Spotted mandarin sexing
- Thread starter calvertc425
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Looks like a male.
Males have a point or mast that extends from top fin. Females lack this -have more rounded fin. Some males can damage or break off this point & appear to be males. Yours looks like a def male.
Males have a point or mast that extends from top fin. Females lack this -have more rounded fin. Some males can damage or break off this point & appear to be males. Yours looks like a def male.
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I would think it is a female. Do you have a male already & are wanting to add a female to your tank? If so you will have to be careful. Some males can have the spike on the dorsal fin broken off & appear to be female (when in fact they are male).
If you are trying to form a bonded male/female pair you will have to observe carefully. Sometimes opposite sex mandarins are still territorial. Ask for some advice in forming a pair .
If you are trying to form a bonded male/female pair you will have to observe carefully. Sometimes opposite sex mandarins are still territorial. Ask for some advice in forming a pair .
Even if they are male/female, sometimes they will not bond & you run the risk of the more aggressive mandarin harming/killing the other. With mandarins you can’t really use an acclimation box. They need to roam to hunt pods. So it is very hard on the bullied mandarin, who is not getting nourishment.
You could return the female. Also rehome the male. Then ask your LFS to find you a bonded male/female pair. But before you do this, you need either a large tank to supply 2 mandarins with pods OR supplements pods (Algae Barn products).
calvertc425
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well they both eat frozen and I feed them 5-6 times a day and also culture pods. I feed twice a day spirulina brine, twice day frozen mysis and then once a day frozen bloodworms and then a mix of all three once a day I add pods 3 times a week to the tank also.
males show a certain form of aggression, different from a male and a female would.
2 males will bite eachothers mouth or sides. Only two males will bite that aggresively. If u only see regular chasing as long as neighter of them looks injured you are fine.
2 males will bite eachothers mouth or sides. Only two males will bite that aggresively. If u only see regular chasing as long as neighter of them looks injured you are fine.
Captain Quint
Plank Owner of the Orca
Ok i returned that one and got another one that my LFS guy told me he was sure is a female what do you think? I think I added pics ofd this new one
Yes, and she is pretty.
Quite a nice example of male and female fins here https://www.reeflex.net/tiere/243_Synchiropus_picturatus.htm the first pic in the slides how is a male and the second female.
There is some really excellent advise above from Eva rose and kirschy17 and the only thing I can add is that males can be quite aggressive with females and bite at their sides. This behaviour is used to stimulate the female into producing egg, whereas males lock jaws and go at it.
It looks like a female but as mentioned some males can be immature or have had their dorsals damaged so you won't 100% know for a little while which sex you have.
Males grow larger than females in my experience so having the female smaller shouldn't pose any problems. The male is also the more aggressive sex as they natully defend a territory with a harem of females.
