Amphilophus for Cookiemonster!

orbit

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Nov 21, 2008
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Michigan
Modest_Man;2608745; said:
Man, I love that wild piebald male lab.

I'm always amazed at the colors these fish get. I fished for them a lot when I lived in Hawaii (probably a mutt, but still lots of fun on light tackle) and it was always fun to see the colors you could pull in.

I'm assuming the brilliant colored ones were kept outside? If I had the time (or the drive) I'd like to do a little study with some grow outs where the sunlight is the independent variable. Something in the sunlight (a tan maybe?) makes them so much more vibrant than fish raised indoors...
Is there a decent food you can feed these guys to bring out the red?
 

cchhcc

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 31, 2006
2,449
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Virginia Beach, VA USA
Modest_Man;2608745; said:
Man, I love that wild piebald male lab.

I'm always amazed at the colors these fish get. I fished for them a lot when I lived in Hawaii (probably a mutt, but still lots of fun on light tackle) and it was always fun to see the colors you could pull in.

I'm assuming the brilliant colored ones were kept outside? If I had the time (or the drive) I'd like to do a little study with some grow outs where the sunlight is the independent variable. Something in the sunlight (a tan maybe?) makes them so much more vibrant than fish raised indoors...
Yes, the light is the big thing. Even the seasons make a difference. The fish in my outdoor tank aren't as bright now in the winter as they are in the summer (temp and everything else is pretty much the same). Check out the Jeff Rapps thread. You'll see one white fish that turned bright orange once I kept him outside!

But keeping them in front of a window works too. This guy got a lot of sunlight when I put his tank in front of the window, and he was as bright as any of the outside fish:

 
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orbit

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Nov 21, 2008
1,793
1
0
Michigan
cchhcc;2608780; said:
Yes, the light is the big thing. Even the seasons make a difference. The fish in my outdoor tank aren't as bright now in the winter as they are in the summer (temp and everything else is pretty much the same). Check out the Jeff Rapps thread. You'll see one white fish that turned bright orange once I kept him outside!

But keeping them in front of a window works too. This guy got a lot of sunlight when I put his tank in front of the window, and he was as bright as any of the outside fish:

Great info! Thanks.
 

Modest_Man

Polypterus
MFK Member
Jul 5, 2006
4,668
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Washington
I kept a very "red" red devil that I caught red (is that confusing?) by feeding a lot of what it was eating in the Hawaiian waters, namely the red swamp crayfish (native to the Southern US) which is high in carotene.

But it was never quite the shade of red as when I caught him...
 

Dmaan.

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 5, 2008
2,526
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Edmonton (CAN)
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