Copadichromis borleyi redfin-- sexing

[janiel]

Hi Pam,

I hope I am not commandeering this board with all of my questions! I have been looking into C. borleyi redfin, and saw some at a LFS. All of the fish were young and did not have full color but they seemed to show some hints of orangey-red on the body and bluish heads. Does this mean categorically that they are all male? The guy at the store had no idea but said I could vent them if I wanted to buy them.

Also, I have seen it mentioned in one or two places online that venting is horrible and cruel for fish, and should not be done. I have vented my fish when rehoming them, and I keep them underwater and only briefly hold them in the net to check them. They don't seem worse for the wear... but then fish don't have therapists, either! lol... Am I abusing my fish without knowing it?

Thanks for all of the excellent advice!!!

[Pam Chin]

Hi Janiel,

Keep the questions coming...

Most people are careful when venting, and if your eye sight isn't good, then try using a magnifying glass. I don't think it is harmful to your fish, and most people don't hold them out of the water long enough to do any damage. Just use your common sense! I don't think the fish even remember it, so no therapy should be required!!!

Copadichromis borleyi "red fin" is a nice mellow hap, they do get fairly large, because they have such a tall body, but they are nice in larger Malawi community tanks. The females and juveniles are a lovely gray with yellow fins. Young males will show some blue tints, but I don't think the females will, they should not have any blue on them. You might want to look at them with a flashlight, you will often see more color if the lighting is not good on the tank, and that can help you sex some fish visually. But just because it doesn't have any blue now does not guarantee that it will be a female. Sub-dominate males will hold the juvenile coloration to avoid confrontation, and so this is why it is not too hard to pick out males, but IDing females is a roll of the dice, without accurate venting.

Cichlid Power!
Pam