Why so different? Male and Female?

jim barry

Goliath Tigerfish
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Jun 21, 2006
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Had these 2 for nearly 2 years now. Both around 18" or maybe a bit bigger. They look so different. One slender and light color, the other fatter and dark color.IMG_7932.JPGIMG_7935.JPGIMG_7936.JPGIMG_7937.JPGIMG_7938.JPGIMG_7939.JPGIMG_7940.JPG

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cnel124

Jack Dempsey
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Jun 30, 2013
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If I had to guess I would say the fatter one is female, carrying the eggs within her giving her the larger thickness.

My local Cuban and Tropical gar breeder (or so he says) told me he determines gars sexuality through interactions between them. Males will nudge around the anal fin area of the female, notifying the female he is ready to mate. He said there is no outer distinctions besides the thickness of the fish which can determine their sex, only when they become mature does he sex them through that method.

He told me however, females generally are thicker towards the back while males are slim (slimmer) down their entire bodies.
 

jpcampbell123

Peacock Bass
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Feb 18, 2011
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came really close to collecting a baby longnose last time i was out but by the time the cast net hit the water it had seen the shadow and dived. i saw a pair of true spotteds pairing up for pre spawn.
the female was alot fatter than the male and the male was smaller. he was also following her around alot of nudging her real gentle with his snout.
also have seen spotteds before spawning in grass beds.
 

jim barry

Goliath Tigerfish
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That interesting. They used to do that a lot and follow each other around the tank. Jot s much for the last few months though
If I had to guess I would say the fatter one is female, carrying the eggs within her giving her the larger thickness.

My local Cuban and Tropical gar breeder (or so he says) told me he determines gars sexuality through interactions between them. Males will nudge around the anal fin area of the female, notifying the female he is ready to mate. He said there is no outer distinctions besides the thickness of the fish which can determine their sex, only when they become mature does he sex them through that method.

He told me however, females generally are thicker towards the back while males are slim (slimmer) down their entire bodies.
 

cnel124

Jack Dempsey
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They may be trying to spawn. Unfortunately there isn't much information on gar spawning unless you speak to a spawner.

They definitely need something to spawn on like grass or weeds. Also, my gar breeder said his only spawn once a year in a particular month so its a small chance for it to actually happen. But he said, if you have a female and male they'll just spawn on their own if the conditions are favorable.
 

HungDang

Piranha
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Nov 29, 2010
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first of all, do you know their actual age? One might be just fatter because it eat more than the other(look to be a fat gar like many other I've seen in the forum).
 

cnel124

Jack Dempsey
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first of all, do you know their actual age? One might be just fatter because it eat more than the other(look to be a fat gar like many other I've seen in the forum).
Yeah they need to be a few years old right?
 

jim barry

Goliath Tigerfish
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Hi. I got no idea on age, they came from different sources and don't know how old they already were when i got them. When i first introduced the second Gar they went crazy for each other and spent most of the time chasing each other around the tank. Don't do it so much any more. Yes one does eat more aggresively than the other. No prizes for guessing which one. They are in with 5 rays so no chance of setting up a spawning area for them unfortunately.
first of all, do you know their actual age? One might be just fatter because it eat more than the other(look to be a fat gar like many other I've seen in the forum).
 

cnel124

Jack Dempsey
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Jun 30, 2013
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Gars may chase just because they are new together. My larger Tropicals chased around my Floridas for the first few days, and then they settled in.

Also my gars showed breeding behavior and they are under a year old, so the behavior may be a poor indicator on age and/or sexual maturity.
 

jim barry

Goliath Tigerfish
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Not got a clue on that? They still chase each other around from time to time and i have had them nearly 2 years. Time will tell if they are male and female i guess?
Gars may chase just because they are new together. My larger Tropicals chased around my Floridas for the first few days, and then they settled in.

Also my gars showed breeding behavior and they are under a year old, so the behavior may be a poor indicator on age and/or sexual maturity.
 
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