When are Bristlenose sexually mature typically? (What size, rather as I am unsure of the age of the fish)
Bristlenose Sexual Maturity
- Thread starter Treefork
- Start date
Unfortunately, size isn't really going to indicate sexual maturity. It's dependent on their age. Common varieties can reach sexual maturity anywhere from around 9 months on. Average age is 12 months. If you've got a female, at around 9-12 months you'll see her sides begin to bulge as eggs mature. It becomes real noticeable when they are belly up against the glass. And if you've got a male, you should begin to see tiny bristles around the mouth at about 9 months of age.
Ok, this one is about 3 inches, I'm pretty sure it's a female as there is no bristle development noticeable. I've had her for about 3 months, when I got her she was about 2 inches.
Can you snap a couple of pics of her belly against the glass and a head shot looking down from above? 3" still could be too early to show bristles. I have 1 year old males that are just beginning to show little nubs but I also can tell now by the mouth shapes and bellies regardless of stubs or not at this age.
Last edited:
Ok I will try to get a shot of him/her in a little bit when the lights come on. Shouldn't be hard with the zucchini clipped onto the glass. 
Looks a bit wide in the 3rd pic, I would suspect a male the same age would be slimmer. Could be a big eater....but still early to tell for sure.
Female. I would think a male at 3" would be showing quite a bit of bristle growth,,,,unless it has a razor in there.
BettaFishMommy
finkids make me happy :-)