# Sexing these two firemouth ( Youngsters )



## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

i got these two:

This is the ''evil'' that terrorise the smaller one.









The colors are stronger in real life.

Heres the smaller one:









they are both around 4 inch maybe a little less, but im not sure if they are both females or males :-? ...

Any Answer Is A Good Asnwer :fish:


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## Britishbookbug (Dec 1, 2007)

The bottom one looks like a female because the tail is a bit stubby. I can't see the tail on the top one well enough, but if it has a long filament at the end, then it is male. The males tend to be a bit brighter too. Hope this helps.


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## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

> I can't see the tail on the top one well enough, but if it has a long filament at the end, then it is male.


Can you explain how the filament a bit closer?


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## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

to me they look very similar...


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## chrispyweld (Dec 20, 2005)

Longer thiner body on the top makes me think male and the chunkier shorter body of the second makes me think female


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## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

i just dont see why the big one should chase the little one away, they are still youngsters lol :roll:


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

To me the top looks like it could be male , but it's hard to tell from the pic. The filiment that was mentioned is the thread like trailer on the dorsal fins of male firemouths. Females however will develope them as well sometimes. These guys are still pretty small so once they mature a bit it will be easier to tell. 
The big one could be chasing the smaller one around because it's trying to establish a territory, or reminding the little one who's the boss.


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## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

they still chase each other but sometimes they can be together ( Not very often ) but it havent developed to very aggresive behavior yet.


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## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

need a clear answer....


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

To which question ? The sex, or the chasing?


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## CiChLiD LoVeR128 (Mar 22, 2006)

> they are both around 4 inch maybe a little less


Just wanted to say this as it caught my eye but these guys aren't 4 in. Maybe 1.5 and 2 in.


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

Yeah, more like 4cm maybe.


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## Andreas Isaksen (Mar 24, 2007)

sry, it was about the chasing.
No they are 10 cm the little one approximetly 7-8 cm.
i can try get more pics tomorrow.


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## CiChLiD LoVeR128 (Mar 22, 2006)

Sorry! It kind of bugged me........  :lol:


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

Yeah sorry about that, they just look small in those pics. Anyway the chasing could be for any number of reasons. It could be because they are in fact both the same sex which will cause some conflict especialy if the tank is a little small, one has a highly aggressive personality that the other can not deal with, they are male and female but not compatable with each other. 
If your looking to get a breeding (or at least a compatable) pair, the best way is to get several ( around 6 ) juveniles and let them pair off on their own. Then return the ones you don't want. This method takes some time , but is well worth the wait.
If you can get some good pics of the vent area it will help to determine the sex , and that will also help us to answer your question more clearly.


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