# sexing ackies



## reptilesrkool (Aug 3, 2011)

hey evryone i just got a new 2 year old ackie and im looking to get it sexed just wondering what is the best way to sex them? thanks jack


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## cadwallader (Aug 3, 2011)

Best way i believe is to get them x rayed but some people can tell of the broadness of their heads and cloacal spurs when they are a few years old but that will never be 100% accurate.


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## Robo1 (Aug 3, 2011)

Sexing monitors can be difficult, particularly when they are young. Given that yours is a couple of years old you should be able to get a good idea.
There are a few different ways you can tell. Usually the easiest is with their spurs. Both males and females have spurs near their vent and they will look identical. But if you rub your fingers over them towards the head, a males spines will catch on your finger while the females spurs are softer and will not. It also helps to gently pull the back leg forward a little to expose the spurs. It's easy to distinguish if you you have one of each sex so you can compare. Also, head size can be an indicator. Males tend to have a broader head, though again you need something to compare to. Another method is the transillumination technique. There's a paper here, but it works on the same principal as x-rays. If you shine a torch through the base of the tail you should be able to see the two shadows if it's a male. The paper explains it really well and has some good photos showing you the difference.


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## GeckPhotographer (Aug 3, 2011)

Out of curiosity could on pop monitors? And if so what are the reasons for this not to be used as a method?


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## cadwallader (Aug 3, 2011)

Cheers for that link rob haven't heard of that one before looks great.


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## varanophile (Aug 3, 2011)

I would never use the pop method to sex a monitor. There are plenty of other reliable ways as robo has stated above, and popping would be both difficult and dangerous to do.


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## Red-Ink (Aug 3, 2011)

Danny Brown has an article on hemipenal transillumination in an issue of Biawak that may work.

http://varanidae.org/Vol3_No1_Brown.pdf


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## cadwallader (Aug 3, 2011)

That link has been posed in a link above great article


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## killimike (Aug 3, 2011)

I had not read the article yet. Thanks for the link! It explains the technique very well. I wonder if it would work on other skinks and geckos when they are too young to sex by external characteristics.


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## SamNabz (Aug 3, 2011)

What a great article and method.


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## GeckPhotographer (Aug 3, 2011)

It's a great article, I certainly plan to try it. The article does talk about it being useful for other groups so might end up becoming a prolifically used method it the future.


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## bigi (Aug 3, 2011)

i have tried that method, you really do need the correct type of light to be accurate


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