Yellow lab with white coloration

DeerHunterLou

Feeder Fish
Mar 6, 2019
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I just picked this little guy up from a lfs. As you can tell he is all white, I attached both a flash on and off photo. The lfs owner bred his 2 yellow labs which produced this little guy and many siblings, however all of his siblings where bright yellow. This fish Is around 1/2". my question is it normal to get this white coloration when breeding yellow labs and do you think he will stay white?

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20190323_194714.jpg
 

Gourami Swami

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There are some strains of labidochromis caeruleus which are all-white. I believe you likely just got one of those. Though, I believe the white labs are not line-bred hobby creations, but a natural color morph. The way the lfs guy described it, would be that the fish was a normal yellow lab with a genetic mutation. However, if the fish was albino, it would have red eyes. And if it were amelanistic, I don't think it would have the black line on the dorsal fin. I'm not an expert in genetics and mutations, maybe somebody who is can chime in if I'm off base here.
My guess- the LFS guy was pulling your leg about the parents being yellow, and it's a normal white lab.
 

Rafini

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Jun 28, 2012
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When I used to live in Europe there were often tanks of white labidochromis with iridescent blue speckling.
I'm pretty sure its just the location variety of where the fish are imported from.
Nkhata bay has the white L. caeruleus

Either his labs are a mix of different location strains and its a throwback to one of the ancestor fish that was a white variety.
or as Gourami Swami said its possible that the genes required for a white labidochromis Caeruleus are present in many of the yellow populations that exist in the hobby today, and subsequently his fish.

cool pick up! google the Nkhata bay and you can see what I mean, as they mature they get some nice blue iridescence on their flanks
 

The Morning

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Jan 10, 2018
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I have a male white lab in my tank that has blue primarily around the gills. I believe he mated with one of my yellow labs and the only surviving offspring looks very similar to your fish. Primarily white but with a yellowish hue in certain lightings.
 

DeerHunterLou

Feeder Fish
Mar 6, 2019
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Thanks for the replys guys! I mean there were a good amount of other fry in the tank with him that were the exact same size but they were all bright yellow. The lfs owner hadn't colored up yet but is likely to in the future. So far my lab is still really white with just a hint of yellow in lighting. I do trust that the parents were both electric yellow labs, so it must just be a mutation or color variation.
 

RD.

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Impossible to answer definitively about the majority of Malawi cichlids sold at a LFS. Genetics is a funny thing, and with African cichlids mixed locations and cross breeds abound in this hobby.
 
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