Blue Throat Trigger - orange tail?

[1979fishgeek]

hi

Can someone please confirm if Blue Throat Trigger females have orange tails?

I picked up this beauty yesterday. She has faint yellow tail fin with very bold orange boarder. I have been staring at photos online of Blue Throat for hours and all the males have bold yellow tails and females don’t have any clear colour at all. The only similar Triggers with orange tails were Sargassum and Linespot?

She’s not to my admittedly untrained eye typical Blue Throat, I was wondering if she is actually a young Sargassum or even a hybrid?










Currently in my QT tank.

Thanks in advance!

 

[eatbreakfast]

Looks like a young male blue jaw. It's colors should develop more as it matures

 

[1979fishgeek]

Very frustrating as my iPad camera is useless! Now she’s come out of hiding and is eating and excited, all her fins are orange edged, it’s just impossible for this useless camera to capture. She also has fine black lines on her cheeks.

 

[1979fishgeek]

Looks like a young male blue jaw. It's colors should develop more as it matures

Or should I say he! Sorry I was typing as you were replying. Be lovely if it’s s boy, ‘she’ was already really cheap as been in the shop months, so if it’s a boy it’s even more of a bargain.

Thanks

 

[Jeff Hall]

Definitely a female, Males have yellow trim around their dorsal fins and a blue throat. I have both a male and female. Awesome fish.

 

[Reefer1978]

I have a male bluethroat I grew from a 1" baby when there was no color at all. At first the tip of the tale was orange, then top started turning yellow and the whole tail became yellow over 3 months. Pretty much at the same time as the tail got it's full color throat area started developing blue.

 

[Reefer1978]

6 weeks ago. You can see the last remaining orange coloration.

 

[1979fishgeek]

My husband took some photos on his phone, this is him/her all happy and begging for more food. Such a character already! His/her colours change by the second from grey Olive to yellowish. But those fins still striking orange on the edges, I’m so in love with this fish!

 

[lion king]

I would concur that it is a maturing male.

 

[1979fishgeek]

I’m over the moon if it’s a male! Hopefully I’ll find him a small female to create a pair. I love this hobby!

 

[Jeff Hall]

6 weeks ago. You can see the last remaining orange coloration.

This one appears to be a male to me. You can see the blue on the throat. No evidence of any blue on the other pics.

 

[Reefer1978]

This one appears to be a male to me. You can see the blue on the throat. No evidence of any blue on the other pics.

No argument there. But as I mentioned, blue was the last color to come in for me. I wasn't commenting on the other trigger being a male or female, was more trying to show that orange color is present in the tail, and later turns fully into yellow.

 

[Jeff Hall]

She is very fat and healthy looking.

 

[1979fishgeek]

What ever the sex turns out to be, I’m happy. A pair of Blue Throats have been on my wish list for a LONG time, but I’ve never seen one that I could afford before. I’m so lucky with my lfs.
I’ll give it time to mature and settle, going to be at least a month in the QT then I’m putting it in the main display. He certainly loves his food, currently going crazy for sinking pellets, such a character already.

 

[Colin Fowler]

hi

Can someone please confirm if Blue Throat Trigger females have orange tails?

I picked up this beauty yesterday. She has faint yellow tail fin with very bold orange boarder. I have been staring at photos online of Blue Throat for hours and all the males have bold yellow tails and females don’t have any clear colour at all. The only similar Triggers with orange tails were Sargassum and Linespot?

She’s not to my admittedly untrained eye typical Blue Throat, I was wondering if she is actually a young Sargassum or even a hybrid?










Currently in my QT tank.

Thanks in advance!

Hi, I have a young male Blue Thoat and the fins are outlined in yellow. Yours looks like a female. These are awesome fish. He never causes any trouble.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Immature males don't have fully developed colors. As they mature the colors develop.

 

[lion king]

I’m over the moon if it’s a male! Hopefully I’ll find him a small female to create a pair. I love this hobby!

If it does turn out to be a male, be careful when choosing a female. Some males don't show their true colors until over 4". To ensure a definitive female I would get one well over 4", even closer to 4.5". I've seen several occasions where a supposed female turned out to male, which mostly leads to trouble.

 

[Colin Fowler]

Immature males don't have fully developed colors. As they mature the colors develop.

The yellow outline on immature males is how you tell them from females. It is the blue on the jaw that develops as they mature.

 

[eatbreakfast]

If you notice the tail pattern on the female from LA you will see that the pattern that extends from the caudal peduncle to the end of the caudal fin that are on the top and the bottom are a thin dark color. In the op's trigger these markings are already lightening up.

Young males look very similar to females and as they mature develop the more prominant male coloration. This allows young males to avoid aggression from more mature males in the wild.

 

[Eva Rose]

My bluethroat trigger was given to me as a female. As many have stated above yours is an immature male. Mine had even less yellow on the tail than yours. In fact the tail looked brownish.

I did the same thing - trying to get the best pics (I always felt it was a male).

TIP: Try looking at him in the daytime, in natural light (no tank lights on). You will see a faint shadow of blue on his jaw slowly develop over time. Mine showed these transitions better with tank lights off. Later if course he develped full blown male coloration. It may not be visible yet on your trigger, but it is fun to watch the transition! You are lucky to get to watch him mature