# Sexing my Yellow Tail Acei



## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

Can someone please help me? Can anyone tell by the pics if it is a male or female? I would like to get a couple more of these but only want one male. These are the best pics I could get, its a busy lil one. Thanks for your help!


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## nismo_sky28 (Oct 5, 2011)

I am by far no pro at this but my guess would be male. my male has the darker fins like yours does where amy females are all powder blue. Like I said tho just a guess. The monomorphic species can be a bit tough without venting or knowing behavior


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## QHgal (May 18, 2006)

Venting or seeing them hold/spawn would be the only sure way of sexing, especially with species that have similar looking males and females.


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

I appreciate the fast replies! I have been reading for sometime and have read that before. I was thinking male myself but I dont know either. I am gonna go pick up a couple more of these today and see what happens. Thanks again!


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

Anyone else care to add to this before I head out to the LFS???


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## Jaycal (Sep 30, 2011)

Looks like a male because the dorsal fin has a slight blue tinge to it


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

OK...I bought 3 juvies!  2 Yellow Labs and another Yellow Tail Acei. My question is, how big should I allow them to get before introducing them to the one that is pictured? The juvies are about an inch long and look really healthy. The Acei is a little bigger than the Labs, but not much. I have them in a cycled 10 gallon with some bloodfin tetras :-?, so I will have to get them out of there soon!


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## nismo_sky28 (Oct 5, 2011)

What size is the acei? Are there any other tank mates?


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

The picture is almost actual size, he might be a little bigger but not much. He is the only one in the 30 gallon. I have scaped it with some flat rocks so there are hiding spots.


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## kpswd (Sep 13, 2011)

xNasty_N8x said:


> The picture is almost actual size, he might be a little bigger but not much. He is the only one in the 30 gallon. I have scaped it with some flat rocks so there are hiding spots.


FYI... "Actual size" will depend on the size screen that you have on your computer. An actual measurement is what they are looking for.


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

ok...sorry :? he is about 3 inches...


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

kpswd said:


> xNasty_N8x said:
> 
> 
> > The picture is almost actual size, he might be a little bigger but not much. He is the only one in the 30 gallon. I have scaped it with some flat rocks so there are hiding spots.
> ...


So now that you know the "actual size" I would think you have some input considering the latter...


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

I think you could put your new juvies in with the bigger one now with minimal problems, acei are pretty tolerant. I will mention, however, that the 30 gallon tank is going to be way too small for the acei soon. They grow fast and can reach sizes larger that 6-7". Most people suggest keeping them in at least a 75 gallon, but some have tried a 55 gallon with some success. Anything smaller than that though just won't work. You could probably keep the yellow labs in the 30 by themselves...


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

nmcichlid-aholic said:


> I think you could put your new juvies in with the bigger one now with minimal problems, acei are pretty tolerant. I will mention, however, that the 30 gallon tank is going to be way too small for the acei soon. They grow fast and can reach sizes larger that 6-7". Most people suggest keeping them in at least a 75 gallon, but some have tried a 55 gallon with some success. Anything smaller than that though just won't work. You could probably keep the yellow labs in the 30 by themselves...


I have been told that about the Acei. My fiance just loves him, which is good news for me. Looks like Ill be getting a new tank! :drooling:


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

> I have been told that about the Acei. My fiance just loves him, which is good news for me. Looks like Ill be getting a new tank! :drooling:


Nice! You will be able to grow them out in the 30 for a while, but when you notice aggression increasing at all it's a pretty good sign they're ready for a bigger tank. The older fish in the photos above is probably close to needing an upgrade now. Good luck!


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

nmcichlid-aholic said:


> > I have been told that about the Acei. My fiance just loves him, which is good news for me. Looks like Ill be getting a new tank! :drooling:
> 
> 
> Nice! You will be able to grow them out in the 30 for a while, but when you notice aggression increasing at all it's a pretty good sign they're ready for a bigger tank. The older fish in the photos above is probably close to needing an upgrade now. Good luck!


Believe it or not that fish in the photos is only about 4 months old. He grew really fast. And as an update, I just put the little ones in with him and am kinda regretting it. He is chasing them all around but they are too fast. Its kinda funny, the little ones go into these really small crevices and the big one tries to follow and gets stuck and has to try and turn around and back out. I'll just leave em be for a while and see how it goes. :fish:


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## QHgal (May 18, 2006)

My Acei are all growing really fast. You seriously need to be thinking of a new tank in the VERY near future... 75 would be the minimum size tank I put Acei in, they get BIG


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## xNasty_N8x (Nov 10, 2011)

Thanks for all of the input! I wish I would have found this site before I bought the first one! There is a lot of valuable info and knowledgeable people here and I appreciate you all! :thumb:


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