True parrot cichlid (Hoplarchus psittacus) adult colouration question

[stratos]

Earlier this year I was on expedition with Project Piaba up the Rio Negro in Brazil. The "true parrot" cichlid (Hoplarchus psittacus) in the photos below was collected for genomic study. My question is whether the red blush at the base of the gill plate is commonly seen in adult fish in the hobby? Or is it is a regional colour variation only sometimes seen in the hobby? I've heard competing opinions. For those of you who have kept this fish to adult size, have you seen this red blush colouration?

 

[Kevin@TUIC]

Nothing unusual. some are just more orange/red than others. Even withing the same populations. Fresh wild collected & imported specimens often display it for several weeks upon arrival. Tends to fade away slightly once in captivity. Likely a result of what was a food source or the natural sunlight. I shared a topic on the TUIC social media pages a while ago about fresh, wild collected Rio Magdalena umbies. Particularly in larger specimens, they are very gold/yellow when collected. After a few weeks in captivity the gold/yellow fades away and the blues start to pop.

 

[duanes]

I have found it interesting, that where I collect Dairienheros species in Panama makes a difference in their coloration, dependant on what kind, and how much of vegetation surrounds the waterway.
I first started collecting the species in the Mamoni rive, a very open and wide water course, lots of vegetaion, but also lots of open water not covered by terrestrial overhang.



Lately when collecting, in rivers that are much more narrow, and the terrestrial vegetation covers and shades larger areas, and the colors of the recetly caught Dariemhers individuals seem to reflect that with darker colors.

Below is the Rio Uni where the darker individuals were netted, and where terrestrial vegetation may play a more significant effect

But not only the cichlids.
Tetras from the open water areas, below

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Compared with those from the Rio Uni below


And somethat was even more of a surprise

A Gobiomorus species above, caught in anmore open area, compared to one caught in the Rio Uni below.