Alessa

Ok... so, from my original batch of baby Dwarf Coral Platies, I got a peculiar case.

I was going to divide the girls in my 29 and the boys in my 55, and so I did, I took out the "4" males and placed them in my 55 gallon... only to figure out something that until today seems really bizarre.

One of the "Boys" I placed in the 55 does not look like the others, the colors are not as bright (orange), it is bigger, plumper, it has a big round belly and the boys seem to chase "Him" or "Her" though....

the He-She has a gonopodium!

So... I'll get a pic as soon as I can, meanwhile... comments? Ideas? are there such hermaphroditic cases common in nature?

TFA101

Hermaphrodic events in fish are very rare, but are most likely to happen in livebearers like guppies, platies and mollies. I would guess it could be possible, I've heard of cases involving transgenderal fish before.

aquarist48

Good morning. I've read that some fish (can't remember the types) the females, can carry sperm for months to fertilize the eggs and the male doesn't have to be any where around.

ABCDemily

It's rare, but could be possible.
However it could just be the pecking order if it is a male. Good luck!

Alessa

Ok, I "Examined" the he-she more closely. HE has an underdeveloped gonopodium (Not as sharp as the others) and SHE also has unfertilized eggs.

Very bizarre thing. My males chase HER and HE pokes at them like the dominant male. It is really weird.

pinkfloydpuffer

Sorry, nothing to add....

just

Bad Wolf

i think one of my guppies is a shemale. she is adolescent with female looks and colors, but, her anal fin is turning into a gonodopium. i use to have a shemale and she/he gave birth to 3 successful batches. she/he is dead now. her fry are perfectly fine.

the reason i think she/he was a shemale is because her anal fin was half spiked and half normal. she was also always skinny even when pregnant.

so i think it is possible.

Chrisson

wow this is very... weird...

TFA101

well this experience sure is... uhh... different.

midnightwolf

so weird.

MissMTS

okay....wow Good luck with him/her

Beeker

I've read about it... but... well, I guess the laws of probability... well, there are so many fish, and many of us fish-keepers, and we've been at it for a long time, so, odds are that there will be an occasional occurance such as this. And you're the lucky one...

midnightwolf

but are they really the lucky one

Beeker

good point.

pepetj

Some interesting "gender" phenomena seems to occur with livebearers, including and not limited to sex-reversal. I was at awe with this information when I first read it, about a month ago. I belive it is more common in Swordtails. I would like to see a pic of your peculiar fish Alessa so please...

Pepe
Santo Domingo