View Full Version : Jack Dempsey Coloring
MeAirlinePilot
01-12-2004, 10:13 PM
I have a 5" Jack Dempsey that all of a sudden one day half his body is dark. The front half is normal like when I got him but the back half is dark. He is eating normally, swimming normally, etc...Why is the back half dark but front half normal? I've had him for about a month and everything is the same regarding water quality. Weekly 15% water changes, Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 15 ppm. Thanks for the help! Sorry for the poor image quality, I kept having to move the camera around.
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp/000_0421OK.jpg
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp/000_0423OK.jpg
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp/000_0430OK.jpg
he didnt get a sunburn di he? just kidding. that is really wierd.dempsies will turn color depending on mood etc. but ive never seen one do that.
SayersWeb
01-14-2004, 8:28 AM
Could it be a cross-breed? It's markings and shape look odd for a Dempsey.
MeAirlinePilot
01-14-2004, 12:12 PM
Well the thing is, he was perfectly normal for the first three weeks that I got him. He had absolutely no black on him at all; his whole body was light-colored just like his front is in the pictures. One day his rear-end was very dark but he is acting completely normal. This is bugging the you know what out of me because he's a beautiful fish except for the black on him...
SayersWeb
01-14-2004, 2:42 PM
Many cichlid males turn black on their back have when in breeding colors. Texas cichlids are a good example:
http://cichlidresearch.com/gifs/texas/s_texas1.jpg
The shape of your fish does not look like a normal JD to me.... but I am no expert on them.
ScottoMacD
01-14-2004, 9:50 PM
Jacks for the most part get much darker (whole body) when breeding. So I can't see that being the issue here. I do agree with SayersWeb and the Texas observation though. Boy the colors that my male texas gets when breeding is insane.
From my experience JD's lighten up only when stressed. If he is being roughed up by another fish that is either equal size or smaller than the Jack they normally won't back down as quick as they would if the bully was bigger. In other words it will take longer for the fish to show bulling signs like hiding and not eating etc...
What is he in the tank with?
Have you tried rearranging the tank to reset any set territories that may be established? You will be surprised how many times that works.