I've noticed recently alot of threads containing what sex is my leopard gecko.

This is here to help those out that need it.

A male Leopard Gecko



Here's a snapshot of the relevant parts of a mature male Leopard Gecko. Notice the well developed row of pre-anal pores, hi-lighted here in blue. Under magnification, these pores can be seen as open holes, often capped with a waxy build-up. Sexually mature specimens will exude a waxy substance from these pores which is smeared about the cage. This is a form of scent marking. Many beginners think their gecko is being cute 'wagging his butt all over the cage'. In reality, he is staking out his territory. Do NOT put another male in with a mature male. They will fight violently, often to the death.

The real giveaway in males is the presence of the two enlarged 'hemipene bulges' at the base of the tail, hi-lighted here in red. If these are evident on your gecko, it is without doubt a male. Juveniles of both sexes will often show a bulge in this area, but it is not neatly divided in two as shown here.

A female Leopard Gecko



Here's a snapshot of the important parts of a mature female Leopard Gecko. Many females will show poorly developed pits in the same location as the pre-anal pores of the male, or sometimes an enlarged row of scales, hi-lighted here in blue. Under magnification, these can be seen to be simple dents or pits in the scales, not true hollow pores, and they'll never have the waxy substance found on males. Many beginners mistake these for the pores of males. Many females also have very slight bulges in the same location as the 'hemipene bulges' as the male, hi-lighted here in red. However, they are never anywhere near as well-defined as those of a male.

It can be very difficult to accurately sex juveniles, ranging from impossible at birth to more and more educated guesses as they grow. Usually, the males will show with absolute certainty at around four months of age (if growing well). Note that this can vary a bit, and a specimen should not be considered female with certainty until about six to eight months of age, when any hope of it's being male can be ruled out safely. To sum up: if a young gecko is obviously male then OK, but if it's not obvious it could be either a female or a male waiting to finish developing. Years of experience sexing hundreds of juveniles each year is a definite plus....


With thanks to VMSherps for the information and photos provided.

hey Diablo,

well done for gettin this a sticky.

other people who are familiar with other species should do the same

saves lots of q's and a good place to refer to and read over.

nice one

carl

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my family1.0.0 leo, spike1.1.1 bosc, zuko-Mo-Tigga1.0 american bulldog, bruno0.1 rottweiler, cheikawife2.2 kids + 1 on the waystep brother

Spot on mate

So well done no need to say anymore

Good guide, seen it on Gecko spot.

Its floating around a few places its from VMSherps which have the best sexing guide out there.

well done mate handy to refer to

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3.8.2leos
8.12 stenodactylus stenodactylus
1.2 tangerine albino striped fat tailed geckos
1 acan uro
8 eggs cooking

very useful

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-perfection is not when there is nothing more to add on , its when they is nothing left to take away-

is there one of those for a beardie?

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1.1.0 grey banded kings
0.1.0 leopard gecko

great sticky and very usful but it might be even better if you would put up pics of a young male and female cause its harder to tell at this age

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1.0.0 SHCT leopard gecko
0.1.0 Hypo Tangerine leopard gecko
1.2.0 Normal leopard geckos
0.1.0 Florida Kingsnake
2.3.0 Mississppi map turtles
2.2.0 African fruit beetles
1.2.0 cats
0.1.0 dog
countless fish

looking for a sunglow,hybino,albino (any strain),super hypo etc

If you would like to get some photo's of them and upload them then its sorted.