Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: Simulated on 07/04/2008 22:20:14

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: Simulated on 07/04/2008 22:20:14

Just wondering ha

Thanks Sim  [:)]

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: Simulated on 28/04/2008 01:47:20

Anybody a fishy person? Ha that's a funny

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: Simulated on 17/05/2008 12:59:47

Anyybodyy?

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: neilep on 17/05/2008 13:40:52

The female fishes are the ones wearing bras,

The male fishes are the ones getting stressed at the credit card statement !!, oh, and they have hairy gills too !!  [;)]

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: neilep on 17/05/2008 13:42:06

Good question though matey !...I am sure the answer will come soon !!...but remember...the weekend here is ' quiet time '

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: Simulated on 17/05/2008 14:14:01

Ha, thanks Neil. Wow. Ha

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: blakestyger on 27/05/2008 21:56:30

Many fish posses sexual dimorphism so that's easy - but many, such as Clupids (Herring family), do not so they have to be taken apart in the laboratory.

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: turnipsock on 27/05/2008 23:52:17

That is an easy question. The males have one x and one y chromosome and the females have two x chromosomes.

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: Simulated on 28/05/2008 00:10:38

Well, without testing that kind of stuff. Can you just look at it?

Title: How can you tell a male fish and a female fish apart?
Post by: blakestyger on 28/05/2008 09:20:00

Interestingly,fish sex chromosomes are not the same as the XX and XY setup that humans have - it's more complicated than that.
In the Swordtails for instance there are three types of sex chromosome: X,Y and Z but each individual has only two of these. That is, there are no XYZ or XXY etc,.
A fish carrying a Z will be female otherwise if it carries a Y it will be male. A Z always trumps a  Y and there can be no ZZ, so there are several possibilities:

YY, YX and YZ are female.
XZ, XX and YY are male

Out of interest spiders are quite complex too, males are either XXX or nothing and females are XXXXXX