Can anyone tell me why some clown loaches have darker black bands than others. Also the fins on the darker ones don't seem to be as fanned out as those with the lighter black bands. All seem to be in good health.
Thanks Dick
Loach color
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Gary Stanton
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- Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2007 7:31 pm
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Along with the local differences in markings, Loaches and many other fish communicate with their colors and fin positions. In many fish looking bigger and richer colored is a sign of dominance. Looking pale and smaller is a sign of submission.
Cichlids are a good example of this. If you have a tank with mixed sexes of one species, but the males and females are different colors, then the dominant male may be the only one that is fully colored. All the subordinate males will show female coloring and will hold their dorsal fins lower to let the dominant male know they are not threatening him. (This is not true of all Cichlids, but is more of an example of how this sort of behavior works among many fish)
Among Clown Loaches it seems to be the opposite: The dominant male (or female) may become greyed out when challenged.
Cichlids are a good example of this. If you have a tank with mixed sexes of one species, but the males and females are different colors, then the dominant male may be the only one that is fully colored. All the subordinate males will show female coloring and will hold their dorsal fins lower to let the dominant male know they are not threatening him. (This is not true of all Cichlids, but is more of an example of how this sort of behavior works among many fish)
Among Clown Loaches it seems to be the opposite: The dominant male (or female) may become greyed out when challenged.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
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