Re: I've got baby blue rams!

[David Sanchez <barbax2@yahoo.com>]

Though not an exact science I have been able to sex wild rams with
very good success. The German or other hybred stuff I wont attempt
here. The females have the blue frecles you mentioned in the black
circle the males may have some to but the way to distingush them is
that the females have frecles that contrast more sharply and that are
just very bright and distinct. In more mature specimens the male will
be larger and have a a pointed and pronounced secound and third spine
of the dorsal fin. However since the ones you mentioned are young the
frecles are your best bet for and ID. Since you asked my best guess is
that you indeed have a pair, given the data you provided. Which by the
way was very usefull for assesing their sex. With practice rams can be
easy to sex. Good luck Paul, looks like your on your way to having a
little shoal of rams!


Dave Sanchez



---Paul Evans <pm_evans@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> Congratulations on the fry!
> 
> ---Tim Ellis <timellis@flash.net> wrote:
> >
> > Hi all,
> > 
> > As you could have guessed my blue rams spawned and now there is a
> cloud
> > of fry. 
> 
> I was going to wait a while before posing this 
> question but list traffic has been light lately 
> so I figured that I might get more than the usual
> amount of help.
> 
> I have always liked Rams.  In fact they 
> rekindled my interest in the hobby a few years
> ago when I saw some beautiful rams in a fish 
> store.  Until this past Saturday, I have never
> owned any.  
> 
> I have seen many rams in various LFS's be they 
> always look sickly or highly selectively bred,
> usually both.  This tank of them was different,
> the fish were small, about 2-3cm.  There were
> about 20 in a 60gallon tank.  They were defending
> territories and chasing each other around rather
> than sitting on the bottom with their fins clamped.
> The manager confirmed my suspicions; they were 
> from a small local breeder.
> 
> I picked up two that looked like a pair.  They were
> digging in the sand together and defending a 
> territory together.  One's black lateral spot was
> rather indistinct and the whole side including 
> the black spot was covered with blue sheen/flecks.
> The other was more aggressive about defending the
> territory and had a distinct black spot although 
> on one side had three blue flecks that extend some
> what in to the spot.  I figured this was the male
> although "he" did (and still does) have a bit of red to his belly.  
> 
> I got them home and placed them in a lightly populated
> 45gallon tank.  They stay pretty close together 
> and, rarely, the one that I assumed to be the female
> chases the one I assumed to be the male.  Mostly, there
> is peace.  Most puzzling is that since they have 
> been in my tank, the one that I assumed to be female's
> lateral spot has become quite distinct and the blue
> on the lateral spot region that was evident in the
> pet store is no longer visible.  Further, "she"
> does not (and never did) have any red to her belly.
> 
> So my question(s) are this, do I have a pair?  Were
> my presumed sexes right or wrong?  Or is it too 
> early to tell?  If I have two of the same sex
> would they stay so close together?
> 
> Thanks in advance for any help.
> 
> Paul Evans  
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> 
>
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