Black severum?

[mcsnapper1]

So, I'm looking in this book I got from the library(yes they still exist), called Dr. Axelrod's mini atlas of freshwater aquarium fishes and on pg. 52 there is a pic of a Cichlasoma severum that is light black with dark black bars on it's bottom half and one full bar just before the tail fin. Also, the tail fin is clear. Is this just a very dark green severum or a wild variation that has never made it into fish keeping?

 

[HiImSean]

lol i bet if you look at the published date its old. either that or the guy who wrote it did absolutely no research. severums are in the genus Heros. i know a while ago they were classified as Cichlasom, but then again so were a lot of species that are different now

 

[mcsnapper1]

Early 80's, I think.

 

[JK47]

Breeding dress. Some species get very dark when they are courting one another. Agreed with Sean too about the age of the book. You can't call it "old" though. I'm from the early 80's too..

 

[HiImSean]

Breeding dress. Some species get very dark when they are courting one another. Agreed with Sean too about the age of the book. You can't call it "old" though. I'm from the early 80's too..

well mid 80s here but for a informative book, that is very outdated

 

[ShadowBass]

They can all turn black depending on mood. My greens would get much darker than that when they were fighting.

Pic looks like a standard green sev.

And yes they are no longer Cichlasoma, so that book is outdated. Then again as much as species are reclassified the book doesn't have to be super old to have the incorrect name.

 

[tankboi]

Ditto....

 

[JK47]

well mid 80s here but for a informative book, that is very outdated

lol 1981 here. It amazes me to see the dates at stores for buying cigarettes and beer now.

It's embarrasing but baqck in the days before I really started learning SA cichlids, I actually used to ask my LFS to get in more black severums in because they had two that were always black with orange pectoral fins when I went there. Only to be told by the LFS owner:

"they're just a breeding pair dude, but I'll charge ya double if you REALLY want some black ones..."

 

[HiImSean]

lol 1981 here. It amazes me to see the dates at stores for buying cigarettes and beer now.

yeah 85 here, it think its weird to think that kids born in the 90's can buy cigarettes lol

 

[Gruff Master]

Looks like a Green Sev to me. Stress and mood can give them this darker color. I have a few aquarium books that are full of outdated info and pics of some "Cutting-Edge" technology from the 70s and 80s. I was born in 76 so when these books were first printed they would have held little interest to me. Back then it was alll about break dancing and Voltron!