This Might Be A Really Stupid Question But.........

[jr.stratton@virgin.net]

I am completely new to this. I like the idea of breeding some guppies or mollies to start off as I`m told this is easy to do. I`m going to my local shop on Saturday to purchase my stock of fish and I have been told to purchase at a ratio of 3 females to 1 male. Heres where I make myself seem really stupid. How do you tell which sex the fish are ? Will the person in the shop ask which sex I want ? Any advice is welcome

 

[Annastasia]

Hi,

No question is stupid. We all start somewhere, so don't hesitate to ask anything.

Sexing Livebearers is quite easy. The male will have a pointed anal fin (The fin underneath the stomach nearest to the tail) while the female will have a fan-shaped one. There are pictures in this topic that may help you. The male is on the left, the female is on the right.

Your LFS might ask what sexes you want, or they may not. It's best off to tell them what you want, and if possible, pick your fish. I've written about getting healthy fish in this topic.

Are you thinking of getting Mollies or Guppies, or both? What size tank do you have? Is it cycled?

Good luck with your new fish! I know you'll enjoy them. Just make sure you have a place for fry, as you can get over-run quite easily. It might be worthwhile to see if your LFS will take fry, or find a place to possibly sell/give them away.

 

[BettaBum873]

Females have a fanned out anal fin, males have a ganopodium that resembles a spike. Most pet stores will ask you if u want and specific fish, Hope this helped. Oh and there are plenty of general advice on this board in the beginner section. Most everything u need to know about general fish knowledge is in there B)

 

[Wanda hornsey]

Just a quick question ...
Have you cycled your tank at all??