# Gold saum sexing



## fltdoman (Oct 7, 2010)

can anyone help with the sexing of this gold saum pls =)


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## Victor Creed (Aug 25, 2010)

That's an easy one. That picture displays a male, distinguished by the large nuchal hump, reflective aqua-blue/green scales, and USUALLY long gracefully trailing dorsal and anal fins....it appears that guy's got nipped off. Typically on males the dorsal and anal fins trail about as long as the caudal. It takes a bit of practice to tell them apart, but they are by FAR among the easier SA/CA Cichlids to sex....try finding pictures or pairs and learn to pick out the differences for practice. 

3 years ago, I was the same way you are right now, but now I can tell a male or female at 2-3 inches.  Enjoy him and take care of him. He'll grow between 8-14 inches and will need at least a 55 gallon tank to himself, preferably 75. Give him a good staple pellet, color-enhancing if possible, shrimp, krill and live crickets, but stay AWAY from feeder-fish (except home-bred cichlids or w/e that you KNOW are clean and disease free).....GT/GS can get Hole-in-the-Head like Oscars. Other live prey options include waxworms(which are pure protein) and mealworms, earthworms and a variety of household insects.He should turn out to be very owner-responsive and a great centerpiece for all your house guests to gawk at. 

A good UV light will bring out his best colors and IMO there ARE NO FISH that rival an adult male Gold Saum/Green Terror's sheer magnificence. 80 degrees F is optimal, which is how i keep my breeding pair, but some prefer 78 and a PH of 7 should suffice but don't get scared if it fluctuates to 6 or 8....just test ur water parameters and do what you need to do. They are a large fish that produce alot of waste and ammonia so do a 50% water change weekly once your tank is aged and established w/ bacteria and ur filter is cultured. 

They ARE aggressive but tend to get beat up and/or killed by the big nasties like Parachromis dovii/managuensis/etc., Flowerhorns, Texas Cichlids, Red Devil/Midas/Red Terror, however a large male can be quite a force of his own once he realizes his capabilities and power. They are rated "very aggressive" on the scale, so try not to house them w/ "highly" and "extremely" aggressive species, which are both MORE aggressive than "very". I found they do well with Jack Dempseys, Convicts, Jewels (as long as they are smaller than the GT/GS by 50%), Acaras and Earth-eaters. If kept in a community Cichlid tank, some dithers like Tiger Barbs and Giant Danios will keep the aggression levels low and keep the cichlids from fighting each other. Other armored catfish can be compatible as well such as Raphaels, Haplo, Plecostomus, Pictus as well as Synodontis, Channel, and Sun/Eclipse Catfish.


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## BornSlippy (Jan 11, 2010)

Just going by the nucheal hump and tail fin rims I would say male but I have seen females that look a lot like males on on other forums.


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## fltdoman (Oct 7, 2010)

really helpful post creed =) yeah i'm kinda new to the cichlid game so all help is appricated =)he is quite aggressive atm towards my small young convicts i got with him but ill have to sort out another tank or something. 
thanks again for the info.


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## CPT BJ (Oct 30, 2010)

Like its already been said i would say its a male due to the hump but ive seen female cichlids especially Vieja spp which humps just as big as males. Venting it would be your best bet at sexing.


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## Victor Creed (Aug 25, 2010)

fltdoman said:


> really helpful post creed =) yeah i'm kinda new to the cichlid game so all help is appricated =)he is quite aggressive atm towards my small young convicts i got with him but ill have to sort out another tank or something.
> thanks again for the info.


Sure np....also, how big is it and how old is it? You can net it out and flip it over and look for the "holes". 2 easily-visible holes is female; 1 hole and possibly a 2nd that is almost pinhole-sized = male. Just look for 2 holes of the same size, basically....different size = male. This is because one is the anus and one is the cloaca/ovipositor/vent or w/e it's called.....the EGG-LAYER...lol. Were it's fins nipped as it looks, or is that it's normal appearance or don't you know cuz you got it like that?


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