still. They're about 2", maybe a bit larger (from nose to tip of tail). Can anyone help me out here? Thanks!
If I were to take a stab at it (hard to tell by the photos) I would guess female for the marble based on the curve where her (?) bottom fin attaches. The koi is harder - maybe male, maybe female (Wow - what a revelation!! 
). The bottom fin attachment angle looks pretty straight in one photo, curved in the other. Their over all body shape makes me lean toward two females. But I could be completely wrong. 2 inches is still pretty young. As they mature I have found that the males body shape tends to be more blunted and stocky, the females are not as blunted at the crown.
Are you hoping for a pair or just curious? Time will tell, that is for certain.
HTH,
). The bottom fin attachment angle looks pretty straight in one photo, curved in the other. Their over all body shape makes me lean toward two females. But I could be completely wrong. 2 inches is still pretty young. As they mature I have found that the males body shape tends to be more blunted and stocky, the females are not as blunted at the crown.Are you hoping for a pair or just curious? Time will tell, that is for certain.
HTH,
Two females would probably be best, I assume. They're in a community tank, and I don't really want to breed them, so the aggression that two males would show towards one another, or that a pair would show to other fish would be undesirable. So yea, two females is probably what I'm hoping for, for now at least.