Question about how to tell if my African cichlids are males or female?

Question
Hello, my name is Tara and I have a lot of different kinds of African cichlids and I'm having a really hard time figuring out my males and my females I have red jewels, yellow labs, electric blue, then some blue ones that looks just like my yellow labs but are all blue with yellow/orange top fins I also have an albino cichlid, convicts , and one that is like a silver with black and yellow strips , bumble bee, and few more pretty fish they change colors a lot but there heads stay blue all the time and a yellow looking one just like them with Lil orange in him and Lil orange spot on him also I also have a blck looking one with a Lil orange tip on his tail and another blackish blue one a very bright orange one and a lighter orange one and one he is like a peach color with spot and dots all over and a Lil sky blue with black strips on the sides and my last fish is a green looking color with black dots on the side if you could help me out with a Lil info I'd really thank you a lot for your time I just want to know how to tell the sex of them all and maybe looking into later on trying to pair them up and breed them in the future but thanks again and look forward to hear back from you soon thanks very much.. Tara.

Answer
Hi Tara,
 That's an excellent question and the answer is: it depends. There are over 1000 species of African cichlids and they differ in lots of ways. One of those ways is how different are the sexes, or what is referred to as "sexual dimorphism".  In some species, like the jewel cichlids, the sexes look basically the same except for some subtle differences which become more obvious the more you look at them. Basically, the males are more colorful (brighter red) and have a longer, more rectangular body. The females have a rounder belly.   

  As for the East African cichlids (the blue and yellow ones), there are all sorts of different things happening. You really need to know exactly which species you have.  In the future, when you buy a fish, be sure to write down the exact name and then put that as a label on the tank or in a notebook.  Remembering it won't help because there are many highly similar names.  If there isn't a clearly identified name for the fish in the tank at the store, Do NOT buy that fish, because it is likely a hybrid.  For some species, the males and females look identical.  For others, they are completely different, i.e., the male might be blue and the female orange (you would not even think they are the same species).  For many, the males are blue and the females are a really washed out light blue or tan, and females of many species look very similar, far more similar to each other, than to the males of their respective species.  For East Africans, many of the males have "egg spots" which are yellow or white spots on the anal fin, the fin on the bottom towards the tail. Females usually (but not always) lack these spots.  

-- Ron Coleman
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>