Help With Convict Gender

[Kitten]

I have a question for anyone who has owned or owns convicts that are good at sexing them. I just got two convicts Wed. I wanted to try and get two females so I wouldn't have to worry about convict overload. When I got to the store there were two tanks full of them. In one tank they were only maybe an inch or two long. I knew they would be way too little to try to tell. The other tank had bigger ones. I would guess about 3-4 inches long. They had some black and pink ones. Not a single one of them had the orangy color on there belly. I let the owner know that I wanted to try to get two females and he had two other ones about 3-4 inches long by themselves with a full grown male in a tank by themselves. One was black and the other was a pink convict. The black one I knew right away was a female because she had the orangy belly. The pink one we were having a time trying to tell. He got out a book and said he thought it was a female because of the way it's fins were shaped. We looked in the other tank with the same size and there were two pinks in there whos fins were longer and they did look like males. I ended up going with the black and pink one out of the tank with the fully grown male.

Since I have gotten them home I really can't tell what the pink one is. To me it's fins look more like a female's does. It doesn't have the orangy color on the belly like the black one does though. It also loves to chase the black one around some, not constant though just every now and again. The pink one also likes to swim up from behind and then get even with the black one it then turns right in front of her and flares. The black one just sits there and then the pink one swims on past it almost like making little circles around her. I noticed yesterday the black ones egg tube has come down. Today I noticed the pink one's tube has come down. To me the pink one's tube looks more pointy like a male's. It doesn't have the orangy belly and it is bigger than the black one by a little bit. It's fins though look more like a females would. I got some pics taken yesterday of them and will post them. If anyone can give me any opinions on what they think the pink one might be that would be great!

Here is the pink:

Here are a few other pics:
http/i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/Kit...lackConvict.jpg
http/i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/Kit...inkConvicts.jpg

 

[aardvarkfromspace]

I see a little bit of orange on it, and it does have quite a fat belly.. so my guess would be female.

 

[Kitten]

Ok, thanks very much! I am thinking it is a female as well. Both of their tubes has come down, do you know if they are in fact both females will they still lay there eggs or will they not since there is no male in there with them? Also do you know if it is ok to put aquarium salt in their tank? It's just them two in there. I ask because I have heard some types of fish such as corys and neons can't take salt and I don't want to put it in there if it will hurt them.

 

[pica_nuttalli]

why do you want to add the salt? unless a fish comes from a salty environment (which i don't believe convicts do), leave well enough alone.

there have been reports of egg-laden female cichlids attempting to spawn together when no males were available... ) the same could be happening with yours. of course, if they lay eggs and the eggs hatch, then it's pretty reasonable to infer that the pink one was male

 

[guppymonkey]

Ok, thanks very much! I am thinking it is a female as well. Both of their tubes has come down, do you know if they are in fact both females will they still lay there eggs or will they not since there is no male in there with them? Also do you know if it is ok to put aquarium salt in their tank? It's just them two in there. I ask because I have heard some types of fish such as corys and neons can't take salt and I don't want to put it in there if it will hurt them.

Two females will still lay eggs even if there is no male. Even one female by herself will sometimes lay eggs even if no male is around. That is definately a female I can see some of the orange scales behind her pectoral fins.

 

[Dom~]

I'd have to agree the pink one does look to be female. However you cannot always tell by the shape of the fins. I have a female convict whose fins are just as long and pointed as a male convict her size.