RTC's "red tail"

[nohandslook]

Hello everyone at MFK, I had a question on Red tailed catfishes

Does the RTC's tail turn red over time? Because I have seen many juveniles at LFS with black and white tails.

If so, what would be a good way to get the tail to become red? Is there a certain diet such as crustaceans that would enhance the tail color?

Thanks, I look forward to replies.

 

[Juxtaroberto]

I've noticed that all juveniles lack the red tail. When they get to about 4-5 inches, it starts turning a muddy brown, and then after that it reddens.

And yeah, feeding krill and shrimp and crayfish (pieces) will definitely help with tail color because of the beta carotene and the astaxanthin.

 

[PennReels84]

yes it takes a while for it to turn but it does in time around 6-7 inches

 

[fishfobia]

yes be patient grasshopper

 

[Bogwoodbruce]

The rec colouration does come with time..... feeding good quality food also helps stuff like Hikari and New era.... I kept a wild caught red tail before and the red was fantastic even from a small size around 4.5" has a near full red tail. There are several factors but just wait and watch him grow.

 

[FISHY FINGAZ]

mines about 8 inches and his tail i just now startin to lose the black color and turn the muddy brown color! isnt it the same thing with the TSN and even P bass? about the crusteaceans and tail color?

 

[peewee]

any diet that turns the RTC's tail really red?

 

[justonemoretank]

Shrimp (especially the shells). When you're making dinner, and shelling your shrimp before you cook them, just throw in the shells and tails. My RTC and Pacu love them. I feed squid, whiting fillets, shrimp, shrimp shells, massivore delite, algae wafers, and aqua stable. My RTC's tail is red -- so something in there has to be working. I'm guessing it's the shrimp shells.

 

[hotsauce]

whats the best ph to bring out the colors?

 

[tonymofo]

I used to throw in a bunch of shells and tails and my redtail would just gobble them all up. I had a big 12" Red Tail Catfish. I would peel about 10 shrimps feed him about 3 shrimps and all the shells and tails. In about a week or two you should notice the tail getting redder.