Do black backgrounds make speckels develop on Pigenblood Discus?

[Arkangel77]

I read a thread the other day that said dark or black backgounds would encourage black specks to come out on pigenblood Discus more than if there was a light background? I have black planting gravel and a Black background in my 180 Discus Tank. To try and change the background would be NUTZ but if its gona make my fish go to crap if I leave it black then I guess I gota do something. I do notice that about 1/2 or my fish always have there black bands showing no matter what? What have you guys notticed with background color?

Thanks, Arkangel77

 

[pinkertd]

I don't really know if there's any truth to that or not. Not only have I heard that, I've also heard that planted tanks will make them pepper up more, and substrate will make them pepper up more (vs. barebottom) I have never used a black background, mine's blue. I can tell you that pigeon blood based fish like white butterflies pepper up a lot when they start to spawn and it stays that way. Other non-pigeon based fish darken up when their slime coat starts to thicken in preparation for feeding fry....white pigeons get tons of pepper:irked:. So I don't think it would matter what the tank was like that I put my white butterflies in

By the way, what is that beautiful fish in your avatar?

 

[jpappy789]

Interesting. I wonder if there actually is any empirical evidence for either side.

 

[pinkertd]

I wonder the same thing. You'd have to take two identical fish and put them each in a test tank to find out. I don't think that has ever been done. It's disappointing when the pepper shows up when you're hoping it doesn't.

If black bands are showing dark when they shouldn't be, that's a stress issue.

 

[jpappy789]

I just don't know why the fish would respond differently like that...but I guess there's always a possibility.

 

[Arkangel77]

By the way, what is that beautiful fish in your avatar?

That Fish is a Red Texas - It was EXPENSIVE, AWSOM looking and mean as the DEVIL! I had to bring it back to the LFS because it beat the crap outa everything!!!!!!!!!!!! It is a Beautiful fish though.

If black bands are showing dark when they shouldn't be, that's a stress issue.

Some of My fish show bands and some do not? They dont seem to be stressed? The COnditions are good in the tank from all the test's I can take. I do have some Moon lights on the tank which seem to be a LOT brighter than I thought they would be? Do you think that might stress them? The bands dont seem crazy dark but they are obvious.

AS for the dark background - I just dont know. I got a buddy with baby blue background and his fish peppered up also. His tank is bare bottomed and had NO plants ether. Thats why I figured I owuld ask the quisteion.

Arkangel77

 

[Dkarc]

Yes, it is very much true and I have experienced it many times over in many different tanks. It is a way to camoflauge themselves to their environment a bit....think of why discus have the vertical stress bars in nature to begin with. It is a form of camoflauge. Obviously PB discus have peppering instead of these vertical bars (due to genetic mutation), but the principle is the same. In a dark tank, they darken up not only with their peppering but also in their overall coloration. The opposite is true in a bare bottom light colored tank (white for example).....their colors are very light and very little if any peppering is present. When in a dark tank/environment it is not necessarily them showing stress, but rather them trying to blend into their environment. So yes, the color of the tank has a huge impact on a discus' overall coloration and their display of peppering (for PB based fish). And if they are peppering up/showing stress bars when in a light colored tank, it is most likely due to stress of some form and not necessarily them blending into their environment.

-Ryan

 

[Star_Rider]

it sure would explain why my PB is covered in black spots.

originally it was in a qt tank but still quite young.. 3" and showed very little peppering until moved to the main tank(black Back ground and plants)

 

[pinkertd]

it sure would explain why my PB is covered in black spots.

originally it was in a qt tank but still quite young.. 3" and showed very little peppering until moved to the main tank(black Back ground and plants)

Some of the peppering difference between the time the fish was 3" and now has to do with maturing color. If they're going to show pepper as an adult, they'll show some as a juvie/sub-adult and show more as they become adults. So if you have young fish that you see pepper on now, they will definitely have more pepper showing as adults.

 

[Star_Rider]

Some of the peppering difference between the time the fish was 3" and now has to do with maturing color. If they're going to show pepper as an adult, they'll show some as a juvie/sub-adult and show more as they become adults. So if you have young fish that you see pepper on now, they will definitely have more pepper showing as adults.

yuppers.

but it is difficult to determine if the black back ground and plants may have contributed.
the fish did start showing peppering very soon after being introduced to the main tank ..but alas as juvies are prone to do.. may have accelerated the grown and maturing due to the larger water /carrying capacity of the 75 I moved it into.

I guess we'll never know