sexing zebra cichlids?

Question

i have 2 red zebra and 2 coblat blue zebra cichlids.
In each 1 is lighter in color than the other..cant tell who has more egg spots.
also, will fin shape help determine sex?

Answer 1

I've got a pair of red zebra's myself, but I've never thought to breed or sex them really. My fish are split in population between 4 tanks, 180, 75, 20, and 15 gallon set ups. The smaller tanks I have my fry in, and the bigger house the adults I have. A general pattern for cichlids, is that a male will be much bigger and have more distinct colors. This doesn't hold true to all species however. I would not concentrate on egg spots. That is an easy indicator to be misled. I'll try to find you a link that shows pictures of males and females. With new species I come across, I've found this a good tool to use when trying to determine sex.

Answer 2

I have red zebras also. It can be almost impossible to sex them based on color. Usually the male is a little bigger and his fins may have a light blue tint to them. This is true when it is the dominant male. It is possible to have a whole tank of males, but nearly impossible to tell because you will have one dominant male, and all the other males will look like females because they arent dominant and the their true colors dont come out until they become a dominant male. They kinda fake being female to help avoid being harrassed by the dominant male. wow, did that make any sense at all? lol the way I could tell with mine was I got 6 of them at the same time, after a few months, one seemed to have grown larger than the rest and fins were colored a little different. And he was bossy. the only way I knew I had a female was when I looked in the tank one day and she had a mouthfull of eggs!! the only true way to sex them is through "venting" which takes a little skill to perform. You have to squeeze their underbelly. You may be able to do some research online and figure out how to do it....i was never brave enough to try.

Answer 3

With Mbuna one of the fish in a group will color-up more than the others,assuming the dominant role. This will be true if the other tank mates are male or female. Sexual dimorphism is kind of subtle,but with a little practice it becomes easier to spot. Sometimes the number of "egg-spots" on the ventral fin can be a clue(fewer on females) also as the fish age the normal differences in fin shape become more pronounced. Keep observing,and you'll get better at it.

Answer 4

one of my oldest and most loving fish....i have had them for a long time and have succesfully bread them many times......
They r the easiest fish to breed in all chichlid varieties......some also say that if u want to breed them..just add water and a pair of zebra chichlids and the job is over ..and thats really true...

SEXING: there r three major things to see
1)male has very pointed fins compared to a female which have rounded fins.
2)when u examine them carefully u can see a hint of orangish colour on the belly , if its present then its a female undoubtedly ,males dont have that colour...
3)examine the place on the body where the top fins start and if u see a tint of bright greenish or blueish colour then its a female otherwise its a male...

BREEDING: they start breeding when they get abt 1"-1&1/2". its quite easy to breed them just put a pair of zebras use a heater or thermostat to control the temperature at (70-80 F) or (20-27 C) , it is best to supply a pot kind of thing for them to breed ........just wait for a few days after this and see them breed....

Answer 5

The males fins may be sligthly more pointed than the female.