spot the female< Not a sexist remark>

[eds]

When at Cuttlebrook talking to Mark, he said he sexes by feeling the gill plates, fairly easy at this time of year females have very smooth plates, males rough plates a bit like sandpaper, but in smaller males there is only a very slight roughness.

This works fine with males that are showing these secondary sexual characteristics but it doesn't help with those not yet showing them. In other words any fish with rough gill plates is certainly a male but just because a fish has smooth gill plates doesn't mean they are definitely female. I've seen fish three years old that have never had rough gill plates but eventually sex out to be males. If I'm not sure I check the vents as Duncan said.

[boogatee]

I agree with Ed, but sometimes even checking the vent it's not that easy.

However Mark (and Dunc) can see and feel things that we cant, so generally if they say it's so ... it is

[Duncan]

hi guys

what they are feeling ar breeding tubercles but these are mainly present when a male is on for a HOT date they are not present at all times! these also spill over onto the leading rays of the pectoral fins as well, the male however always has biger paddles ( fins) and you can and will feel a very much thicker leading ray as well as being slightly rough

anyone who has done course fishing for bream will be familiar with the picture below these breeding tubercles show up really well on bream and perch also

a lot of sexing is reliant on just identifying the male take garden tench quite a common pond fish for instance the gonads stick out from the sides of the fish really pronounced , plus this fish has obsurdly huge ventral fins and pec fins see picture below

generally males will not grow as big as females but have more splendour

BTW the practice of squeezing down on the sides of a male to induce milt is not a real good practice it causes immense brusing both internal and external and just this act alone can invloving you fighting for the fishes life if it has no mature milt

dunc

p/s we will say how long these pictures take to end up on someone elses site

[TerryKoi]

very interesting picture Dunc, never seen the breeding tubercles so pronounced .

[deddog]

Here is a picture I took whilst the fish was sedated treatment for infection due to fluke damge. I have not noticed any of my koi displaying this small tube like protrusion and I am now confused as to the sex, any ideas?

[Duncan]

hi Dave

look male to me mate not because of the protrusion but the shape of the vent

dunc