Sexing Skinks, Sorry if it's in the wrong section Options

[chele]

I have a BTS I have always referred to him as male but as babies they are hard to distinguish! I have looked at Eddie he/she has a solid looking bulge in a line left to right .he is onlyabout about 9 months does anyone have any idea sorry just got an iPhone 3 g don't know how to work upload in cam bit

[Lou]

Sorry can’t help.
All I know and this won’t help you one bit is that it’s extremely difficult to sex bts by just peering at them even in adult hood.
Some people say you can go by the eye colour and others by the size of the head but neither method is at all reliable.
The best way to sex a bts is to watch it going to the toilet. Sometimes they will leave sperm plugs witch is a definite sign that you have a male. Though the best way would be if you have a chance to watch them go. Not pleasant I know but you will see them extract their henapeens a little when they do the toilet and will also tell you that you have a male.
Sorry I can’t be of any help. Maybe other bts keepers will know of a better way.
Lou .

[chele]

Thanks Lou I had read that but was just curious if anyone on here had found a better way guess it's toilet watch for me lol
chele

[Lou]

There might be an easier way but if there is I haven’t heard of it.
Hopefully someone else could answer this though.
I guess you could maybe find out through his DNA but I have no idea how you go about taking a DNA sample from a reptile or who would look at it or even how much that would cost which I bet would be a lot.
Lou

[Lou]

Hang on, I forgot to mention you can sometimes tell through behaviour but this needs to be interaction with another bts which you do know the sex of.
Again it’s not always 100 percent effective though.
Louise

[Debs]

They sound as complicated as uro's .

[chele]

Just as well I was only curious as I have no plans to breed as yet OH I think may have other ideas !
I'll just have to ask him/her I guess lol
chele

[Gayle]

Hi,

I've found the head shape a good one to use, but you really need to compare yours with a sexed one. Our females head is chunkyer but not as wide as the males. Males head is more heart shaped.

Another thing, but there is no scientfic bases, when our females goes to the loo she just goes, no messing around. Darwin however takes his time, and does this little wiggle afterwards thats when we've seen his boy bits.. Don't know if that helps at all, we're still trying to work out the sex of our little one, we're presuming female but we'll not know until full grown and we'll see if Darwin hates him or LURVVVS her. :-)

[chele]

Thanks for that .I just got another bts yesterday but an adult . S/he has been fed on iams cat food .solely. I will study their toilet habits and see what if any conclusion I come up with
chele

[chele]

Hi,



Another thing, but there is no scientfic bases, when our females goes to the loo she just goes, no messing around. Darwin however takes his time, and does this little wiggle afterwards thats when we've seen his boy bits.. Don't know if that helps at all, we're still trying to work out the sex of our little one, we're presuming female but we'll not know until full grown and we'll see if Darwin hates him or LURVVVS her. :-)

Eddie went to the loo this morning after wandering his tank for some time eventually settling down to poo .He then wriggled his bottom and produced what Im assuming are boy bits.As I have only ever seen snakes before not sure it came from only one side and was quite long as oposed to flatter looking like a female snake
chele
PS he is only about ten months old

This post has been edited by chele: Feb 12 2010, 08:16 AM

[chele]

bluetongueskinks.net is a site I found a while back well worth a look
chele

[Lou]

Yeah that sounds about right for a boy they can extract either one or both
Sounds like you’ve got a boy to me.
Now you’ve successfully sexed your skink you can come and sex mines as well lol.
Lou

[chele]

Yeah that sounds about right for a boy they can extract either one or both
Sounds like you’ve got a boy to me.
Now you’ve successfully sexed your skink you can come and sex mines as well lol.
Lou

Hi Lou I had a pure fluke seeing Eddie go to the loo.Do check out the sight I mentioned its great Thanks gayle Im all for your theory but here is something else to ponder!!!!!!

My son aged nine going on fifty said after I announced Eddie was a boy said of course he is I knew that when I asked him how he knew he said they are like chickens instead of the colour above their beaks to determine the colour of eggs they lay he said Eddie has brown eyelids therefore he has to be a boy Tikki our latest has pinkish eyelids therefore he is convinced she is a she............

Can you check this out with your proven?
chele

[Lou]

I’ve used that sight a lot it’s pretty good with all things bts.
I think my skink must have bashful bladder or something because no-one has ever caught him in the act.

I’ll need to check his eyelids though.
Lou

[chele]

I have been trawling sites so many I cant remember .Im sure the last one I read is a skink care sheet linked to LF.Cant find it now but Im sure its one that states that if you look down on skinks from above a male has a straighter line down the sides with a wider head where the female has a more curved line to the side shape and chunkier head.Sorry cant find the link
chele

[Lou]

well I’ve tried looking at him and he has straighter sides but I’d say a chunkier head rather than a wider head so the jury’s still out I think.
Checked his eyelids though and there definitely brown.
Not much help but there you go.
Lou