Intersex Bellus Angelfish

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I just picked up a Bellus Angel from an online vendor. It's in good shape, is fairly active, ate immediately and stays out in the open. My Yellow Tang and Powder Blue Tang started tag-teaming it with their tail-wagging for the first hour or so and it stood its ground and seems to have earned their respect or at least tolerance. Only problem is its color.

http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t252/jlizarondo/IMG_0953.jpg

I purchased a female, but this 2 1/2 inch Bellus looks more like a dull male or maybe intersex. It's not exactly tiny, but I didn't think a Bellus this size would have switched over to male. I only got it today, so I can't tell if it's going F -> M or M -> F.

I much prefer the look of the females--the Bellus Angel is just about the only fish where the female looks much more striking than the male. I'm hoping that since it's (currently) the only Genicanthus angel in the tank, it would end up back in female form.

Even if it goes back to female color, will it look just as good as a Bellus that never changed? Anything I can do to encourage it to switch back to female?

I originally planned on keeping this Bellus solo, but if it's not going to look like a beautiful lady, I think I might pick up one or two more.

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Anybody got some advice for sex-changing Genicanthus?

[apcoleman]

without the presence of other females, it should go back to female. Just give it some time

[Dmorty217]

without the presence of other females, it should go back to female. Just give it some time

+1 if you have other Genicanthus it will dictate this too

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Thanks guys. The seller told me he had the Bellus for a long time and was fully female as long as he had it until it shipped. He suggested it might have switched overnight because of shipping stress.

Does this sound right? I kinda assumed a Bellus would have to be healthy, with other females and "happy" to change gender. I can see it happening the other way--a male becoming stressed and switching back to female. Or maybe if it was a male that switched to female, then back to male.

It's day 5 since I got it. It looks like the yellow is slowly fading and the black stripes are coming back in. But it still looks a lot more like the picture above than a full female.

Has anyone heard of any Genicanthus switching so quickly? Due to stress?

I've read somewhere that some breeders use hormones to induce fish to breed. Is it at all possible for some exporters or even wholesalers to use hormones to encourage fish to change gender?