Male Or Female Bristlenose?

[Michj]

I want to add another bn and think this is male but I've heard some females have bristles too. This one was given to me and is about 4" long but is it male or female?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I'd be willing to say, FEMALE.  Some species of bristlenose plecos females have bristles, but not nearly to the extent of the males.  This one has very few bristles and seems to be spread around the edge of the face, but not more around the middle of the face.
 
If I had to guess, I'd say female.  But I'm not a pleco expert.

 

[Michj]

I did wonder and have seen that some females have a few bristles. Might buy a male and see what happens. I've got a 1.2m tank so hopefully it's big enough to accommodate both without any arguments.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

That should be big enough... just make sure you have plenty of cover, and cave possibilities.

 

[SarahR]

Pretty Bristlenose. I agree, likely female. Even barely bristled boys usually have a couple going up the center of their face.

 

[betta fish]

That doesn't look like a bristlenose to me not sure what it is though, very pretty! as for whether it is male or female I'd say poss immature male since it's not a bristlenose, some of the bristles around the nose do appear quite long, do they branch off at all?

 

[Sophie]

I think you'll find its a Rio Ucayali Bristlenose.
http/www.planetcatfish.com/common/species.php?species_id=638

 

[CrimsonBoli]

How big is it? I think the other main difference is males grow bigger than females. I have a year old female BN and she has two small bristles growing below the middle line of her eyes

 

[Michj]

Thank you everyone and Sophie,  I've looked at your link and I agree with you. She is a pretty bn but I wanted to get her a partner. The person who gave her to me said they'd had her about a year and she's about 4" now. Can I get any bn or do I need to stick to the Rio Ucayali species?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

If you are looking at a 'mate', you would be best with the same species.  Not sure how much they cross breed.