Difference male and female Copella nattereri

[Erik82]

Hi all,
Since a while I have a few Copella nattereri in my tank. I read the site of Tom C, but the only thing I can not find the difference between male and female. Especially when they are young. Adult fish the male is being larger, but what about smaler fish? Is there a way to separate the males from the females when they are still smal? I would like to breed them

Best regards,
Erik
Male or female?

 

[Mike Wise]

If immature I doubt that you can sex them. As they mature, the males will be more slender and have a longer dorsal fin. Your best bet is to buy at least 6 specimens. If everything is random, statistically you should have a 97% probability of having at least 1 of both sexes.

 

[Erik82]

Thanks for your answer Mike. I thought maby the shape of the analfin could explain the sex of the fish. Hopefully they will breed soon.