How to tell a male from a female Molly

[Angela Faye Oon]

I know this is such a basic thing, and I actually have a tank full of fry,
but suddenly I'm not sure which of my mollies are female and which are male
anymore. I have a black molly with a rather ornate "C"-shaped tail - is that
a male? I have three other white mollies who have tails that are just short
and straight at the ends. Are they female? Or does molly sexing have nothing
to do with tail shapes at all?

Angela

[@home]

Angela,
Not an expert, but I believe the "C" shaped tail is a variety known as
Lyretail, and would have nothing to do with the sexing.

"Angela Faye Oon" <an...@iname.com> wrote in message
news:95aon1$3ra$1...@newton.pacific.net.sg...

[maver...@my-deja.com]

In article <95aon1$3ra$1...@newton.pacific.net.sg>,

Angela,
Tail has got nothing to do with the sexing of molies. You can
sex them by looking them horizontally; Males will have single fin(Near
anus)seprated and it is pointed while in females it is not.also when
they grow fully females become plump while males are more slender,

Hope that helped:)
Maverick

Sent via Deja.com
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[Angela Faye Oon]

Hi Maverick,

Thanks for your reply! I just went to look at my mollies and they all have
one anal fin each. What do you mean by "separated"? I know that at least one
of my mollies is female because I've got babies. The black one is slimmer
than the white mollies but I think the white mollies are just another type
of molly.

Still confused :-(,

[Sherry Michael]

The male fish will have a tube (called the gonopodium) instead of an
anal fin, and the females have a regular fin. If your fish are lighter
colored, the female sometimes gets a dark patch in the belly. The males
often case the females around.

-Sherry

[TD of zuzubabies.com]

Really quick here... This is what I tell my ADULT customers at work.
Live bearer males have a penis.

Okay, so I know it's not really the same, but it makes it easier for
them to remember. And some of my customers can now sex them themselves,
so it works. *smiles*

Just look at the fin on their bellies, near their butt end. Females
have a round fin, while males have a pointy skinny one (that's the
penis).

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[maver...@my-deja.com]

Hello again,
well I didnt know the technical name of the Male
reproductive organ but this is how I have been sexng them since
ages...anyways the last post I think must have helped you...Males have
that anal fin(or whatever u like to call it)pointed while FMales
dont...Most of the time u can find males chasing females( well this
behaviour is not sooooo uncommon in other animals as well...but Mollies
males do chase females a hellofalot)..
Hope I have helped this time...

[Angela Faye Oon]

Thanks for everyone who replied to help me - I've done some reading up and I
think the pointed anal fin is called the gonopodium. I can see it clearly on
my male guppy. However, ALL four of my mollies have actual anal fins, not
gonopodiums, so I actually don't think I have a male molly at all! No wonder
I couldn't see any difference :-P. My females must have been storing sperm
from the shop!!

Angela

[TD of zuzubabies.com]

Angela Faye Oon wrote:

> Thanks for everyone who replied to help me - I've done some reading up and I
> think the pointed anal fin is called the gonopodium.

Yep. *smiles* That's the part.

> I can see it clearly on
> my male guppy. However, ALL four of my mollies have actual anal fins, not
> gonopodiums, so I actually don't think I have a male molly at all! No wonder
> I couldn't see any difference :-P. My females must have been storing sperm
> from the shop!!

That was one of my thoughts when you said you couldn't tell the difference
after the first person described the fins. Most lfs personnel don't know
themselves how to tell. And often a shipment will be mostly one or the other.
It's really common to find yourself with all females or males.

[TEACHSKIP]

Angela,

Male mollies have a specialized anal fin that they use for mating. It's called
a gonopodium and it's kind of pointy. Generally female mollies are larger than
males and are rounder. Tail shape is not an indication of mollie gender.

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