Does anyone have any hints or tips for sexing Angelfish?

I understand with the female, the abdomen swells - but how does that differ from a full belly?

Maybe all mine are female!!!

Ive heard theres no sure way of sexing angels....Its best to start with a group of small angels then when theyre ready to breed you can tell the sex by the shape of their breeding tubes

I'd heard that too. I'm on the way, just bought two young ones. That'll bring us up to 4. When they mature, we'll see if any pair off. My daughter and myself are betting on which Angel is what.

But it's a good question to get the Forum running...

good luck at sexing angels i think they are one of the most hardest of fish to sex i was once told the best way to try was to look at them head on this is where the abdomon theory comes in the female is supposed to have a more rounded belly & having bred angels in the past yes i will agree with this theory in principal but i will also say it aint foolproof the best way to get a pair is to buy at least 6 fish at the same time that way you maybe stand a good chance of getting a pair

Put it this way you can't untill they lay eggs and even then it aint to sure, some people say that the male grows a hump on his head but thats a dnt always work, u can only really tell when they lay eggs when you can see there tubes.

- Jonno

Clunkster: Yeah, that's the method my Daughter and I have applied. She actually taught me that (at 12yo)! As you say, not 100%, but not too bad. The difficulty of sexing them, is what prompted this Topic, to see if anyone had a 'secret' to share.

Jonno: I guess the Tubes are only visible whilst in use. I dug out some Fish Anatomy diagrams, they basically have the same 3 Urogenital pipe-lines as us, but they must share the same body opening. At least I can't spot any other openings. May have to trawl the Net, specifically for an Angel diagram.

i have also heard they are difficlut to sex and that they only sure fire way is to see the difference in the 'tubes'

i have just bought my 1st 2 angels over the weekend, so i will be taking bets on the sex of mine too

As its been said above the only guaranteed way to sex your angels I know at least is when the vents drop for spawning, then its pretty easy to tell because of the huge difference in size between male and female. I was going to take some pictures of some of mine that spawned yesterday but I couldn't find my digicam and now the vents have risen again . It won't be that long until they're at it again so as soon as they do I'll try get some pictures.

I suppose the obvious arrangement is that it's the Female sporting the larger tube.

Jonno mentioned a 'hump'. I took some pics of 'Silver Wing' and 'Star'. You can see on Silver Wing, quite a prominent 'bump' formed from the indentation in front of his Dorsal Fin. (although the pics don't do it justice). Star has a much smoother curve through that area. I'm wondering if that's the 'hump'?

Yep - agree with all the above. The tubes are the only reliable way.

I read somewhere that the curve of the head area is an indicator - but I've never seen anyone with angels verify that it works. 'Fraid you'll ave to wait for them to pair up & spawn. Same with discus...till they mature sexually there's no way as far as I know.

Pretty looking angels, though Kana

Hey Gary ! You haven't been by much lately?

Monkeh wrote:

couldn't find my digicam and now the vents have risen

How long do the vents stay visible?

Kana:

Yeah - I know. I've been a hermit. Don't bet on me getting tired of fish anytime soon, though.

I'll be around!

I thought I would add another morsel to this Topic. I think Monkeh may have mentioned at one stage, that a blue tint to the fins, may indicate a Male, but it wasn't in this thread.

Here's a shot from above, showing some blue in Silverwings finnage. And as a side note, the Sword Plant underneath, is where I pour my fresh water. And don't the Angels get a shock, when they end up flattened into the center of that plant !

i noticed today that my angels have laid eggs. one of the 1st things i did was look for a 'breeding tube'. it seems from what i can see that the marbel angel i have is the mother as it has a small protuberance and the black and silver one doesnt.

looking at the pics below the marbel one appears to have blue in it's fins. this may go against what u say Kana, sorry, but im not sure, it may just be part of it's colouration.

anyho here is a couple of pics of the marbel angel showing what appears to be a breeding tube sticking out.

i am going to do a seperate post about the eggs that i noticed today and include a couple of pics.