Name That Fish!

[shaggyspeedy]

I posted in an earlier thread about my issue attempting to find Oto Cats to clean my tank, only to be failed by two stores; one LFS and a chain. I'm still on the search for another LFS (I've got my eye on one, but they're all the way on the other side of town), but in the meanwhile, I ask this question...

While I was at the chain, waiting patiently for their "fish guy":rolleyes: , I was taken by one species of fish swimming around. They looked somewhat like a Tetra, except their bodies were either a soft blue or a soft pink color. The tank was labled "Bueons Aries", but while trying to find this species of fish, it became obvious that that name didn't belong to this species.

So what, pray tell, is this fish? And where can I learn more on whether or not I want to include in in my future endeavors?

Thanks.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

It sounds like you saw some painted tetras. Did they look like blackskirts without thier black color with either a pale pink or pale blue coloration?

http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/characins2/a/whiteskirttetra.htm

As in this profile?

If they are blue, pink, or purple (common colors), then they have been artificially dyed. It sounds like this is the fish you saw, however I haven't seen them in the pet stores reccently.

[shaggyspeedy]

Ahh yes, that would be it.

If those are the ever-famous artificially dyed fish, though, then they won't be in my tank. I was wondering how one species of fish could have multiple colors...

Appreciate the help!

[pinballqueen]

Now, before you go jumping to the conclusion that any fish with more than one color option is dyed, remember that a lot of fish have several color morphs :)

Bettas are a good example of this. They come in about 15 different colors, red and blue being the most common, and I have noticed a lot of white and piebald ones coming on to the market recently. Guppies and other livebearers come in a host of colors to choose from... while they are selectively bred to achieve these wild colors, they aren't dyed, so they are just fine in my book among fish to keep.

The most commonly dyed fish are painted glass tetras (which are the clear ones with streaks of neon pink, blue, etc.... injected into their skin) and jellybean and blood parrots, which are "vat dyed" into any number of colors other than their native oranges and yellows (and are also hybrids, which also stirs a lot of people's dander up)....

[shaggyspeedy]

Originally posted by pinballqueen
Now, before you go jumping to the conclusion that any fish with more than one color option is dyed, remember that a lot of fish have several color morphs :)

Well I know about the Bettas and the Guppies... but the difference between these fish were simply too much to be considered natural. :)

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Yeah, other fish have different color morphs, but these are well-known artificially dyed fish.

You can almost tell just by looking at them, very sad really. :shake:

[Leopardess]

http://www.dslextreme.com/users/louieg/leopardess/hifinwhiteskirt.jpg

How bout some regular white fins. I love these fish..you can see how much they stand out in my 55 in my sig. I have the long fin ones...VERY pretty