I’m new to the RTA species, but have been reading (I read Duanes excellent article about sexing Parachromis and similar).
It seems like some males keep bright female coloration for quite a while, but it also looks like the dark spots on the male cheeks are very reliable.
How early can I depend on those dark spots appearing? The largest of my group of juveniles is about 4 inches, with a big belly,
and the colors look entirely female (no dark spots, but mostly bright gold, with orange/pink shades some days). Similarly, the other (smaller) individuals are showing no cheek spots.
When can I make a justified assumption that they are not male? (The pics are all the largest fish; different days).
It seems like some males keep bright female coloration for quite a while, but it also looks like the dark spots on the male cheeks are very reliable.
How early can I depend on those dark spots appearing? The largest of my group of juveniles is about 4 inches, with a big belly,
and the colors look entirely female (no dark spots, but mostly bright gold, with orange/pink shades some days). Similarly, the other (smaller) individuals are showing no cheek spots.When can I make a justified assumption that they are not male? (The pics are all the largest fish; different days).
