Is It True Black Onyx clownfish Lose their color
- Thread starter jojo42689
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Tahoe Reefer
New member
I"ve seen perculas lose black color in BTAs.
vaporize
New member
Depends if it's a true onyx or just a w.c. onyx coloration
True Onyx are specifically bred thru 10+ generations for their colour so naturally they keep their black better than other w.c. ones that just happen to get ONYX coloration. Lines from Rod's or C-Quest are True ONYX lines.
WaffleWalffle22
Zoa Extreemist
Nothing. No bubble tip is regular. They are the exact same, which is why you sometimes find bi-color ones. The only difference is the color of xoxanthalle that lives inside them, some are red, some are green, some are even yellow. IMHO people who don't care about the hobby and just want to make money stuck a name on a common anemone that was red and charged like 10 times more for it. Rose anemone and Green Bubbles Anemones are the same, so don't let people fool you by saying GBTA are hard and RBTA are easy. They're just greedy people. :rolleye1:
Toddrtrex
Premium Member
Here is my thread about this subject.
They're from a different chunk of the world, if I remember correctly.
PayasoDelMar
New member
not as much but its still a possibility. The black can always come back though if the nem is removed or if something else hosts your clown
oooh i see so if it happens i shouldent panick because i have a rbta and they've told me that could be the reason they lose their color but my onyx's are still juvenile their only (3months old) and are now getting black passed the 2 bar i'll have pictures of them shortly
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Toddrtrex
Premium Member
Onyx clowns are just regular percs with a lot of black on them. They are CR, but, if I am not mistaken, the original "parents" where SI percs that had extra black on them
vaporize
New member
ONYX is just a term coined by Bill Addison from C-Quest early on when he fixed the strain in the early days. Original ancestors were SI perculas with black in them. The stories goes that he noticed that in every batch of SI percs, there are a few that attain and retain their black color more, so he goes on and selective pair and breed those with the more black through many (5+) generations until alot of those "onyx" offsprings get the more melanistic traits and develop the black alot faster.
Nowdays the true onyx definition is that the percula have to have the body area between the first & second bar completely black, and also the body area between the 2nd & 3rd bar completely black. The fins, tail, mouth are optional. And it has to be a true percula (not like a onyx + black ocellaris mix).
Of course you will see different variation of 'onyx' at LFS as putting such a term on the fish guarantee higher retail value.
Typically w.c. ONYX occurs more from the SI, PNG area. In the trade, wild caught Full onyx coloration occurs around 1/200 or so depending on their collection area. And w.c. ONYX will lose their color depending on anemone (or perhaps without one in QT). Another factor that affects the blackness in true percula is their maturity, spawning adult females tend to have more black on them.
WDLV
Skunk Hybrid Freak
This is not entirely true. Zooxanthellae is golden brown. All 300+ varieties of it. The colors (ROYGBIV) are from pigments that act as a sort of sunblock. These vary depending not only on genetics, but on the spectrum and intensity of the light they get. The density of the zooxanthellae will make the anemone appear lighter and more transparent or darker/more brown and also more opaque but that's the extent of it's role in terms of coloration.
With regard to the OP's question and the subsequent answers; Wow! I knew that some anemones could cause melanistic qualities but never considered that the inverse could also be true.
JJ Ocean
New member
My pair that I've had for 7 years have been in several different types of nems over the years. Some stretch with no nems. They've been with RBTA's the last 3 years. They have gotten darker every year - age seemed to be the driver for mine; nems had nothing to do with it.
However, I have heard of Clarks going real dark when hosting mertensii's, but have not heard of percs changing. If one clown species does it, I'm sure it is a possibility for others though. My experience has been otherwise with percs. If anything mine have only gotten darker after being in RBTA's, but I attribute that to age - not host.
BTW - mine are wild caught from PNG (they're in my avatar).
However, I have heard of Clarks going real dark when hosting mertensii's, but have not heard of percs changing. If one clown species does it, I'm sure it is a possibility for others though. My experience has been otherwise with percs. If anything mine have only gotten darker after being in RBTA's, but I attribute that to age - not host.
BTW - mine are wild caught from PNG (they're in my avatar).
Rod Buehler
New member
I have seen many of my babies keep their coloration in BTAs and on the other hand I have seen some go from very black to completely orange withing weeks of being introduced. Its a crap shot.
bues0022
New member
jojo - You seem to be a bit newer on the boards. Rod is a clownfish breeder in the Chicago area. His pairs are from the c-quest line of line-breed fish. I have some theories of my own why some will stay dark, and others not, but Rod summed it up best "It's a crap shoot". I'd take Rod's word on this one as he is one of the authorities on clownfish. (I'd trust him far before an outdated book made in the mid '90's)
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