Age Swordtails Can Be Reliably Sexed.

[daleboy]

Hi all

How old do Swordtails have to be to sex them?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Gytas]

the male has a sword
and they have the same organs as platys
good info here: http/www.aquaticcommunity.com/aquariumforum/showthread.php?t=27362

it is a good way to sex them with the sword

 

[daleboy]

I know the males have swords and how to sex them.
I was asking at what age can I sex them reliably.
Thanks for the link though some good info there.

 

[Paradise3]

Swordtails can be sexed between 4 and 6 months. They can start breeding at 6 months old so as soon as you see a male, separate him from the female otherwise you run the risk of the female becoming pregnant too young and dying during the birth.

 

[daleboy]

Thanks for the info its very much apreciated.
I will be keeping a close eye on them and will be ready to seperate them.
The fry in question are 3-4 months old.

 

[Paradise3]

Thanks for the info its very much apreciated.
I will be keeping a close eye on them and will be ready to seperate them.
The fry in question are 3-4 months old.

Your welcome.

 

[helterskelter]

Thanks for the info its very much apreciated.
I will be keeping a close eye on them and will be ready to seperate them.
The fry in question are 3-4 months old.

Your welcome.

Swordtails can be tricky customers when it comes to sexing!

While some males will sex out from 3 months of age, you get late developers that will be the largest and best males your ever get, these look like females until their well over a year old.

 

[Paradise3]

I've never had a baby swordtail that has not got it's gender by 6 months... Mine tend to get their genders at 6 months latest.

 

[daleboy]

Ok that puts a different spin on things.
The majority of the fry I have I will be selling on, thats around 40 of them.
I will have to sex them as best I can.
There are a couple I will be keeping though.

Thanks for replying and the extra info.

 

[helterskelter]

I've never had a baby swordtail that has not got it's gender by 6 months... Mine tend to get their genders at 6 months latest.

It's very common thing.

99% of people who report that their swords have changed sex, if fact had a late developing male's
I've been keeping them for over 25 years and breed name different species of sword tails in that time, from wild fish to cultivated lines.

 

[OldMan47]

They can be reliably sexed about the day before they die. I had some wild types that I bought at about 6 months old and hoped that one of my new females would turn out to be a male. By the time they were a year old there were 2 obvious males. At 18 months there were 3 obvious males. At 2 years there were 5 of the 6 that were obvious males and 6 months later I sold off all 6 of my beautiful male swordtails. I never saw any fry in the tank because they were all late bloomer males from the start. You have a fair chance with a swordtail that has a body over 2 inches long but mine were near 3 inches long before the last one showed his gender.