ID Wrasse Gender

[bluecoyote79]

Is this a subadult/male or a female McCosker's Wrasse? It's supposed to be female and generally looks the part, but the anal fin has a lot of blue to it.

Here's the Male flashing

 

[eatbreakfast]

It is in the early stages of transitioning from female to male. The indicators for that are, not the amount of blue, but rather that is developing the red margin on the anal fin. Females will have the blue markings but have translucent fins.

 

[bluecoyote79]

What would the consensus be about them staying together long term? Now they're in an 8g QT but the DT is a 65g. The male makes a half hearted lunge at the smaller fish once in a while, but so far they seem to tolerate each other. I'd like to find a true female or two to put in with them.

 

[eatbreakfast]

2 male flashers of the same species generally dont tolerate each other in a tank as small as yours, instead I would recommend a flasher of a different species or even a small fairy wrasse.

I would also recommend against trying to pair wrasses in a 65g as they dont form true prs, but rather gender roles are determined by social situations, usually with aggression from the male toward the female, and in many cases the female will transition anyway.