Anthias Change Sex

[wiselyy73]

I bought 6 females few weeks ago. Will one of them change to a male? Takes how long? And what will be the process?

 

[4FordFamily]

I bought 6 females few weeks ago. Will one of them change to a male? Takes how long? And what will be the process?

Yes, one or more may change. It can take weeks or years. One will change sooner, often the larger and more aggressive female will turn male. Occasionally, another will later as well.

A few months to a year is probably a reasonable expectation for it to be noticeable.

 

[Grey Guy]

With my Lyre tail anthias, I started with 4 females and 1 male. The mail dominates the 4 females and the 4 females create a pecking order. Male picks on. 4 females, A female picks on B,C andD females, B female picks on C and D, and C picks on D. The one at the bottom of the pack gets it the worst, and may die. When my male disappeared, the dominant female became a male.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Lyretails can change quickly. I would expect the dominant one to develop the longer dorsal ray in about 6 weeks.

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

Last time I bought a group of lyretails, one on them was full male by the time the group left QT (~6 wk). The dorsal spike will change first, then the color. Once started, the entire transformation can happen in as little as a week.

 

[reefndude]

I have 3 that just went through qt. One is transitioning now

 

[findingsimple]

Do they hide in a cave / get shy during g the transition?