# Geophagus Question



## JCsicklidnewbie (Mar 8, 2010)

I have 2 Geos; think they are Orange top and hoping they are male and female.....they are approximately 3 inches maybe a little longer.....I would like to determine the sex and get them to breed.

I am asking for pointers on how to ID the sexes and what conditions must they have to breed.

I checked out the profile on this site but I couldn't see anything outstanding that distinguishes the two sexes.

thanks


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

The best way to get a pair is to attain six of the species abd let them pair off. It's three year project so be patient...


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## Narwhal72 (Sep 26, 2006)

Geo's are very difficult to sex. The best way is to let them grow up and then usually the behavior and size can help you determine the difference. At 3" they are still young so you will need to let them reach 5" before you can really tell. Larger fish will tend to be males. However with just two fish your chances of having a pair are not very good.

Andy


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## edburress (Jun 9, 2007)

There are developmental differences, such as males develop fin and tail extensions 9-12 months before females and usually develop their orange/red heads a few months earlier as well. Males are also larger until the fish are 2.5-3 years old. Those are fairly easy to pick up on if you're looking at a group of 6+ fish. With only two fish I think it might be difficult to see, mainly because females and sub-dominant males look very similar during this time. You should be able to see the difference at 4-5 inches. Differences are only visible between 1-2 1/2 years of age. Your best option might be using behavior. If you have two same sex, the dominant one will probably chase the other quite a bit. If you have a M/F pair they would still be some chasing but also displaying. This might be extremely dependent on tank size, tank mates, etc.



TheFishGuy said:


> The best way to get a pair is to attain six of the species abd let them pair off. It's three year project so be patient...


Agreed, but you could have three generations in that time!


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## JCsicklidnewbie (Mar 8, 2010)

All

Thanks for the valuable input.....I guess I am a bit over anxious...when we bought them they were in a tank of 10 and we noticed the two of them stuck together...so we hoped they were a pair. I know that logic is horrible but at 20$ a piece we couldn't afford to buy 6-9 of them at the time. Anyway, now I understand this is a long-term project...I guess much like my Green Terrors....

Here are some pics of the Geos...they are in a 55gl with a 7inch Pleco..the divider is gone.....I would appreciate any feedback....relative to my original post.

thanks again...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected] ... 578811699/


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## DDRE00 (Feb 5, 2010)

Very hard to tell on those pics. Another difference I notice on my Geos are that the males have abit steeper head. And possibly slightly higher. but as mensioned with only 2 fishes it is hard to get that comparison needed to determine sex.

A few movies with mine:

Eating:





Spawning, 2 pairs at the same time:





"Chewing" on fry:





Older with younger Geos:


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## edburress (Jun 9, 2007)

JCsicklidnewbie,

This one...

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https://flic.kr/p/5305830146
Is a female for sure (you can see the vent).

DDRE00, nice tank and fish!


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## JCsicklidnewbie (Mar 8, 2010)

Edburress
Thanks for the help I really hope we defied the odds and picked a m/f but I guess time will tell. Right now they display the same behavioral patterns similar to fish that I own that have paired off. I understand it takes time so I will check in again in a few months with more picks. Thanks

Ddre00
thanks for the videos.....pics are still worth a thousand words! I do have a question though.....what type of food did you give them in the eating video?


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## DDRE00 (Feb 5, 2010)

It is a mix of normal prawns with shell and all, peas, garlic, spirulina, astratanxin, vitamins and more. That I mix in a meatgrinder and then freeze in the freezer. Then I just break a piece for them every now and then.

It't quite common in sweden and proven very good food for lots of fishes and cheap. You can actually only use the shells from prawns you eat yourself and that is just as good.
:fish: :fish: :fish:


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## JCsicklidnewbie (Mar 8, 2010)

Well we defied the odds and we got a pair. Pure luck I know...as I stated before the reason we picked the two was because they stuck next to each other in a tank of 10 at the LPS.

The egss are gone now and I've seen them spit the babies out in the sand to reorganize them and hold them again. I wanted to thank all of you that provided input the first time with the videos. Sorry but I couldnt catch them with the fry out in the sand so you just have to see them doing the mouth juggle.

I still can't tell which is the male and which is the girl. I do have some presumption but its really not that important at the moment. I do have some questions for the group....can you give me some fry rearing information....how long will they hold? should I leave them with the parents permanently or should I remove them at some point? and anything else you care to share.


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https://flic.kr/p/5398491061


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https://flic.kr/p/5399060494

thanks again


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## DeadFishFloating (Oct 9, 2007)

Nice pair. In the video _Holding Geos 1_ the female is the front fish and male is the back fish. I'd be interested to hear Eds opinion on whether they are Tapajos or Araguaia "orange heads".

What's on the other side of the tank divider?


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## DDRE00 (Feb 5, 2010)

Keep us updated if you get freeswimming.

I'd say the redder one is the male just because during spawning and chewing (holding) my femals always pales out while the male keep the orange/red colors. To hide I suspect.

Araguaia or Tapajos is easiest to detemine if we knew were they or their ansisters were caught :roll:

However as I understand it the Araguaias are more spindle-shaped and Tapajos sharper headshape. Compared to mine Tapajos these are much less sharpheaded and thus a candidate for araguiaias.

another remark, I think the eyes are faurly large compared to the body (atleast compared with mine) and that could idicate they have been undernourished for a time and thus older than the size indicates.


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## JCsicklidnewbie (Mar 8, 2010)

Here's a video.

They are two weeks (+ or - a day) old today. I had to move them to smaller tanks....the parents kept attacking my gouramis and the two other cichlids in the 55gl.


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https://flic.kr/p/5439578279


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## DDRE00 (Feb 5, 2010)

Beatities!

Have you fed them specifically or have they lived like this only with leftovers.


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## JCsicklidnewbie (Mar 8, 2010)

I feed them 3-5 times per day. Right now I'm using Wardley Small Fry (liquid) and Hikari First Bites. Tomorrow I will add Brine to their regime. The parents mostly get spirulina and crab bites (not sure if the babies are eating any of that).


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