Male or Female

[samthefishman]

First question, how do i know if they are male or female?

and second, my male has made a bubble nest, do they make it if they know a female will lay eggs? or do they just make it?

 

[small_fry]

what type do u have 1st??

they will just make a nests if a female is there or not it dont matter.

 

[Doggfather]

Hi Sam

It depends what type of gourami it is when it comes to sexing, but a general rules is the males fins are extended, where as the females are rounded.

A male gourami will build a bubble nest no matter what, it's his way of saying he's ready to be a father

Good luck with your fish

 

[samthefishman]

I have 4 blue gourami... of which i dont like that much but i am learning to like them.

 

[Mamaschild]

Well, I can help ya this much......here's a pic of my male Gold. The Dorsal fin is the best tell. The males will be long and pointed at the tip, like the picture, the females will be shorter and rounded at the tip

AW, here's the female

HTH

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Mamaschild

I just want to complement you on the pictures. They very clearly illustrate the difference between the sexes.

 

[Mamaschild]

Thanks, Inchworm When I take pictures of my fish, I not only try to get good shots, but a picture that can show something about the fish as well. Glad to know it worked

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Mamaschild


It worked out great! I put this thread into my favorites list so that I can find it when necessary. How to tell male and female gouramis apart is a very frequently asked question and I'm sure a lot of members will find it useful in the future.

 

[Mamaschild]

Alright....my fish are now a "Useful Tool"

 

[Final Dynazty]

I cant tell the sex of my opiline gouramis. They have a mixture of a male and female dorsal fin. But the bigger one which is like 4 times the size of the little guy, always chases the little guy. Could they both b males then.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Final Dynazty

If your gouramis are Opaline's and are mature, it should not be too hard to tell the gender by looking at these pictures. They will look like either one or the other.

It's possible that they are both the same gender, although if they are both females they will usually get along pretty well. When they are young it is harder to tell them apart, especially if they happen to have all or mostly one sex in the tank at the lfs. I've made that mistake myself. )

It's also possible that the big one is just picking on the little one because of their size difference. Gouramis will do that. How long are each of them?

 

[Mamaschild]

Well, since my Golds aren't helping, here's my Opalines
Female

and male

HTH

Want to save these too, Inchworm

 

[Final Dynazty]

there fins are totaly differn't. There pointed at the beginning then at the end there rounded to the body.

One is about 4 and a half in. and the other one is about 2 in.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Mamaschild

Your opaline are just gorgeous, and these too illustrate the fins clearly.

If you don't mind, would you do one more set of pictures, this time taken from above, to show the difference in their shapes? Sometimes the easiest way to tell the sexes apart is to see the rounded belly area of the female as opposed to the smoother, more gradually tapering one, of the male.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Final Dynazty

If your two gouramis are opaline, you should be able to tell from these photos. Might it be possible that they aren't opalines at all, but a color variation of one of the dwarf gouramis?

Four inches is a bit big for a dwarf, but take a look at this link and tell me if the fins look anything like this:

http/www.aquahobby.com/mpowder.html

These are not the best pictures, and the dwarfs have been bred into other shades beside these bright blues, but these pictures do show the difference in the fins which is somewhat different from the standard gourami's fins.