A Look At A Brandtii

[cepon3]

Hmm. Its been a while since i posted in this part of the site, well anything worth while anyways.

As some of you know i previously owned a very large Serrasalmus brandtii and im sad to say that around 7 months ago i lost him due to what i believe as old age.. This particular specimen was in captivity for five years when i got him and i had him for almost three after that. I guesstimated him to be somewhere near ten years of age. He had grown somewhere in the ball park of 1.5 inches in the time that i had him, which put him extremely close to beeing 10 inches when he passed.

This was not my only brandtii, I had several throught the time i had him. All smaller, less agressive, less colorful specimens that just couldnt compete with his tenacity or beauty. I recently had a quick "convo" with member REDBELLYRHEN which made me go back and look at some of the posts i had on him, and my PAIR. It made me wanna give him some closure by telling you guys how he lived, showing some of his pictures, and explaining my whole breeding process or why i thought i had the key to breeding them. I am compliling my pictures as well as some that i "borrowed" from other members. All credit will be given to the keepers of this incredible species if their pictures are used...

Thanks for Reading post #1, I am working on some things for this right now so check back soon.

Rest In Peace. MCluvin

 

[cepon3]

I thought we would start out with a general description of the brandtii. As well as a diagram taken from Piranha-Info.com showing the locale from which this specie is collected. Although i have inserted relevant pictures into the quotes this description came from opefe.com and is the property of the author. The only real difference i see amongst the different descriptions i have collected is the maximum size.

DESCRIPTION​

Depth of body 1 3/4 to twice in the length, length of head about 3. Upper profile distinctly concave above eyes. Snout rather acute, less than diameter of eye, which is 3 2/3 (yg.) to nearly 5 in length of head; interorbital width about 3 1/4. Second suborbital broad, nearly covering cheek in adults. Lower jaw projecting; 6 teeth on each pre-maxillary, 7 on each side of lower jaw; teeth in both jaws equal; each palatine with 6 or 7 sharp teeth. Ventral serrae 21-23+ 10-11. Dorsal II 13-15; origin about equidistant from eye and base of caudal; length of base about 3 in depth of body, 1 1/4 to 1 1/3 in distance from uppper caudal fulcra. PROC. ZOOL. SOC. - 1928, No. LIIII.​

Adipose fin not rayed, length of base 3 to 3 2/5, its distance from rayed dorsal 1 1/4 to 1 1/3 in base of that fin. Anal III 31-34; margin nearly straight; length of base 1 1/2 to 3/5 in depth of body; last simple ray not much thicker than first branched ray. Pectoral with 13 or 14 rays, length 1 1/2 to 1 3/5 in head. Origin of pelvic about equidistant from tip of lower jaw and last anal ray. Adults more or less uniformly colored; young with a number of dark spots on sides of body; basal part of caudal and posterior margin of fin dusky; margin of anal dusky; last simple ray of anal milk-white.​

DISTRIBUTION

1. Rio San Francisco; Rio Itapicurú Drainage Castanhal, Rio Ape£ at Boa
2. Vista Bahia, Brao do rio Una, bacia do rio Paraguia.
3. Minas Gerais, Lagoa marginal ao rio Jequitai (baciar.S. Francisco), junto à BR-135, divisa entre Joaquim Felicio e Bocaiuva, MG.

DRAINAGE: Rio Sao Francisco, Leste, Castanhal​

Number of specimens and sizes for the citation description:

1-3. (72-210 mm) Lagoa Santa (Copenhagen Museum)​

4. (130 mm.) Rio das Velhas (Chalmers).

​

MAXIMUM SIZE:

21.2 cm SL
Piranha-Info.com Has the maximum size listed as "About 30cm. (12")."
Fish Base has the size listed as 21.2 cm SL​

DISTRIBUTION:​

Brazil, Rio Sao Francisco​

Piranha-Info.com's description is in much simpler terms and it states:​

Body Characteristics:
Most S. brandtii are predominantly gold-coloured, although some specimen can be almost completely silver or have brownish tints. It has bright, iredescent scales on its flanks and a very concave head shape. Most fins are transluscent, and in the same colour as the body. The anal fin can be red, and the caudal fin is dark on the base. The eyes are silver.​

 

[cepon3]

To further show the physical differences from specimen to specimen here is a side by side shot of two brandtiis. My fish is on the left And fellow member Quido's fish is on the right.Thank you Quido in advance for the photo. My photo was taken with no flash with a camera phone around the time that i acquired him. As you can tell Quidos Photo skills are much better then my own but im sure you understand what im showing...

The topic of this color change will come up again in later posts.

 

[BigShawn]

nice, love a brandti...........

 

[cepon3]

Next, I thought we discuss the feeding habits of the brandtii. In captivity my fish was fed Hikari Floating Sticks as well as Freeze dried krill. His staple was frozen silversides and shell off market shrimp with no heads. To initiate a feeding response initially he was fed canadian night crawlers just before lights out. Then we moved on to the frozen silversides just before lights out. It took Almost 8 months for him to eat infront of me but as soon as he got accustomed to my presence he would accept just about anything i offered. He never once ate live food in the 2+ years i had him. He ate one or two jumbo market shrimp daily with a handful of sticks or krill every other day. You san also see" The Piranha Nutrition Thread" Which is a sticky at the top of the piranha forum superbly written by fellow member Diogenes. He speaks about general piranha nutrition and is a very helpful tool whether your just starting out with piranhas or your just looking to diversify your current diet choice.

The below text was taken again from opefe.com with a brief description of the stomach contents of wild collected specimens. All quoted content is the property of opefe.com

DIET​

Body size sifts are related to diet according to a recent study by Oliveira, et al (2004). Gradual changes in food habits were noted as the species grew according to body size. Juveniles fed mostly on micro-crustaceans and insect larvae. Sub-adults ate insects, fish fins, fish scales, and chunks of fish flesh, in that predominate order of importance. The larger adults referred to as pirambeba, ate fish and was the food primarily eaten, followed by insects. 22 food items were identified with this species and included seeds, fragments of roots, stalks, and leaves. However, plant remains represented only a minor percentage of stomach content in all S. brandtii sizes. ​

I also came across in excellent article discussing the feeding habits of both Serrasalmus Brandtii and Pygocentrus Piraya. Below is the whole piece minus parts that are in Spanish. All Below content belongs to its author. I included a link to the original piece at the bottom.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]ABSTRACT[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Serrasalmus brandtii and Pygocentrus piraya are two common piranha species in the Barragem da Pedra Reservoir, rio de Contas. In order to identify the diet composition of the two species, monthly collections were performed at three sites between May 2001 and April 2003, using two gill nets of different mesh sizes cast at the beginning of the day and visited after 6, 12 and 24 h. The qualitative composition of the diet was analyzed by determining the frequency of occurrence. Comparison of the two species showed a higher relative abundance of S. brandtii (151) compared to P. piraya (55). The food items most frequently found in the stomachs of the two species were fins, fish and shrimp. Serrasalmus brandtii showed a greater feeding plasticity than P. piraya.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Key words: Neotropical, Feeding, Piranha, Reservoir.[/FONT]


[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Introduction[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Moyle & Cech (1988) showed that many fish species are specialists to a greater or lesser extent, but that their true diet at a given time will depend on the availability of typical and atypical food items, as well as on the presence of potentially competing fish species. Thus, the analysis of stomach contents in different seasons of the year and at different sites is necessary to better understand the food spectrum of a species (Gerking, 1994).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The species Serrasalmus brandtii and Pygocentrus piraya are medium-size fish with a strongly compressed and tall body (Britski et al., 1999). Serrasalmus brandtii and P. piraya are carnivorous species with a preferentially ichthyophagous feeding habit and are known as mutilating predators because they remove parts of the body of live prey without killing it. They feed on fins, scales and other parts of the body of their prey, and may also ingest small intact organism when available (Sazima & Pombal-Jr, 1988; Bistoni & Haro, 1995). [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Among the different exotic fish species found in the Barragem de Pedra Reservoir, the species Serrasalmus brandtii (Lütken, 1875) and Pygocentrus piraya (Cuvier, 1819) were accidentally introduced into the reservoir about 10 years ago due to probable rupture of private tanks in marginal areas during floods.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Agostinho et al. (1994) alerted regarding the ecological damage caused by the effect of introduction of new fish species, which may make management itself unfeasible and exert negative impacts on native species, including the competition for food, space and spawning sites and the introduction of diseases, also permitting the entry of parasites and pathogens in new areas.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The species studied here are particularly important because, in addition to fish hatchery resources, they cause losses to fishermen because of damage to fishing nets and other fish species captured. In addition, the fact that these species are predators suggests their importance for the control of other fish populations of the ecosystem. Furthermore, this is the first study involving feeding aspects of species from the rio de Contas.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In order to provide data regarding trophic interactions, as well as for the management and conservation of the rio de Contas, and particularly of the Barragem de Pedra Reservoir, the present study analyzed the diet of two important serrasalmin species, S. brandtii and P. piraya.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Material and Methods[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Specimens of the two species were collected monthly between May 2001 and April 2003 along a 4-km stretch of the rio de Contas, which is influenced by the Barragem da Pedra Reservoir, at three sampling sites close to the village of Porto Alegre, municipality of Maracás, Bahia: site 1 (13º51'19.8''S, 40º37'37.7''W), located inside the reservoir; site 2 (13º51'8.0"S, 40º38'17.6"W), located at an intermediate position which is less influenced by the reservoir, and site 3 (13º50'5.7"S, 40º38'59.3"W), an area which is under the direct influence of the river (Fig. 1).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]At each sampling site, two gill nets of different mesh sizes (1.5 and 3.0 cm between knots) were cast with a motor boat at the beginning of the day and visited after 6, 12 and 24 h for removal and freezing of the captured fish.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In the laboratory, the species were thawed and the following biometric data were determined: total and standard length with an ichthyometer and body weight with a semi-analytical scale. Next, an incision was made in the abdomen, the stomach was removed and its weight was determined with the same balance. The stomachs were fixed in 5% formaldehyde solution for 48 h and then stored in 70% ethanol. Voucher specimens were deposited in the fish collection of the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo (MZUSP), São Paulo, Brazil (MZUSP 75094, 75118, and 75204).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The contents of the stomachs were removed, analyzed under a stereomicroscope and identified to the most specific taxonomic level possible by specialists from the Department of Biological Sciences, UESB, Jequié Câmpus, Bahia, according to specialized literature (Stehr, 1987, 1991). After identification, the parameters frequency of occurrence of the species (%N), percent biomass (%W), and frequency of occurrence (%F) of food items were calculated as follows (Hyslop, 1980):[/FONT]

​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]where ni is the number of individuals of a given item i, and nt is the total number of items found in the stomach. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The repletion index (RI), which indicates how full a stomach is, was used to compare repletion between sites and periods studied. The relationship used was adapted from Zavala-Camin (1996), in which content weight was replaced with stomach weight as follows:[/FONT]

​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]where Ws is stomach weight in grams, and Wf is fish weight in grams. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The t-test was applied to determine significant differences in mean RI between species at the different sites and periods studied using the BioEstat 4.0 program, with the level of significance set at [/FONT]α[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] = 0.05.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Results[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A total of 206 individuals were recorded during the period between May 2001 and April 2003, including 151 S. brandtii and 55 P. piraya specimens.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The highest percent biomass was observed in March 2002 for S. brandtii (W% = 12.26) and in May 2002 for P. piraya (W% = 38.93) (Table 1). Regarding constancy, S. brandtii occurred throughout the sampling period (C = 100%), whereas P. piraya was only found during 14 months of collection (C = 58.3%) (Table 1). The absence of this species might be related to the dry period during which the water level was markedly reduced.[/FONT]

​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Comparison of the frequencies of occurrence of food items (%) determined by the analysis of stomach content revealed fish (Teleostei), scales and shrimp (Macrobrachium amazonicum) as the most frequent items in S. brandtii and scales, fish (Teleostei) and shrimp (M. amazonicum) as the most frequent items in P. piraya (Fig. 2).[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Analysis of the three sampling sites revealed scales, fish (Teleostei) and shrimp (M. amazonicum) as the predominant food items in the stomach of the two species. Fish fins and plant matter were also detected at a lower frequency at all sampling sites (Fig. 3).[/FONT]

​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Comparison of the frequency of occurrence (%) of different food items between the two species at the different sampling sites showed the presence, although at a discrete percentage, of some different invertebrates in the stomach of S. brandtii, and the presence of Odonata, Oligochaeta and Nematoda in P. piraya (Fig. 3). [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In S. brandtii, the values of the most important food items (fish, shrimp, scales and fins) were higher during the afternoon period. In P. piraya, scales, fish, unidentified material and plant matter were also more frequent in the afternoon. A higher percentage of shrimp was observed during the night (Fig. 4).[/FONT]

​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Comparison of the mean RI using the t-test for different periods (morning, afternoon and night) and sampling sites (sites 1, 2 and 3) showed no significant difference between the two species (p = 0.96 and p = 0.12, respectively) (Tables 2 and 3).[/FONT]

​

​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Discussion[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Recent studies have demonstrated a wide variety of feeding habits for different piranha species (Goulding et al., 1988; Sazima & Machado, 1990). Luiz et al. (1998) observed that Serrasalmus marginatus mainly feeds on fish, followed by plant matter, and classified this species as fish-eating. Analyzing the stomach content of another species of the same gender, S. altuvei, Leão et al. (1991) identified intact fish, plant matter, scales, adult insects, eggs and insect larvae, and classified this species as omnivorous with a trend towards fish-eating.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In the present study, S. brandtii showed a greater feeding plasticity than P. piraya, with even the presence of Ephemeroptera, Odonata, Coleoptera, Mollusca and other invertebrates being observed in some stomachs analyzed. In contrast, the same plasticity was not observed for P. piraya which, therefore, cannot be considered a generalist such as P. nattereri (Piorski et al., 2005). Recently, Resende (2000), studying the trophic structure of fish in Baixo Miranda, Pantanal of Mato Grosso, included two species of the genus Serrasalmus and one species of the genus Pygocentrus in an ichthyophagous trophic guild. In the present study, we also observed the presence of fish scales and fins in the stomachs analyzed. Sazima & Machado (1990), investigating the feeding behavior of two species of the genus Serrasalmus and of one species of the genus Pygocentrus in the Pantanal region, Mato Grosso, Brazil, observed a high frequency of these items: fins (84.6%) and scales (76.9%). However, in the present study the frequency of occurrence of fish fins was not higher when compared to the other items found in the stomachs of S. brandtii and P. piraya.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]According to Gerking (1994), the behavior of feeding on fish fins has been observed since the 1960s in families of both marine and freshwater fish such as Cichlidae, Tetraodontidae, Citharinidae, Blennidae, Belontiidae, and Characidae. Some species such as citharinids may exclusively feed on fins as reported by Matthes (1961), but other types of food have been identified in the digestive tract of many other species.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Leão et al. (1991), studying a rare piranha species of the genus Serrasalmus in the lower rio Negro, showed that, although Serrasalminae species share a common type of dentition adapted to their unusual habit of cutting and tearing apart pieces of fish, this is not the only or even the main feeding habit of some species. Fish scales and fins represent the main dietary item of S. elongatus. These findings do not agree with the present results, which showed a higher frequency of fish, scales and shrimp in the stomach of S. brandtii, whereas in P. piraya scales, fish and shrimp were found. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Bistoni & Haro (1995), studying the feeding habit of a species of the genus Serrasalmus in marshes formed by the Dulce River in the northeast region of the Province of Cordoba, observed that regardless of their size piranhas consume diverse fish species throughout their life cycle, ingesting the whole prey or pieces of the body. This was also observed in the present study.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]However, it should be emphasized that Astronotus ocellatus, which was also introduced in the Barragem da Pedra Reservoir, is generally found to be in a perfect state when captured, presenting no damage caused by predators. According to the literature, this South American cyclid contains caudal ocelli that reduce predation of their fins by piranhas of the genus Serrasalmus. Winemiller (1990) explained that these eyespots apparently confuse visual recognition between the caudal region of the prey and its head and this confusion reduces the attack by piranhas.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Another interesting factor is the seasonality of tropical ecosystems. According to Lowe-McConnell (1999), water level variation is mainly caused by seasonal changes in the habitat which may influence the availability of food resources and, consequently, the qualitative and quantitative occurrence of fish. These findings may explain the disappearance of P. piraya during the period between August and December 2001, when the water level was very low and less food was probably available.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In a study on the ecological aspects of the ichthyofauna community in the Barra Bonita Reservoir, São Paulo, Castro (1997) observed that S. spilopleura was constantly found at the three sampling sites throughout the period of monthly collections and suggested that the influence of seasonal migrations on this species is small. The same was observed for S. brandtii which was constantly present during both the rainy and dry periods when collections were performed.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Although constancy is a qualitative measure, it may also be an indicator of residency. Uieda (1984) stated that the study of constancy of species in a given community may demonstrate not only migrating or occurring species, but also a possible effect of seasonal alterations on the community.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Lowe-McConnell (1999) reported that due to seasonal instabilities and changes in their biotopes highly specialized trophic groups are absent in tropical water bodies. Thus, although most tropical species belong to the group of eurytrophic species, it is possible to classify fish species into more or less specific categories according to the predominant food. In the present study, analysis of the stomach contents of the two species indicated a higher frequency of scales, fish and shrimp, a finding that characterizes these species as carnivores. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The low proportion of invertebrates and plant matter observed might be the result of the feeding specialization itself of piranhas. Similar findings have been reported by Machado-Allison & Garcia (1986) who studied three piranha species in Venezuela. The authors observed that insects and other invertebrates are not important items of the diet of these fish. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The gastric RI has been shown to be useful as an approximation regarding the feeding intensity of a given species, with this index being necessary to recognize the feeding rhythm of a species (Zavala-Camin, 1996). The present study showed homogenous repletion in both species, indicating regularity in feeding for piranhas in the reservoir studied, with no period of the day or site showing a more intense activity.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]With respect to standard and total length, the structures of the species were found to be in a perfect state, presenting no damage caused by some predator. In this case, these results may indicate that even when captured by nets piranhas do not predate on each other. The same is not observed for other captured species. Predation of piranhas of the genus Serrasalmus on other fish species has been reported by Lowe-McConnell (1999) in Guiana. The same was also demonstrated by Teles & Godinho (1997) in fishing experiments carried out in the Três Marias Dam, Rio São Francisco, using gill nets of mesh sizes of 8, 10 and 12 cm. In that study, S. brandtii was found to affect the quantity of fish caught in that environment since it attacks the fish captured in the nets, in addition to damaging the fishing equipment.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Within this context, Agostinho et al. (1994) suggested that the conservation of the area between the Itaipu Reservoir and the flood plain of the rio Paraná should be extended to other reservoirs. These recommendations include limiting human occupation of the area, a better control of the transport of live fish, the requirement for documents specifying fishing methods, compatibility of the operational procedures used by upstream barriers in order to minimize flow according to the requirements for migrating species, particularly during the reproductive period, and reevaluation of the cost/benefit ratio for future hydroelectric power plants in terms of the loss of biological diversity and of the quantity of fish caught. [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Acknowledgements[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]We thank UESB and FINEP for financial support. CNPq provided fellowship for author. We are thankfull to students and colleagues at the ECOFAU workgroup and Associação de Trabalhadores Rurais e Pescadores de Porto Alegre, Maracás, Bahia for support in field work[/FONT]

[/FONT]

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1679-62252008000400013

 

[cepon3]

Much more to come guys... my Tank setup and equipment, an indepth look at water quality from the Rio SAo Francisco river, Cohabbing, Breeding, My thoughts. An extremely large collection of photos collected from all over the internet as well as a bunch of photos of my fish.

 

[Zander_The_RBP]

wow that's sad to hear sorry for your loss man


so i geuss the breeding never turned out huh ? that's too bad as well. But hey, atleast you can say you tried when nobody else would even try.

 

[Tango374]

To further show the physical differences from specimen to specimen here is a side by side shot of two brandtiis. My fish is on the left And fellow member Quido's fish is on the right.Thank you Quido in advance for the photo. My photo was taken with no flash with a camera phone around the time that i acquired him. As you can tell Quidos Photo skills are much better then my own but im sure you understand what im showing...

The topic of this color change will come up again in later posts.

One thing that is not brought up here is that the type of light spectrum used over the tank can drastically change the appearence in coloration. S. brandtii, like other serra's, differ slightly in coloration from fish to fish. But the difference in light has a large role to play in the example photos you provided.
Overall, good thread so far filled with good points and references.
I'm very sorry to hear about your fish. 10 years is a good run in life for an aquarium fish.

 

[cepon3]

wow that's sad to hear sorry for your loss man


so i geuss the breeding never turned out huh ? that's too bad as well. But hey, atleast you can say you tried when nobody else would even try.

Thanks. The breeding never turned out but i dont feel as if the whole experiment was a bust. I didnt lose either fish to aggression when most thought that i would. This whole thing kinda stems back to the Thread where i introduced the pair to the site, everyone's "beef" was with the fact that i wouldnt disclose any information. My thoughts behind that were if i was wrong i didnt put wrong info out there for others to copy.

One thing that is not brought up here is that the type of light spectrum used over the tank can drastically change the appearence in coloration. S. brandtii, like other serra's, differ slightly in coloration from fish to fish. But the difference in light has a large role to play in the example photos you provided.
Overall, good thread so far filled with good points and references.
I'm very sorry to hear about your fish. 10 years is a good run in life for an aquarium fish.

While i agree, i also disagree. My fish was never silver, never close to silver. Nothing less then GOLD. My fish was this color night and day, stressed or unstressed, Under 10k 6.5k T5 T8 and Leds. Lights off flash photography. While others that i have seen under normal conditions were as silver as Quido's fish. My guess's were not a shot in the dark, i did everything in order to try and change this fishes color and it just wouldnt happen. I had him above black gravel, white gravel ,in a planted tank, and above natural colored sand. He looked pretty much the same above all of them.. Im not saying that your statement is not true because i totally agree with you, i just havent seen a color change in these fish as drastic as the two picture comparison. You cannot deny me that side by side like that the difference is stunning, and in my opinion too different for just a quick change of lights.

Im glad to have been his keeper, i just hope he died with a smile on.

There was nothing Silver about this guy at all..

 

[cepon3]

Next i wanted to discuss tank size and equipment, filtration, heating, water change schedule, etc.

My brandtii spent most of his time with me in a 40 gallon tank with the footprint of 36 x 18 inches. The tank he was kept in before this one was a planted 75 gallon tank with the footprint of 48 x 18 inches. I downgraded the tank size due to the fact that he was not active and i wanted to make sure he was getting the food that i was supplying for him. I couldnt properly monitor it in that tank. The Planted tank had a 8 x 54w 48" T5HO fixture sitting up top with 4 x 10k bulbs, 2 x 65k bulbs and 2x 420 Actinic bulbs totalling 432W of light. For heating i used a 300 watt Stealth heater. The filtration on this tank was as follows; An eheim 2217 with stock plumbing and intake filled to the brim with eheim ehfi substrate pro with no mechanical filter floss of any kind. I also ran a PROCLEAR 150 system stock with bioballs and mechanical filter with a rio 1100 return pump.Lastly to privide excellent water movement i used a Seio M1500. Water changes were weekly with dechlorinated tap water with a ph range from 7.0 to 7.2 from 20 to 30 gallons depending on water quality. I can no longer remember the specifics of the water quality, i never wrote things like that down. Never Any NO2 and readings on NO3 would always be below 20. The tank was situated in a quiet part of the house with no foot traffic besides my own. Automated lights on 4 hours of actinic at the beggining of the day, two hours in my daylights would turn on, two hours later the actinics would shut off. 4 hours later the actinics would kick back in, two hours later the daylights would shut off, two hours later the actinics would shut and darkness would occur into the next morning. My tank did get light at night from a streetlight that shined through the window but it was a dim light at best and it was just strong enough to make out slight shapes in the darkness of the room.

First picture is of the 75 gallon when the brandtii lived in it.

The second is 21 days later with my large rhombeus.
This photo is to show that this tank was up and running for longer amount of time then the brandtii was in there.