identifying the sex of my fish

[hydrorush]

Hey everyone,

I'm curious about my red forest jewel, can anyone tell me its sex and how big it'll get? I've had it for around 2-3 months now, and it's about 3 inches long. I've noticed the ones in the shop are really vibrant and red, but mine's not as colourful - is that normal? I recently bought another one that was bright red, but when I got it home it turned a dull yellow, what's going on with that? Any info would be great, thanks.

[koalabear]

I'm not too sure on sexing them properly, but I think the colour fade on the new one could be down to stress from the move. A lot of fish seem to lose their colour when they're caught and bagged for transport, it's pretty common.

[waveborn]

To determine the sex of your red forest jewel with absolute certainty, venting is the most reliable method - it's not usually possible to tell just from a picture. There are many hybrid variations out there, which means coloration can vary quite a bit.

Red forest jewels are native to low pH rivers, specifically the Congo and Ubanghi tributaries, although you might see them kept with Mbuna from time to time - this isn't their usual environment, though. They're also extremely aggressive fish, so they might cause some chaos with other peaceful fish, like that sweet little Yellow lab in your picture.

[koalabear]

I've had no issues keeping jewels with labs, but I suppose that's because every fish has its own personality.

[hydrorush]

I've got a weird lab, it's obsessed with living in the plants and goes crazy if anything gets too close to its little home. It's pretty funny watching feeder shrimp try to navigate through the plant, my lab is like a little plant guardian.

[waveborn]

I'm not too sure on sexing them properly, but I think the colour fade on the new one could be down to stress from the move. A lot of fish seem to lose their colour when they're caught and bagged for transport, it's pretty common.

I've had fish like that before, with their own little quirks and it's hard not to get attached. I was just putting that info out there so people know what to expect with red forest jewels.

[coralhaven]

Your Red Forest Jewel does appear to be under stress. Adding a background to its tank might make it feel more secure, I noticed you don't seem to have one in place. I've had my own Red Forest Jewel for about 18 months now, it's grown to around 4 inches from a tiny 3/4 inch when I first got it. It's really a gentle soul, often swims up to my JD and they seem to get along just fine. I still have no idea what sex mine is though.

[hydrorush]

Thanks for the advice, I'll give it a go this weekend and see how it goes, maybe a background will make my jewel feel a bit more at home.