# Jewel Spot or no spot



## StillaZilla (Aug 22, 2008)

I have a pair of Jewels, don't know what sex they are. They act like a mated pair, protecting their area, but have never laid eggs. One of them has a black spot mid body and the other does not. What is the significance of this spot, are they the same species, or is this a sex difference?


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## Denny (Sep 27, 2008)

Vent your fish. 
A males vents would be equal in size.
A females vents will not be equal in size. The females vent closes to the anal fin will be the larger of the two vents.


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## bernie comeau (Feb 19, 2007)

The jewel on the left is the male. He has both the body shape and the breeding coloration of a male jewel.

The spot on the flank has no significance in terms of sexing jewels; but the spot is obscured by the blue spots on flank of the female jewel on the right. You have 2 distinctly different strains of jewel cichlids. The jewel on the right is a Hemichromis sp. "Neon". It is an aqurium strain, thought by many to be a hybrid of jewel species devoloped in captivity, and commonly available in the hobby today. It's actual origin, as far as I know, is unknown. Your male jewel on the left is the common jewel, Hemichromis guttatus.


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## StillaZilla (Aug 22, 2008)

Thanks Bernie....

And the one question in my mind, can they mate? And should I let them, or find another guttatus for the male?


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## bernie comeau (Feb 19, 2007)

StillaZilla said:


> Thanks Bernie....
> 
> And the one question in my mind, can they mate? And should I let them, or find another guttatus for the male?


Yes, they certainly can mate. They are very, very similar.

Should you let them? I guess it all depends on what your intententions are with the fry. If your going to bring fry back to the pet store or spread them around, probably not the best idea. If you keep them for yourself and use the exras as feeders, can't see much of a problem with it -- at least that's what I would do.

Hemichromis sp. "Neon" might be a line bred aquarium strain of H. guttatus. Suposedly it's body shape and characteristics resemble H. guttatus more then any other jewel species. All these jewel species are VERY closely related to begin with. Or it could be a hybrid of jewel species devloped in captivity, or a seperate species itself, with unknown origins. Or maybe a different colored regional variant of H. guttatus (?). My understanding is that it is unknown, exactly what it is. In the very least they are different strains, and a cross with a "regular jewel" will produce a hybrid of some type. The resulting fry should be handled accordingly.


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