Help w/ M or F Marginated

[techiegrl]

Hello, I have been getting pretty good at sexing tort's but would like some TFO members opinion. Looks female but I wasn't 100% sure.

 

[DoctorCosmonaut]

From the really not so clear photos you posted, I would also say its probably a she.

 

[Tim/Robin]

It really is too small to tell and Marginateds can be difficult. But my vote is male.

 

[Candy]

I thought the same thing Tim/Robyn.

 

[GBtortoises]

Possibly a male, but the photo is a bit blurry. How big (SCL) is the tortoise? Marginateds are notoriously difficult to determine the gender of until they most are around 4-5" in size.
I have some comparison photos of Marginateds that I will post later tonight. Maybe they will help you out.
Meantime here is a view of a male (left) and female from above. They're around 7" & 8" and very easy to tell at that point!

 

[egyptiandan]

Looks like a female to me Janet

Danny

 

[GBtortoises]

Here's the Marginated male/female comparison photos I said I would post. These may or may not help you. These are of some that are around 7-8" which at that size they're gender is very obvious. I tried to get some of my 4-4.5" males and females to show their tails but they just weren't cooperating! So I had to revert back to these photos instead.
The best way I can describe the difference is: A medium size male Marginated's tail is thick at the base and throughout the entire length until you get at the farthest edge of the clocal opening. From that point on it tapers off quickly to long thin tip. It almost gives the appearance that the tip of the tail is sitting on a thick stem. The entire length of the tail is not uniform. The same size female's tail is also very thick, but with a small chubby tip that ends in a point. A female's tail when extended straight out the tip of the tail barely extends past the carapace edge. I realize that's not a lot of good without better visual! Sorry about that!
The first two photos are a male, the second two are a female.

 

[KQ6AR]

By the photo, it appears they might be too small to tell. I'd guess female on the second photo. First photo no guess.

 

[techiegrl]

Thanks everyone, I figured they were too little but thought I would get everyone's feelings I will just have to wait and see when they are a big bigger, its amazing how fast they grow. Thank you GBtortoises for the great pictures, really nice looking Marginateds. I do need a bit more practice at macro mode on my camera

Thanks! This forum ROCKS

 

[DoctorCosmonaut]

Haha pretty conclusive results huh?

 

[-EJ]

I don't think there is any way on earth to even give an educated guess with Marginated tortoises. The only guess you can possibly get is via the coin method... heads it's a male... tails it is a female. Wouldn't want to get your hopes one way or another.

I have one that is about 6 inches that is an obvious male. I'm hoping that at the 5 to 6 inch growth range they can be sexed.

I have a total of 14 of that size animal. There is one that I'm pretty certain is a male.

Gary, How big are your females and did you raise the plastron shot animals from hatchling?

 

[GBtortoises]

Both animals in the plastron shots were raised here. The male was received through a trade as a yearling and the female was born here. I know that the female is also the same one that is in the carapace view above. I'm not sure if that is the same male since I two about the same size.

And I agree, trying to sex a Marginated as small as the OP's is just a guess at that size!

So far I've found that at about 4" some appear as though they may be males, at 5" it's been pretty easy to distinguish males but some do mature even later, by 6" it's been obvious.