# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna > Catfishes >  How to sex Corydoras?

## benkho

Please HELP! at least with easy way or simple/explained descriptions.

i cant seem to tell them apart especially when they are smaller species like corydoras panda.

----------


## Quixotic

Have you read the "Questions on Corydoras" sticky at the top of this section?

----------


## stormhawk

Simply put, look at the pelvic fins. Rounded edge means female, pointed edge means male. Looking from the top, the females usually have a larger body width in the region just behind the head, and the males have a smaller body width respectively.

----------


## benkho

even for the smaller species? like panda? are they sexed like that?

----------


## stormhawk

Yes it applies to C. panda as well.

----------


## benkho

went down to qianhu yesterday, couldn't tell the difference in the pelvic fin...it is the one on the bottom side of the corydoras and just next to the tail right? it all looks like a rounded off triangle...so how?

----------


## stormhawk

In any tank of Corydoras there should always be a few of each gender. If you saw a rounded off triangle then they are probably females, if I'm not wrong.

The pelvic fins are the paired fins right beneath the belly. As I've mentioned, males have a pointed tip to the pelvic fins, and females have a rounded edge. The fin should be triangular in shape, for most part. Females tend to have a rounder shaped pair of pelvic fins.

Another way like I've mentioned is to look at them from the top. If they are in a clear plastic container like what C328 does, look at the body profile. Males will have a slimmer belly region, more streamlined body. Females will have a fatter belly region, and a less streamlined body. Simple enough?

By the way, this usually applies to most Corydoras. The Scleromystax species have males that exhibit odontodes, like what you see on plecos. It doesn't take much time to sex them. However at times, the LFS may only stock males or females. Reason being that they do not wish for hobbyists to breed them. Sometimes if you drop by at C328, there might be batches of oversized fish, like C. paleatus, the Peppered Cory. Those huge ones are usually ex-breeding stock from the farms, and sometimes they have their pelvic fins cut in half, to prevent them from breeding again.  :Sad:

----------


## Quixotic

If you can't positively differentiate the sex, get a group of them (it is recommended that you keep them in a group of six or more anyway). Try selecting those that show some variance in sizes and shape of the fins.

You are likely to get mixed sexes in them. If conditioned well, they aren't all that difficult to breed.

----------


## Samuel2618

I agreed with Quixotic.. It is rather difficult to differentiate the sex by just looking at the shape of it.. However some are easily differentiate by their pattern type on their bodies like C. Hasbrosus, Barbatus, Axelrodi etc..

Usually people get a group of the same kind as they are shoaling fishes.. Very magnificent to see them shoal in groups.. In this way.. You will probably get a mixture of the sexes to breed.. Also they will stay happy if bought together in a group..

----------

