Countsd said:
FEMALE DOVII = NO Spots on tail, dorsal & anal fins
Sure, if you are talking about large, full grown adults. By this point it's just as obvious by the pattern of markings on the body.
Male or female.....all young juvies will essentially resembles females. It's not that simple sexing dovii at a young age. I still stand by my statement that coloration on the face (blue or green) and spotting on the body (particularly above the horizontal stripe) are some of the first indicators of being male. And of course if the fins are all spotted then you have more then a good idea that the fish is male but just as your link points out the dovii could be 7-8" and you still may not know for sure by looking only at the fins.
The fish in question is simply too small,young and undeveloped to be certain either way. Of course at this stage it has greater resemblance to female.....but it could just as easily be an undeveloped male that has yet to indicate or show it's true sex.
And like any sexing method there are almost always the odd exception. Even when there are very reliable indicators to sex a species, it is seldom 100%. Been on fish forums for over 11 years and have seen some very male looking young fish that fooled everyone......until the picture showing it laying eggs (with out any male around) with a huge egg laying tube that is more then obviously female. One thread had a young female dovii that layed eggs that looked far more male then most young male dovii. Also a thread with a female jag that had a much more intricate pattern then most male jag. Would never have believed that was female with out the eggs below the fish and the huge ovipositor ( and at that stage it's 100% certainty!).
Ultimately, if your patient enough you can determine sex of any substrate spawner 100% by observing the breeding tube over the coarse of weeks to months and knowing what they look like in different phases. Male and female do have different genitals.