Thanks for all the help. look like I have a bit of time before I will see
any changes

Thanks again

Sam

"Amateur Cichlids" wrote in message
news

"Tommi Jensen" wrote in message
...

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/m_estherae.php
(Maylandia [Metriaclima deprecated] estherae)

snipped directly from the article:
At about 2.25 inches males will start to put on a light blue shade all
over their body and fins, and thus become somewhat unworthy of their
name. The females just put on a brighter orange color as they mature.

hth

/Tommi

Although I respect Marc and Eric from cichlid-forum greatly, I will
point out, not everything on every site is accurate. Vincent Choi says
"Juveniles are hard to sex: they all have the same orange color."
But according to Ad Konings, Malawi Cichlids in their natural habitat
3rd edition, page 55, "When a normal blue male is mated to an orange
female, the fry can be sexed as soon as they appear from the female's
mouth; males are beige-brown and females are orange."
Where I'd agree that on average males will obtain color form 2 to 2 1/2
inches, I don't believe it to be a hard, fast rule for reasons stated
already.
Tim