I think my female swordtail is growing a sword. The fish you see in this picture now has a darker bottom edge of her tail. My other female has a darker upper and lower edge on her tail so I thought it was normal at first, but now it appears to be coming to a point. You can see in the picture the fin was nipped, it was this way when I bought her. If she were a male that might explain why the other (smaller) male kept getting sick up until his death. There were only ever 3 fish in the tank, so 2 males and 1 female could have started some feuding. This is all speculation at this point, but is there another way to tell other than the sword? Is it possible for a female to have a small colored point on the tail? I'll get a picture of this new development to you as soon as I can.
This might sound crazy but...
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sir_dudeguy
Aquarium Advice FINatic
hmmm...well first, after about 5 years in the hobby...i've decided that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!! lol. I've had the freakyest things happen in some of my tanks, so i'd say that your theory on it being a male is definately possible. If some other fish were to have bitten off the sword before you got it, and now its growing again, that would explain a lot. If it continues to grow, i'd say for sure its a male (after all, i've had weirder things...one of my angels ended up in a tank 3 rooms from the tank it was in...but then again, my brother was kinda holding back a laugh.......)
I think this happened to me too. But its been a good 10 year since I kept swords, so I could be wrong.
You can tell sex by looking at the anal fin. On males, its pointed. On females, its a fan shape. Check out the difference in these platties. http://fish.orbust.net/livebearers.html
Its the easiest way to tell, although your photo of the female isn't quite clear enough for me to say for sure. In swords, the female usually have a much deeper body. Comparing the body of the unknown sex to the male, I'd say she's a female, at least at the time of the photo. I guess you haven't had her long enough to get babies?
There are cases of female fish in several species including swordtails turning male, but thats usually in the total absence of males. I gather from your post you originally had 2 females and a male (or so you thought, heh), then the male died? That sounds like a good reason for a girl to turn into a guy. There's a few other theories about why they may do this too. Or it could just be a coincidental shape of the tail, or a result of the injury too. I've never seen a true female (not turning into a male) with any kind of a sword, but I'm with sir_dudeguy - that doesn't mean it can't happen. Post a recent pic!
You can tell sex by looking at the anal fin. On males, its pointed. On females, its a fan shape. Check out the difference in these platties. http://fish.orbust.net/livebearers.html
Its the easiest way to tell, although your photo of the female isn't quite clear enough for me to say for sure. In swords, the female usually have a much deeper body. Comparing the body of the unknown sex to the male, I'd say she's a female, at least at the time of the photo. I guess you haven't had her long enough to get babies?
There are cases of female fish in several species including swordtails turning male, but thats usually in the total absence of males. I gather from your post you originally had 2 females and a male (or so you thought, heh), then the male died? That sounds like a good reason for a girl to turn into a guy. There's a few other theories about why they may do this too. Or it could just be a coincidental shape of the tail, or a result of the injury too. I've never seen a true female (not turning into a male) with any kind of a sword, but I'm with sir_dudeguy - that doesn't mean it can't happen. Post a recent pic!
sir_dudeguy
Aquarium Advice FINatic
oh ya! now you mention it i think it can happen. but i dont remember any of mine ever doing that, but i havent had them for 5 years. I know some fish do this tho...like the clownfish i think can
Elmware2000
Aquarium Advice Activist
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I don't think females turn into males, I just think you might have a late bloomer. The older male may chase him as they do not like the competition when it comes to mating.
I have Marigold Swordtails. They are nice fish, and they sure do reproduce. After having the babies for a few months, they just barely start to show signs of having the sword if they are male. Sometimes you see the thin black line at the base of their tail just before it starts to grow out, and other times it just starts growing before you even see the thin black line. Usually you will see the older male chasing him away just as he start to grow out his tail. At this point, if you have another tank, it is best to put him in there, or take him to the pet store, because he will just be bullied by the older male.
I have Marigold Swordtails. They are nice fish, and they sure do reproduce. After having the babies for a few months, they just barely start to show signs of having the sword if they are male. Sometimes you see the thin black line at the base of their tail just before it starts to grow out, and other times it just starts growing before you even see the thin black line. Usually you will see the older male chasing him away just as he start to grow out his tail. At this point, if you have another tank, it is best to put him in there, or take him to the pet store, because he will just be bullied by the older male.
Elmware2000 said:
I think this is the case as well, except for the fact that this fish doesn't have the long slender body of a male. I guess we will see. Every article I read mentiones that they can be late bloomers but do not actually change sex. As for the older male, he died a week ago. Its funny though because this fish has always been bigger than the old male.
JDogg
Aquarium Advice Addict
I have read that the dominant/oldest female can turn into a "male" i.e. grow a gonpodium and a sword, but she can not breed (no mater how hard she tries!)
however I have also read that these are just males that a "lat bloomers"
so the jury is still out. you would think someone would take on of these "females" are do a DNA test to see if the are XX or XY or MAYBE they are XXY!
however I have also read that these are just males that a "lat bloomers"
so the jury is still out. you would think someone would take on of these "females" are do a DNA test to see if the are XX or XY or MAYBE they are XXY!
tropicfishman
Aquarium Advice Addict
i've heard about htis before actually, its not actually tail, its an appendege, what its foir I have no idea, but my friend used to breed them and he always talked about the females doing that
JDogg
Aquarium Advice Addict
take it to a university if there is one near you, there should be someone there can can run a simple DNA test to determine sex. the hard part might be obtaining enough DNA to run the test without killing your fish (i am not sure how much they would need, or how taking it might effect your fish) how far are you willing to go to answer this question?Mosaic said:
I'm reading mixed signals. Some say they do, some say that the changing of sex is a ability limited to certain salt water fish.
I would say that it is however very likely that the fish is merely a late bloomer. There is also the possibility that it is a hybrid and will never fully develop.
I would say that it is however very likely that the fish is merely a late bloomer. There is also the possibility that it is a hybrid and will never fully develop.
Puriti
Aquarium Advice Addict
How big is the platy?
FYI the anal fin now has a gonopodium look to it. I think it was always a male. After all, that is my best explanation for why the other male kept getting sick despite the water parameters being fine. Its the only stressor that I could possibly identify.
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