H. magnifica and Onyx clowns -- black fading or not?

[D-Nak]

I am planning to purchase a pair of Onyx clowns for my H. magnifica but have read about and have seen photos of the black in Onyx clowns fading or disappearing. I know this is more common with BTAs and Onyx, but I was wondering if folks with the H. magnifica and Onyx combination could chime in.

Since H. magnifica is the natural host of percula, I'm planning to do it anyway, I just want to set my expectations accordingly.

 

[JJ Ocean]

The juv onyx I raise actually get darker, faster when with mags. Same hatches side by side - happens everytime. However, mine don't fade in bta's either.

 

[deangelr]

IME, magnifica can make the melanistic color disappear very quickly.. I know of one other reef on RC that had his onyx fade out as well...

 

[ILLiDaN]

it depends...if you get something from the c-quest line it should not. If a clown is genetically destined to be onyx it will stay onyx. If the onyx it developed was environmentally imposed it could quite possibly fade.

Just my theory dismiss it if you'd like

 

[deangelr]

Here is the thread..
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1535362&highlight=magnifica+percula

 

[D-Nak]

IME, magnifica can make the melanistic color disappear very quickly.. I know of one other reef on RC that had his onyx fade out as well...

Just curious to know your basis for that. I tend to agree, but it's just my hunch. Part of me wants to figure out the mystery by trying it myself, though I hope it doesn't happen at all.

Here is the thread..
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1535362&highlight=magnifica+percula

Thanks -- I was actually hoping for an update on that thread, but also from other reefers who have H. magnifica and Onyx clowns. I'm trying to get a more realistic approximation of how often this actually happens. Obviously with two people chiming in who having similar experiences, the percentage is 100%, but if 20 other people say it didn't happen, then the results speak otherwise.

These would be a pair of Rods Onyx (bred to "stay" Onyx).

 

[elegance coral]

Many people have had Rod's Onyx fade in E. quadricolor, so even the C-Quest line is subject to environmental influences.

I have a young pair of Picasso's, that are getting more black, and they live in a magnifica.

 

[deangelr]

Just curious to know your basis for that..

I have a pair of platinums that have a lot of melanistic features..


male before magnifica..

Male only 2 weeks after magnifica was introduced..

 

[JJ Ocean]

IMO it depends on the genetics of the parents. I've seen onyx lose their melanistic traits in BTA's and I've seen hundreds that haven't. What I have never seen is offspring from the same parents have different melanistic reactions. If they got darker in certain anemone types - they all trended that way and vice versa.

Here are pics of onyx from the same hatch. The parents are wild caught PNG. They're in the same shared water system. The only difference is that the clowns in the first pic have a mag in the tank. The clowns in the second pic do not have access to the mag. Clear difference in the melanistic coloring. If I move one clown into the mag tank from the no-mag tank, they get dark like the others in a matter of 6 weeks.