# Is this a male Venustus?



## robert77k (May 27, 2012)

I stocked up my tank with a bunch of small Juvie's from Mikes, and I need to start thining them out soon as they have really been growing quickly. I was hoping for a female Venustus since they grow to about 6 inches and my tank is a 4 footer. This guy is a little over 4 inches now, and appears to be getting blue on the face. Do the females get a little bit of blue on the face? The pelvic fins are also turning black and developing a yellow stripe on the forehead.

The reason i want to find out now is that I will probably sell some of these fish at the octoberfish auction to thin out the tank, and if this guy is a male, he will have to go for sure. No room for a 10 inch fish in this tank!

P.S. Has anybody been to the auction? Would people be interested in buying any 4 inch cichlids if I brought them. Wouldn't want to bag them just to have then in a bag all day and them bring them home again. Would be too stressful on the fish.

























Thanks!


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## boun (Feb 16, 2012)

My guess is this is a female since females and juveniles have a yellow body with large brown spots.. Males of this species develop a blue face.

There will be some one who would be interested in buying a fish this size to add to their collection. 

That might even be me


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## Y2KGT (Jul 20, 2009)

robert77k said:


> I stocked up my tank with a bunch of small Juvie's from Mikes, and I need to start thining them out soon as they have really been growing quickly. I was hoping for a female Venustus since they grow to about 6 inches and my tank is a 4 footer. This guy is a little over 4 inches now, and appears to be getting blue on the face. Do the females get a little bit of blue on the face? The pelvic fins are also turning black and developing a yellow stripe on the forehead.
> 
> The reason i want to find out now is that I will probably sell some of these fish at the octoberfish auction to thin out the tank, and if this guy is a male, he will have to go for sure. No room for a 10 inch fish in this tank!
> 
> ...


Hi,
I'm pretty sure its a male based on the slight blue on the face as well as the yellow blaze that is growing on the top of his head. You will also start to notice the dorsal and anal fins are getting pointed and growing towards the tail. Females have a more round dorsal and anal fin.

A female will still grow to 8 inches and will try to breed with any male Hap or Peacock in your tank so if you don't plan to upgrade to a larger tank I would suggest you sell them all.

I wouldn't suggest you take them to an auction as they will sit in a bag from the time you bag them until they arrive at their new home which could be 8 hours or more.

They are a beautiful fish however as mentioned in the article below they require a tank of at least 125 gallons (6 footer).
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/n_venustus.php
--
Paul


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## robert77k (May 27, 2012)

Thanks for the replies!

I didn't know that if it was a female it would cross breed. Guress he/she has to go for sure! This is the only Venustus that I bought. Most fish I bought max out in the 4 to 6 inch range. This venustus was added as a last minute add on on the third and final batch when I stocked my tank. I stocked it in about three batches each of about 8 fish. I added the venustus last min knowing that I might have to rehome him later on as I figured that it would be easier to pull out a few fish later than on than add a fish or two later. No fish have gone in or out in the past 2 1/2 months.

I've been looking on the net at various websites and my guess is that it's a male. It's got quite a bit of a yellow stripe on the forehead, and it's growing so quickly that I can't see him slowing down around the 6 to 7 inch mark. He doubled in size by adding over 2 inches in the past 2 1/2 months.

I've seen that quite a few people buy fish via mail order and I guess they ship fairly well over the course of 24 to 36 hrs otherwise it wouldn't happen???? Is 8 hrs if bagged well with plenty of air and the air changed just before the show too much stress for the fish to handle? I could also place them in a 2 gallon bucket (I have 3) if need be and then bag them at the show. The bottom line is that a few fish have to go soon and the auction is probably the easiest means. But I guess I could try asking here if somebody wants them.

Is there anything else I should be looking out for with my stocking??? I have 4 peacocks (all males), 10 yellow labs (7 females), 2 mBamba's (one male one female), 2 hippo salmon point (one male one female), 1 male electric blue hap alhi, 1 yellow tail Acei, 1 Sp 44, and one 4" bristlenose. For sure in addition to the venustus, I will cut down 3 yellow labs (one male and 2 females), and probably 1 peacock as I have 2 ruby reds right now (both males). One or two others might go as i will see how things develop. Not sure how the sp 44and the hippo point salmon would get along. From what I read, the sp 44 might be a pain. Right now he is by far the smallest at about 2 ¾ inches and he’s already trying to bully the venustus! He doesn't get too far, but he tries!

Thanks for your input!

Rob


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## Y2KGT (Jul 20, 2009)

Hey Rob,
Sounds like you're doing all the right things. I know from experience that mbuna will hybridise as will haps and peacocks. You may have to remove some of your other mbuna or they will all try to breed with your yellow lab females.

You have to understand that breeders know how to ship fish. They add special shipping additives such as Bag Buddies as well as pure oxygen. You should have no problem selling them on here or PN Aquaria. Top quality fish are always in demand. Best thing to do is take good pictures of all the fish and then post your ad.

Good luck.
--
Paul


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