Possible To Tell Blue Ram Sex By Behavior?

[kelp]

Hello,
I have just purchased two GBRs from the LFS today, and I am worried that I either have two females or two males. I picked two GBRs with different color structues. One with a pink belly and one without a pink belly. Then I let them free in my tank, and I see they both have pink bellies. Also, the larger one is chasing the smaller one. Would a male only chase another male around the tank, or would it do that with a female as well? I will upload pictures soon, but I just cannot get a good shot of them in the tank. I got a shot of them together when they were floating in the bag, but the two GBRs were stressed, and their black spots darkened, and the color was dull, so I don't know if you guys could tell from that picture.

 

[Colin_T]

What's a GBR?
I call the Great Barrier Reef the GBR

 

[kelp]

German Blue Ram. I'll change the title to reflect this.

 

[Colin_T]

female rams have a pink belly when in good condition. Some males will develop a bit of pink colouring on their belly area when breeding but not all males do. Males will chase away other males and also females unless they are ready to breed, then the males will try to entice the female over to his spawning site. Males develop longer dorsal fin spines and get slightly bigger than females.
If you can post a pic we should be able to tell what sex they are.

 

[kelp]

Wow, all of my pictures came out blurry. I hold the camera still for at least 10 seconds, and the pictures still come out blurry. Any tips to taking aquarium photos?

 

[duncs]

What camera are you using, Kelp?

If it's just a "standard" digital camera, you need to try and force the camera in to shutter speed mode where you tell the camera to use a quicker shutter speed. Some cameras have this, some don't. Alternatively try and use one of the fast preset modes such as "car racing" or "sport". Switch your camera on to those and have another go. Try and get as much light in to the tank as possible, from the top.. if you can take the lid off and shine a flexible lamp in to the tank, that can help. Avoid using the flash if possible, it'll cause you further problems

If you happen to have a DSLR I'll explain further

 

[kelp]

It's a Canon Powershot A520. I'll try to tinker with the settings to get the shutter speed faster. I like to tinker. There's a preset with a guy running; I will try that as well.

 

[Colin_T]

Have lots of light on the tank and set the camera on Macro. Make sure the flash is set to ON and don't point the camera directly at the tank, have it on a slight angle to the front glass. If you are using a phone then don't get too close because they have limits and are unable to focus on things that are really close up.

[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/forum/22...otography-1-01/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/forum/22...otography-1-01/[/URL]

set the camera to shutter priority and try a shutter speed of 1/160

 

[kelp]

Alright,
I've got the pictures all up. I'm starting to think they are the same sex... I'll just link to the pictures. They are pretty big. Also, my fish look way more sparkly on camera than in real life. Could this be because I have a lack of light in my tank? My fish definitely do not sparkle like that when I look at them.
http/www.dealoverflow.com/fish/

 

[Colin_T]

the sparkly fish is from the light reflecting off their scales.

looks like a couple of females.

 

[kelp]

What would I look for in a male? I'm going to go back tomorrow. I think I may buy two more, so I will have 4 total. Will they pair off immediately? Can I give it a couple of days, and will it be obvious?


It's too bad me and the author of the other post about sexing rams can't get together since I have two females, and he has two males.

 

[kelp]

The littler ram has started to follow the larger ram constantly. A couple of hours ago, whenever the little ram even came in contact with the big ram, the big ram would chase the little ram all over the tank. Now they look like they are buddy/buddy.

Also, if I get a brighter light, will the sparkles on their bodies come out more?

 

[Colin_T]

Look for a fish without any pink on them and look for fish with long black fin filaments on the dorsal fin. The first 3 fin rays on the dorsal fin will be slightly longer on the male than female.
They will probably take a few weeks to settle down and pr off.
Changing the lights won't make them sparkle any more. You need the light to come in from the front of the tank to make them look nicer. You can try moving the light unit towards the front of the tank. That might make them look better.

 

[kelp]

Okay, hopefully I will get one male. How aggressive do the rams get during breeding time? Will they get aggressive enough to kill all of my community fish?

 

[minxfishy]

What would I look for in a male? I'm going to go back tomorrow. I think I may buy two more, so I will have 4 total. Will they pair off immediately? Can I give it a couple of days, and will it be obvious?


It's too bad me and the author of the other post about sexing rams can't get together since I have two females, and he has two males.

Whereabouts are you??? Yes I have two males for definate, going to leave it for a few weeks, then go find some females for company for them, unless of course you are close enough for a swap LOL