Orchid Sex?

[phreeze]

Got these today and would appreciate any help i can get in sexing them. I have 2 to sex, first three pics are the same one, will upload pics of the second later.

They are not the best pics, but should have the number of segments in focus i hope, thanks in advance for any help.

Ok this is the second one, was more active so afraid the shots are not quite as good, again any help would be appreciated

 

[bassist]

Those aren't that great of pictures to sex them take a picture of their butts the back of the abdomen.

 

[beckyl92]

the first 3 pics are females. they have 7 segments

 

[phreeze]

Is this any more use?

 

[bassist]

Is this any more use?

No.

 

[phreeze]

then i'm afraid i will have to wait till tomorrow those were the best i could get between work and heading out today, wanted to get them in their new homes, misted and fed before i went out, didn't leave much time to wait for them to stand still

Thanks for the answer btw becky, am hoping for 2x female as i have my eyes on buying some younger nymps shortly and the different ages/bloodlines would be great for breeding [if the younger ones turn out to be male]

 

[hibiscusmile]

Just so Becky knows in the future, girls have fewer segments than boys, dont count the top they hold next to the body, count underneath, the first one appears to be a male for what I see in the pic and for sure second is a girl.

 

[Rick]

the first 3 pics are females. they have 7 segments

This is why newbies should not give advice since females have six segments. It appears to be a male to me but we need better pics of the underside or you need to wait until they get bigger.

 

[revmdn]

I had a hard time with my orchids. All the others were easy for me.

 

[phreeze]

Thanks for all the responses, I will add some more pics tonight trying to get the underside to be shown clearly, I was really short on time last night. I'd rather be as sure as I can with them at this age as feeding and heating a male would be a small disaster.

But equally to get them (if they are different sexes) to become adult at the same time with out acting early, from allI have read is very challenging.

 

[Rick]

Thanks for all the responses, I will add some more pics tonight trying to get the underside to be shown clearly, I was really short on time last night. I'd rather be as sure as I can with them at this age as feeding and heating a male would be a small disaster.But equally to get them (if they are different sexes) to become adult at the same time with out acting early, from allI have read is very challenging.

What do you mean by "heating a male"?

 

[phreeze]

What do you mean by "heating a male"?

females take more molts to adult with this species right?

and i have read in several places you can keep the enclosure warmer and feed more often to speed up development of the female, keeping the male cooler and feeding less often to slow his development down.

The comment was meaning if i got the wrong sex and keep the male warmer and better fed it would mean he matures even more ahead of the female.

Am i wrong here?

 

[Rick]

females take more molts to adult with this species right?and i have read in several places you can keep the enclosure warmer and feed more often to speed up development of the female, keeping the male cooler and feeding less often to slow his development down.

The comment was meaning if i got the wrong sex and keep the male warmer and better fed it would mean he matures even more ahead of the female.

Am i wrong here?

Don't worry about that. I keep both male and female orchids the exact same way. The male does mature sooner but that won't matter. He will still be alive and well when she matures. Extra heat is not needed for orchids unless your room is too cold. THey do fine at room temps.

 

[phreeze]

Don't worry about that. I keep both male and female orchids the exact same way. The male does mature sooner but that won't matter. He will still be alive and well when she matures. Extra heat is not needed for orchids unless your room is too cold. THey do fine at room temps.

Ok i'll take that on board, really appreciating all the advice guys and girls

Have tried again to get better shots from behind the first one, i struggled to get much clarity between the segments as they are so consistent and pure in colour. Have had so much great help already in this thread lets hope i have got the right shot to get this one sexed.

 

[Katnapper]

I would say female.

 

[Rick]

Looks male to me but orchids can be hard to sex when small.

 

[Katnapper]

I could definitely be wrong. But here is what I see:

5 or 6 segments (depending where you start counting from), indicating female

Top segment is notched; indication of female

"Necklace" is more green than brown in color, indicating female

 

[phreeze]

I could definitely be wrong. But here is what I see:5 or 6 segments (depending where you start counting from), indicating female

Top segment is notched; indication of female

"Necklace" is more green than brown in color, indicating female

Thank you very much for taking the time to edit the photos and show what you are looking at to sex these little critters. It is very useful to know how you came to a conclusion and am sure will help me learn, diagrams in books are only so good, never seen a mantis pose like a diagram in a book to check them :blink:

For you to pick that detail out i guess the pics must have been a little more useful, will try and get them from a similar angle in future.

 

[Katnapper]

You're welcome. I just hope it proves correct, as they can be tricky!