Is this a male or female Blue Jaw Trigger

cycled123 · Jul 12, 2018

We want to get another blue jaw trigger fish to have a male/female pair. I have looked at lots of pictures but am still unsure whether we have a male or female, lol. I'm leaning towards male because he does have a slight blue jaw... but he doesn't really have the yellow on his fins. Help!!!

GoVols · Jul 12, 2018

Going by shot #1 and #3

I think...

you got an male.

cycled123 · Jul 12, 2018

GoVols said:
Going by shot #1 and #3

I think... you got an male.

Thanks for the help.... Those 2 shots were in the dark with flash. The others are during the day with lights on.

Eva Rose · Jul 12, 2018

I bet it is a male. It could be juvi coloring. I was told mine was a female because it did not have the yellow edging.
But I thought it was male. It had the faintest blue shadow in certain lighting on the jaw. Many months later it developed the vibrant yellow on fin edges and a pronounced blue jaw.

cycled123 · Jul 12, 2018

Eva Rose said:
I bet it is a male. It could be juvi coloring. I was told mine was a female because it did not have the yellow edging.
But I thought it was male. It had the faintest blue shadow in certain lighting on the jaw. Many months later it developed the vibrant yellow on fin edges and a pronounced blue jaw.

Thanks! He's about 3.5-4in so it is true could still be showing juvenile colors

Eva Rose · Jul 12, 2018

What helped me was watching when my lights were off or almost off. As he got older I could see faint yellow on fins & the faint blue.
When you are sure of the gender ask members how they successfully added a possible mate. Find out if they used eggcrate or an acclimation box to introduce the other trigger.

lion king · Jul 13, 2018

At that size with the slight impressions of the chin, I would say Male. I have a pair and have seen several examples of males being identified as females. To guarantee a female they have to be a solid 4" a tad over for insurance.

HB AL · Jul 13, 2018

If it has no other fish in the tank to make him color up it will most likely stay the same. I bought one with all its colors and within a couple months the blue jaw and yellow fins had all gone away. I figured lack of vitamins or something. Around a few months later I added a Sargassum trigger and within a week I started to notice a little yellow on the fins and the blue on the jaw coming back. After a couple months with the Sargassum in the tank the blue jaw fully colored up.

cycled123 · Sep 4, 2018

Just thought I would update. Definitely male. A little over a month later has the clear blue jaw and bright yellow fins. Unfortunately introducing a female did not go so well. He attacked when she somehow got out the acclimation box while I was sleeping. She was pretty beat up and unfortunately died a few days later.

lion king · Sep 5, 2018

cycled123 said:
Just thought I would update. Definitely male. A little over a month later has the clear blue jaw and bright yellow fins. Unfortunately introducing a female did not go so well. He attacked when she somehow got out the acclimation box while I was sleeping. She was pretty beat up and unfortunately died a few days later.

Not to encourage you to try again. Choose a female at least 4.5" to insure it is actually a female. Being a little larger than the one you have in the tank, there may be a little tussle at first, but males and females usually don't escalate into anything dangerous. I would suspect the first one you tried was actually a male not showing colors yet.