Um... Male right?

[Platanus]

I think i might be in trouble! >.>

Ok the deal is simple, I bought 2 Blue Gourami Females im sure they are females.

Heres one of the females:
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Ok now the problem! Is this dwarf gourami a MALE?
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I hope its the male, because hes dorsal fin looks some what sharper but now after sitting by the aquarium researching and observing the "male" i have second thoughts if hes actually male.

[Mr.Swimmer]

I would have to say female. By the advice given to me in my post.

[Platanus]

Oh snap... I need to get a Male Gourami then >.> oh well. whatever helps the female gouramies mate :P

[rich311k]

Two different species of fish. I would agree the blue looks female, that dwarf is most certainly a male. Dwarf gouramis are sexable by the male being brightly colored, the females are a rather drab grey.

[Platanus]

Two different species of fish. I would agree the blue looks female, that dwarf is most certainly a male. Dwarf gouramis are sexable by the male being brightly colored, the females are a rather drab grey.

i really dont get the thing with the gouramies, Dwarf has quite the bright tones of colors and i heard that they use that colors to "Suck up to" the females around him.

Male dwarf gourami is ridiculously young and small, I'd give him 1.4 inch in length. And compared to the older blue female gourami he/she looks like an ant lol.

That being the case maybe hes sharp dorsal fin hasn't formed yet? Maybe it does look smooth because of the young "age" ?

[VoidParadigm]

Dwarf Gouramis are naturally smaller than Three Spot (Blue) Gouramis... Dwarf only reach around 2'', while Three Spots usually go around 4-6'' depending on the aquarium and food source. Additionally not all male Dwarfs actually get a pointed dorsal fin - it's genetics for them, not gender-made.

Here's a photo of my last Male Dwarf Gourami at his full size. No sharp point.
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[DrNic]

Those both look like females to me.

Are you planning on breeding? If not I would just leave things the way they are. Male gouramis can get grumpy with other fish in the tank.

[VoidParadigm]

Those both look like females to me.

Explain this?

[rich311k]

That is a male dwarf gourami, the pointy thing does not apply to this species, they are not that closely related to 3 spots and pearls.

[DrNic]

Explain this? In standard gouramis, the dorsal fin can be used to tell if the fish is male or female. Male dorsal fins are pointed in the back, females are rounded.

I could be wrong but from my experience, in dwarf grouamis female dorsal fins are a little taller and rounder with the rays pointing out while male doral fins tend to be a little shorter with most of the doral fins pointing to the back of the fish. This also sometimes leads to a point in the back of the dorsal fin but not always.

From what I've seen the dwarf in the top photo looks like a female to me, while the one in your reply (#6) looks like a male.

[VoidParadigm]

The Dwarf Gourami isn't a "standard gourami" comparable to Three Spots and Pearls, similar to what Rich said, though... They have a different body and fin structure/shape.
Additionally it's just simple fact that female Dwarfs have much less color.
:sconfused:

And in my opinion the above (OP's) photo of the Dwarf's rays do look pointing back, it's just the odd angle of the photo that makes it look odd. Those that do point up are the same as any other fish who doesn't have full-dorsal-length rays.

Agree to disagree? :hmm3grin2orange:

[Platanus]

That is a male dwarf gourami, the pointy thing does not apply to this species, they are not that closely related to 3 spots and pearls.

So is my gourami a male? :) Or not ;/

[VoidParadigm]

You quoted a post that says it's male. <.<

Anyways, go google "female dwarf gourami" and you'll see the drab specimens that are female that me and rich are referring to.

[Platanus]

You quoted a post that says it's male. <.<

Anyways, go google "female dwarf gourami" and you'll see the drab specimens that are female that me and rich are referring to.

Lol, I quoted that just because ....
It could be the other Dwarf Gourami someone has put in this thread...

[VoidParadigm]

That other Gourami is identical in fin form to your own.

[Platanus]

That other Gourami is identical in fin form to your own.

I think Dorsal fin doesn't always count.

Hence, every offspring of each gourami might be different in fin shape.

I think relying on vibrance and contrast of gourami color is a lot better way to sex gouramis in general, in gourami species, male colors - attract females, thats why the gourami male should be brighter :)

Anyway. In reality of Humans it's a complete opposite, Females appear a lot more colorful and Beautiful, and thats what males lose their mind over :P

[VoidParadigm]

It's only a good way to sex the Dwarf species. It doesn't work for the majority of the others.

[Platanus]

Im glad because, dwarf gouramis are quite wonderful in color variations :)

[AbbeyRanda]

I know I'm a little late on this but I'm putting my money on both Dwarf gouramis (that were posted in this thread being male...

I foulnd this lady at the LFS. When side by side with a male, there was no doubt she was a girl:

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She fits the fin-form for a female too, being very rounded...

This makes me wonder, has anyone ever tried to breed these guys for different fin forms? Like a betta? Man, I would love to see a veiltail gourami! or a crowntail!

[VoidParadigm]

As said a dozen times above and on the previous page, fin form is not a definite sexer for Dwarf Gouramis.

And it may just be the lighting, but your photo does look much more drab than the previous two pictures shown before, which would confirm it being female.

[AbbeyRanda]

No need to get huffy! I'm not disagreeing with you that color is the best way to sex them, just mentioning that she does have a rounded dorsal. I figured since there was a question about whether or not the first one was a female, posting a pic of the drab colored girl I have might be helpful to differentiate

In real life she is just as drab as the pic shows. I'd wager pretty much all I have (which ain't much! :hmm3grin2orange: ) that mine's a girl.

Again, since the finforms can vary so much from one individual to another, I'm wanting to see someone start breeding longfin dwarf gouramis--then they'll all have pointy fins--even the ladies! :14: