Blue jaw id: male or female

[hobbzz]

I can't tell if this is a male with the blue on the jaw starting to come in, or just a female that happens to have some blue around her jawline/belly? Notice the brown at the tale which afaik is usually indicative of a female... It was sold to me as a male by the lfs. Any ideas?

 

[CenterConsole]

That's a male.

 

[hobbzz]

So there's no possibility that a female could have blue on her face and it is possible for a male to have brown on the tail before the yellow comes in?

As popular as these fish are there's hardly any specific info out there regarding sexing/pairing.

 

[humaguy]

could be a male beginning to display female coloration...my male did that...

 

[Pallobi]

Looks female to me...

 

[hobbzz]

could be a male beginning to display female coloration...my male did that...

Do they actually change sex or just coloration? Any idea what causes this?

 

[hobbzz]

Looks female to me...

What in particular points to female for you?

Thanks for the input so far guys.

 

[kv2wr1]

Looks like it was a male and is changing into a female. The males have yellow edged fins and blue chins while the females have brown edged fins and no blue chins.

 

[NYCBOB]

Female

 

[Mcsommerfeld]

No doubt in my mind, that's a female. I have a pair ing tank and your fish displays no males characteristics at all. But she is a. Very pretty female! No go find a male and you'll have yourself a pair, these fish are full of personality and so far perfect model citizens my mixed reef.

 

[hobbzz]

I already have a female. The larger of the two chases the smaller one since adding yesterday, but no biting from either. During feeding time they get along fine. The new one is slightly larger than the old one.

The blue on the jaw changes intensity, but is never as bright blue as large males with full coloration on the jaw and tail.

There's just so little info on these guys. Lots of hobbyist opinions, but I have yet to see any scientific documentation on whether or not they can change sex, when the males color should coming in by, and most importantly in this case, whether or not a female can display the blue on the jaw etc. Nothing specific.

 

[Wolverine]

Looks like it was a male and is changing into a female. The males have yellow edged fins and blue chins while the females have brown edged fins and no blue chins.

Male.
Males don't actually change into females, but they do change to female coloration (which includes not having the blue on the jaw). Don't know why it happens, but I've only seen it happen in tanks where you have a male with no female. Doesn't always happen in that situation, but that's where I've seen it.

 

[kv2wr1]

Male.
Males don't actually change into females, but they do change to female coloration (which includes not having the blue on the jaw). Don't know why it happens, but I've only seen it happen in tanks where you have a male with no female. Doesn't always happen in that situation, but that's where I've seen it.

Can they change back to the typical male coloration if they are put with females? I have seen a large male at a lfs that did exactly what you describe. It had a bright blue throat and yellow edged fins last summer. I went back to the same lfs a few months later and they had not sold it. It changed exactly as you described, but the blue throat was less prominent. Like it was losing the typical male coloration.

 

[Wolverine]

Can they change back to the typical male coloration if they are put with females? I have seen a large male at a lfs that did exactly what you describe. It had a bright blue throat and yellow edged fins last summer. I went back to the same lfs a few months later and they had not sold it. It changed exactly as you described, but the blue throat was less prominent. Like it was losing the typical male coloration.

IME, yes, they typically regain their male coloration if put in with a female (I say "typically" because I vaguely remember hearing about someone for whom this didn't happen). I've also see it happen if they're put into a tank with other Xanthichthys triggers.

 

[humaguy]

Do they actually change sex or just coloration? Any idea what causes this?

Just coloration...It could be one of a few factors, losing their mate, not being the alpha fish in the area, being bullied...mine changed coloration very quickly as soon as the mate was gone...

 

[humaguy]

I agree with what Wolverine stated above...

 

[hobbzz]

Thanks for the info guys. As long as there continues to be no aggression, I'll keep the male for a few weeks to see if he actually accepts her and starts to interact with her, or just tolerates her and remove him if necesary. I'm not trying to breed them, but I don't want either one to simply be tolerated and possibly stressed.