sexing cacatuoides

[Corie Dora]

Hello all,

Its been a while since I posted....and I finally have some young apistos...well, just two, but hey, I did it!!!

So I have 2 fish which are a little over 2 cm, and are 3 months old. Just within the last week, I noticed they've both developed black markings on their ventral fins.

Does this mean they are both females? I hope so, as I'd like to start a little harem type setup

 

[fishboy20]

They could very well be both females. If the fins are staying smaller and if they lack a lot of the redpigmentation in the fins (as long as they aren't Orange Flash), they probably are females. Now you just need a male. They should be close to spawning size at this point. Good luck with them.

~Jeremy Basch

 

[Mike Wise]

2 cm is about ¾", usually too young to sex let alone breed. The males at this age might start showing some markings on the tail, but usually you have to wait a month or 2 more to be sure. This is for wild cockatoos, I've never kept domestic reds, so I don't know about them.

 

[Corie Dora]

Thanks guys.

I think that maybe they are a little young to breed...the mother just this week started flaring up when they're in her turf. The father still doesn't recognize them as any more than a dither fish. And actually, I got a little suprise, I noticed a third juvenile last night! Funny that he/she went unoticed for so long. This third one is a little bigger, and has greyish white markings on the ventrals, and turns a little lemony colored when the other two are near. I'm *thinking* its a male? I guess time will really tell. And yes, I'm pretty sure they're the wild type, not the double/triple reds.

So will I be able to leave all the fish in my display tank, if I have lots of stuff on the bottom to break it up? I have lots of plants (about 75% of the bottom) and driftwood now, leaf litter up to 3 " in some spots, and some open sand. I'm planning on filling the open sand with glosso in the upcoming months.

Thanks again