Gonodactylus
Premium Member
I was asked in a private email why some P. ciliata that show up for sale in LFSs are yellow. Are they trying to blend in with the background with some specific background. Excellent question and I don't know the answer since I don't know where these animals are being collected, but I have my suspicions. I thought I would share my thoughts on this.
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Good question. Typically P.c match greens, browns, blacks, and light sand with the stripe pattern adding in when there is vertical structure (such as eel grass). Where I usually work, we rarely see the yellow morph.
I can think of a few hypotheses:
1. There is a yellow habitat.
Aside from occasional yellow and orange sponges, I don't think so.
2. There is a genetically determined yellow morph that does not change color to match the background.
Possible, but at least some yellow animals will change to match other backgrounds. I have also produced a couple of yellow animals keeping green ones in yellow buckets.
3. The yellow animals come from deep water where yellow light is gone.
I dive fairly deep and rarely see a yellow morph.
4. In murky habitats, yellow morphs are favored the same what that orange morphs of some cichlids are found in murky water.
Again, this is possible. I don't know where the yellow morphs are coming from.
5. On bright, broad-spectrum reefs, yellow is a default color that blends into the bright colors and dark shadows.
I favor this explanation. The few yellow P.c. that I have collected myself came from very shallow, brightly colored reef flats. The yellow animals were remarkably difficult to see against the dappled light - dark patterns caused by ripples on the surface and the diversity of colors on the reefflat..
Roy
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Good question. Typically P.c match greens, browns, blacks, and light sand with the stripe pattern adding in when there is vertical structure (such as eel grass). Where I usually work, we rarely see the yellow morph.
I can think of a few hypotheses:
1. There is a yellow habitat.
Aside from occasional yellow and orange sponges, I don't think so.
2. There is a genetically determined yellow morph that does not change color to match the background.
Possible, but at least some yellow animals will change to match other backgrounds. I have also produced a couple of yellow animals keeping green ones in yellow buckets.
3. The yellow animals come from deep water where yellow light is gone.
I dive fairly deep and rarely see a yellow morph.
4. In murky habitats, yellow morphs are favored the same what that orange morphs of some cichlids are found in murky water.
Again, this is possible. I don't know where the yellow morphs are coming from.
5. On bright, broad-spectrum reefs, yellow is a default color that blends into the bright colors and dark shadows.
I favor this explanation. The few yellow P.c. that I have collected myself came from very shallow, brightly colored reef flats. The yellow animals were remarkably difficult to see against the dappled light - dark patterns caused by ripples on the surface and the diversity of colors on the reefflat..
Roy
