How to tell male from female balloon fish? Just look at these few features

The balloon fish is a small tropical ornamental fish with a gentle temperament, and many people keep balloon fish. But male and female balloon fish are rather difficult to distinguish, and many people do not know how to tell them apart. Below is an introduction to how to tell male from female balloon fish.

1. How to tell male from female balloon fish?

The male fish is slightly smaller than the female fish. The anal fin of the male fish is rod-shaped, while the anal fin of the female fish is fan-shaped. The dorsal fin and ventral fin of the male fish are rather long, while the dorsal fin and ventral fin of the female fish are rather short. If you do not know how to tell male from female, you can ask the shop owner to help take a look when buying.

2. How to keep balloon fish?

The balloon fish has low requirements for its breeding environment. Apart from paying attention that the water quality and temperature do not change greatly, there are relatively no other strict requirements. The breeding cycle of the female fish is one month. Roughly about one month after giving birth, you will find that the female fish's belly bulges out again, as big as a balloon about to burst. In the few days before giving birth, you can very clearly find that the skin at its vent turns white, and gradually protrudes outward. Be careful not to frighten the female fish during pregnancy. As the birthing date approaches, the vent will gradually stretch wider. Before giving birth, the female fish eats less, and its swimming speed slows down noticeably; it will often bump against the tank walls and swim up and down. At this point you can take the female fish out to await birth. After about one to two days, you can harvest the fry. A larger female fish can give birth to about 20-30 fry each time. When giving birth, you must pay attention to protecting the fry, because the female fish's ability to distinguish is weak, and it may mistakenly eat the fry. Newborn fry are rather large in body compared with yellow silver balloon fish fry, but their constitution is poor and they are not easy to keep alive, so they must be raised carefully. In the first two or three days after birth, avoid frightening them and avoid temperature changes, and do not change the water or move them. Wait until they can swim out to the water surface, then feed them egg yolk water or infusoria.

The balloon fish is relatively easy to keep and has a mild temperament. It is a very good ornamental fish and can be kept together with other fish, so if you like it, you can buy a few fish to take home.