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Another GBR sexing challenge

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Duque

Members
Hi everyone.

This may be a challange. After watching my German Blue Ram grow HUGE over the past year, its female identifying traits started to show through, more and more. She had a line of blue dots permeating the very top edge of her black dot and she had long black lines on the leading edges of her pelvic fins.

Then something wierd happpened 2 days ago. ...the black lines on her pelvic fins disappeared. Later that night, they returned. I thought I was seeing things. The next day, I decided to take a photo with my phone camera (best pixel rate) and got what you see in the attached photo.

You can still see the light blue speckles across the top of the black spot, ....but all of the black leading edges on the pelvic fins are GONE again.


If anybody has any thoughts or knowledge of what we're seeing, I'd really appreciate hearing about it.

Thanks in advance.
Duque

P.S. It had a pinkish belly once (with other GBR in the tank) and now it's gone. Is that possible?
 
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Duque

Members
Thanks Ernie.

That's what I thought. But now I'm a bit confused.

I had two other people say the fish is a male, as the first dorsal "ray" is longer than any others and the belly should generally have a pink belly, just differing in shade depending upon the mood.

I never thought I'd have such problems sexing a GBR.
 
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Duque

Members
Hah! It's those damned blue spots again. They've been bugging me since day one.

If you look at the top of the black spot, there is a row of 3 blue dots running across the top. Although they look very neat and orderly, I don't know if that counts as "Blue specks in the black patch".

Oh God! ....and now the pelvic fins are black again, today.

Please take a look and tell me what you think, today. THANKS!!

I'm going to call this fish "Pat", as an hommage to the SNL skit.

L4sm.jpg

L3sm.jpg
 
McGrubble

McGrubble

Members
I think Pat is the perfect name for this guy, if not for most GBRs. However, the pectoral and dorsal fins seem long enough for it to be safe to call this a male.
 
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Cyianara69

Members
i still would say male also ... if this little fishy is old enough to breed, I don't see any hint of the pinkish underbelly of a female .... my female GBRs actually have blue spots in the middle of the black spot. My males have blue spots within the edge of the black spot, but not in the middle of the black spot

We should let our resident expert Frank chime in also .....
 
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Duque

Members
Hi McGrubble,

You don't think the line of blue specks running through the top of the black spot is any reason to think it might be a female? ...and the darkness of the pectoral fins doesn't really matter, either?

*Hearty, but crazed laughter* OOoohhhh my head. Now, I'm REALLY confused. Everything seems to damned "borderline" with this fish. Maybe we'll finally figure it out when I grow out some more GBRs and introduce them into the tank.

But, "PAT" it is!

Thanks.
 
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Duque

Members
Holy COW!!

Now THAT's a pink belly. It's almost enough to make me want to spawn. Seriously though, thanks for the picture. That really illustrates what people have been trying to describe. Plus, I notice that your male even has a slight blue dot inside the edge of his black spot.

You've made my life much easier now. So, all I can do is express my deepest gratitude and go shopping for two females. Ugh.
 
McGrubble

McGrubble

Members
If it makes you feel any better, Duque, I foolishly bought some "true" GBRs that were a "pair". Ends up that they're a gross variation that display only about 1/5 of the colors and both are males. Worse, I have no idea what to do with them!
 
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