maniac Posted August 10, 2006 Report Share Posted August 10, 2006 I'm going to get some rams for my tank and i'm trying to decide between gold and german rams. Now because of the dimensions of the tank i can sadly only get two so it needs to be a female and a male but how can you tell the difference with gold rams? I think i can tell with german rams but gold rams are a mystery to me. Thanks Chad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted August 10, 2006 Report Share Posted August 10, 2006 Well, here's the thing.... Gold rams & German rams are the same sp. Just different color morphs. It's really hard to tell the sexes apart 'til they start breeding. Sure, the male "has more blue" or female is plumper, less colorful. That's just not always the case. When they're getting ready to breed, the female will have a blunt breeding tube, and a male's will be more pointed. If you're thinking about picking some up from Riverfront, you might get lucky by picking out a "male" and a "female" (maybe ask the staff to help you - sounds like they know what they're doing - I've never been, myself), but the best bet is to grab at least 4, preferably 6 and let them grow out. A pair will form, then you can sell/trade the rest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maniac Posted August 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2006 okay the next question is then, what's a breeding tube and how do i know that a pair has formed or do you just know that? Chad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted August 11, 2006 Report Share Posted August 11, 2006 Here are some tips on picking out a pair. Females have pink on the stomachs and they also have blue speckles in their black spots. Males have no blue speckles in their black spots, their first(and sometimes 2nd) dorsal rays are extended. They also show no pink on the sides/stomach. Now these are just guide lines but when I bought my blue rams at 3/4" you could already see these differences. Or you could just go to a good LFS and get them to pick out a pair for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted August 11, 2006 Report Share Posted August 11, 2006 Their breeding tubes are.... well, where the 'breeding' comes from. If you picture yourself as a fish, it's where you'd expect it to be. When they're ready to breed, their breeding tubes are extended so that we can see them. And, when a couple 'pair off' they kinda break away from the group and spend a bit more time by themselves... kinda like what we do, eh? :P Val's got some good tips on picking the sexes out. Listen to her. It's been quite a while since I had German/Gold rams... Bolivian/red rams are not as easy to tell apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted August 11, 2006 Report Share Posted August 11, 2006 Oh, those tips are for the blue rams, I'm not sure if the gold rams have the same blue speckles or black spots. It dorsal rays would still work though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maniac Posted August 11, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2006 well it doesn't really matter for the gold rams anymore, my wife doesn't like the way the fins stick up and since the tank is in the living room, I get vetoed. but fortunately she doesn't mind the longfin german rams so i think I'm going to go for those but unfortunately Petland has them but won't let me bring one back in case i get two males. sigh...... what to do? does the same general rules apply for longfin rams as german rams or does it change things? Chad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted August 11, 2006 Report Share Posted August 11, 2006 It's all the same. I wouldn't worry too much about taking fish back to the petstore. You could probably sell it to another hobbyist. Sure, you probably won't get what you paid for... but, just look at it as renting the fish for a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maniac Posted August 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 alright thanks, i guess i've gotta try it, my JD is going to outgrow the tank so i guess first things first. I just don't want to give him up. Oh well new fish are on the horizon. Chad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.