Cherry shrimp gender??

[Jay]

My cherry shrimp match the description of cherry shrimp,but one of them is more colorful and smaller and the other one is paler and larger. What is their gender?

[Mitch_ScruffyCityAquatics]

Typically the larger, bulkier ones are female. The slender ones are male. As they mature it is easier to tell them apart. 

[Aubrey]

Females are usually larger and more vividly colored. That's not always true, but is a pretty general way to tell gender. Females also have a "skirt" on their tail end as to where males have a slender tail end. Also in females a "saddle" will be visible when they are preparing to breed.

The Shrimp in the front, below, is a female. See how where the tail starts it dips down a bit and rounds up. That is the "skirt."

The Shrimp below is a male. See how the tail just tapers all the way to the end making it look skinnier and less bulky than a female.

The shrimp on the left is a female. See the orange coloration on her back, just behind the head to about mid tail, that is the "saddle."

[Jay]

Thank you. Is it the same with ghosts?

[Jay]

The reason I want to know their gender is because I want breeding shrimp

[Aubrey]

@Jay I do not have any experience with ghost shrimp. I don't think the same identification methods for cherry shrimp apply to ghost shrimp.

[tolstoy21]

3 hours ago, Jay said:

The reason I want to know their gender is because I want breeding shrimp

As shown above in the pictures, the gender can easily be determined by the rounded skirt of the female which is made for carrying and protecting eggs, as compared to the much slender looking males. This is easier and more obvious in older, larger individuals, and harder in younger, smaller ones.

My advice on breeding them is to just put a dozen in a tank. Even if you don't know their genders, the odds are vastly in your favor that you'll have males and females and they'll figure the rest out on their own.

If your conditions are right to keep your specific shrimp species healthy, you'll be overloaded with shrimp in no time!

[Jay]

15 minutes ago, tolstoy21 said:

As shown above in the pictures, the gender can easily be determined by the rounded skirt of the female which is made for carrying and protecting eggs, as compared to the much slender looking males. This is easier and more obvious in older, larger individuals, and harder in younger, smaller ones.

My advice on breeding them is to just put a dozen in a tank. Even if you don't know their genders, the odds are vastly in your favor that you'll have males and females and they'll figure the rest out on their own.

If your conditions are right to keep your specific shrimp species healthy, you'll be overloaded with shrimp in no time!

Thank you

[Maggie]

And here's how you'll know babies are on the way!