Sex Changing Platy

TheFighterFish

TheFighterFish

Large Fish
#1
Feb 10, 2006
854
2
0
Bay Area, CA
#1
Well, it's not really a disease, but it's happened.

My calico platy who I have had over a year went from being a fry-rearing female to a male who now brushes up against my blue platy. That is fine with me, because I've read in books of this happening with swordtails, so I wasn't surprised. However, I'm worried that it might not make it for another week or so.

The calico platy was already in bad shape when I bought it at Petsmart. The calico pattern wasn't really even and it didn't swim as healthily as my other platy through the water. But recently, I've noticed that it developed a gonopodium. Plus, it's head shape is bulging like one of those "special" variety goldfish. I think they're called Lionheads. It looks similar to that. Lastly, it's gotten a little skinny. I still feed twice a day, and it accepts food. But occasionally, I find it laying on the floor.

Some other symptoms are cloudy eyes and a battered tail. The other platy is fine and shrimp too.

Any reasons as to why the calico's body/behavior has changed?
 

Fuzz16

Fuzz16

Superstar Fish
#2
Oct 20, 2006
1,918
3
0
Wellsville, KS
#2
ive never head about livebearers changing sexes.
and if when you bought it OVER a year ago i am sure anything wrong with him now wouldnt still be affecting him.
and she/him/it may just be sick...or old age is getting to it.
 

TheFighterFish

TheFighterFish

Large Fish
#3
Feb 10, 2006
854
2
0
Bay Area, CA
#3
Yep,

this is the second time I had a platy change sex. The first one was a platy/swordtail mix. It was originally a female, but as I transferred it to the larger tank by itself, in a tank full of B. Neons and a B. Ram, it turned into a male. It even managed to impregnate one of the other female juvis.

Generally, I've read that platies have an average life span of 2-3 years from the time you brought it home from the LFS. And it was weak, but it was never sick. Only recently have I seen this behavior from it.
 

Unexpected

Unexpected

Large Fish
#7
May 1, 2007
117
0
0
MI
#7
Well, first off platy/sword hybrids are not sterile. At least not all of them. Other wise we would have alot of the color forms we have today. Most swords and platies have the either sword or platy in them. Through selective breeding of the hybrids it is hard to tell that they are though. Also, I have never heard of a female turing male. The only thing I can think of is that maybe you had a late bluming males. Sometimes a male will look like he is pregnant, but really that is just his organs. Not a gravid spot. Then later on he will form a gonopodium. He is just a late blumer. Just because he didn't form a gonopodium at the same times as the other males does not make him a female. Late blumers are the ones that are best for breeding as most of there growth went into good color and body shape rather than maturing quickley. Because of this late bluming males will also be bigger than most other males. Breeders of swordtails, guppies, probably even with mollies and platies the ealier blummers will be culled. As they will pass the ealy blumming genes on to there sons. Breeders do not want that. The only way I would be confindent that your male was a female is if it had babies before turing male. Even still how could you be sure the babies were produced by that fish. A DNA test would be in order. Take this varatus I have for my avatar for example. If you look closly you will see it has a gonopodium. But wait it looks like it has a gravid spot. Well it doesn't. Those are just some of the organs showing through his skin. Nothing more.
 

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