# Identifying Sex



## johnmarque (Aug 29, 2005)

Yo everyone,

I have two RBs that are app. 5" each in their separate 33 gallon tanks. The personalities of the two fish are quite different. Dr. Ouchie-Mouth is quite polite and unless I have not fed it for a couple of days, will not attack its food until the "prime moment," which can sometimes take hours. Nibbles on the other hand, can't seem to get enough to eat and seems to kill anything I put in the tank, sometimes eating the food right from my hands. At this stage in their lives ( I have had them for about 6 months-when they were less than an inch ), is there any way to determine the sex of these fish? I have read that there is no real way to physically distinguish this, however, I am sure there are behavioral characteristics and attributes to each sex. Thanks for any information

John


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## MR.FREEZ (Jan 26, 2004)

nope, cant tell em apart till the

eggs are bein layed


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

On the outside, males and females look alike (ie. they are not sexually dimorphic), and can't be told apart.
If you want to be sure, there's two options: either dissect your fish (not recommended), or witness an actual spawning...

*_Moved to Piranha Breeding Forum_*


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## johnmarque (Aug 29, 2005)

How large or old are the RBs around the time they would normally be spawning? Thanks again for the info


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## maniac_richboy (Feb 1, 2004)

johnmarque said:


> How large or old are the RBs around the time they would normally be spawning? Thanks again for the info


approx. 6" or 2 yrs but sometimes younger. It depends how well you vary their diet.


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## pirairtool (Nov 12, 2005)

Are females sometimes more of a yellow colour rather than the red?


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## HOLLYWOOD (Feb 6, 2003)

Color has no bearing in determining gender as far as piranhas are concerned.



pirairtool said:


> Are females sometimes more of a yellow colour rather than the red?


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