Sex my Dovii Please

[Alganator]

This is the second Dovii I own. I posted pics of another one you guys may have seen. This one is very small still. Any idea what the sex could be?

 

[Andy woods cichlids uk]

At this stage it looks female, but as you stated its very small.
Your just going to have to sit it out and have patience, one thing that alot of people in the hobby lack.
The fish will reveal its sex given time.

 

[Alganator]

Thanks Andy. Yes I do lack patience. Haha. I’m just hoping in anticipation that one of my Doviis will be male.

 

[Andy woods cichlids uk]

Thanks Andy. Yes I do lack patience. Haha. I’m just hoping in anticipation that one of my Doviis will be male.

I wish you the best of luck and fingers crossed you will get your male Dovii.

 

[Rass]

Female if I had to guess. Don't really see any signs of it being male.

 

[Alganator]

Updated picture. Looks more male than female to me hey

 

[Rass]

Updated picture. Looks more male than female to me hey

View attachment 1457165

Ok in this one I'm definitely seeing the spots developing in the unpaired fins, and a few more above the lateral line. Looking back at your pics, the problem could be stemming from your substrate. On an all light colored substrate they tend to wash out in an attempt to blend in. That could have been masking some of the signs I'm used to seeing in my grow outs. I've always had mine over black sand or a mix of black and white gravel.

 

[Alganator]

Thanks, that’s exactly what I did yesterday. I changed the light gravel to black gravel and the difference is immediate. I have a question though. I have 3 Dovii currently which I will obviously move or re home 1 or 2 depending on whether I end up with a pair. If I end up with two males, how long can I keep them together before the dominant male kills the other? (I want to be able to move it in time)

 

[Rass]

At this size, as long as you're checking them everyday you should be able see if one is getting beaten up, long before it actually gets killed. Once you start seeing damaged fins you'll know things have taken a turn for the worse and you can separate. I would get yourself some light diffuser and have a divider or two ready now, so that you can separate them immediately, even if you don't have time to pull a fish and move it right away.