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spanish macho?
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2004 3:27 pm
by Guest
My first zebra.
Male?
Thank you for your opinions.[/img]
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2004 3:30 pm
by Rodrigo
Excuse me. I´ve forgotten log in in my pc. The zebra of the previous message is mine.
Do you think is a "macho"?
Thanks.
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2004 4:28 pm
by Adam
Hi Rodrigo,
It looks like a male to me judging by the good odontode growth on the operculum and leading ray of the pectoral fin.
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2004 4:34 pm
by Dr. P
I would say Male.
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2004 5:45 pm
by Barbie
How large is this fish? I think it looks female, personally, if it's over 3" SL.
Barbie
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2004 9:08 pm
by Des
Rodrigo,
Hi and welcome to the forum.
You definetly have a nice adult FEMALE there. Looks just like my females.Can tell by not looking only at the odontodes but also the body shape which in this case is a dead give away. The males (and juvenile females)body shape goes straight from the side of the pectoral fins to the tail. On the other hand the adult females are parallel between pectoral and ventral fins ,then point towards the tail. Looks very "pregnant" to me
Regards,
Des.
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 12:00 am
by DasArab
Well i thought it was a female too, judging by the short hair on the fins and the nose too, but what do i know. LOL.
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 2:34 am
by urchysj
Judging by the top view...body shape. I say female. I thought at first male cuz I thought only the males have a blue tinge on the dorsal fins...and I think I see it. So do the females also have the blue tinge? Also, I had a Zebra die on me. I thought it was a big female because it looked so "round", but it didn't round out until AFTER the pec fins. It's hard to explain. I cut it open to look for eggs. NONE. So I believe I had a FAT male. They can look round too...but I notice the roundness starts lower down the body. Does this make sense to anybody? I have a very hard time sexing them myself. Are there any surefire signs? ??? I am tired of not knowing what sex mine are.
Barbie...you know so much...any suggestions that are idiot-proof?
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 2:37 am
by urchysj
Sorry, forgot to add this: Anybody else really good at these fish have a surefire method? Somebody out there knows because I just got 5 very young Zebras and the shipper SWEARS 4 are female. How do you know? Can you look at the "vent"?
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 4:23 am
by Barbie
urchysj 3 months ago I was of the belief that I owned the only adult gay colony of zebra plecos on the planet. I'd been told by numerous people that had actually bred zebras that I had all females, all but one was male, and even that they were too fat. I know now that I had "guessed" their sexes properly, but to be honest, I am not sure how I know. The females heads don't look as "long" to me from where their pectoral fins cross their torso, and the females plump up behind that same line, where a male plumps up all the way back. Males appear to have larger anal fins in comparison to females of the same size, and the pectoral fins are less curved on males. The odontodes in the gill operculum (sp?) will extend outside the groove on males, but not on females, although they will both have them plainly visible in mature females. The leading ray on the pectoral fins of males is thicker or heavier looking also. I've read all of these things for a few years, and I am beginning to feel more confident in my guesses, but I feel far from foolproof!
Barbie
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 6:50 am
by sid
Female......................I sure rob will add some info too on it ,once he gets back from Aberdeen
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 9:38 am
by Prune Tracy
I'm waging my bet with female. I said it first off because it appears obvious for me. Although I am no pro, it seems stereotypical. Perhaps even a model of female zebras ... er ... yup.
Urchysj: Surefire method? Yeah, don't listen to the dealers. Everyone wants females so everyone is selling "females." Just take any opportunity to try to sex these fish that you can find and I'm sure your accuracy will improve. Mine's been going up at least.
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 12:37 pm
by McEve
Well, you probably don't need any more suggestions now, but I think it's a female, based on the proportional size of the fins.
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 6:46 pm
by Rob
Hairy Lady!!!!
Not that many of them about, but I reakon she's a she! A good sized fish, I would guess that if you get her spawning you'll get a fair batch of eggs. One of my females has long odontodes, and I spent a year thinkng she was a he.
Good luck
rob
Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 9:10 pm
by Rodrigo
Thank you for your opinions.
Tomorrow, I´ll send you a few pictures of thr other zebra.
Tonight, I´m going to sleep very well.
Bye.