# Red Zebra -- Color loss?



## sabv (Jul 9, 2010)

Hi,

We have a few red zebra growing in the tank. These were only about 1.5" when we put them in the tank and they were all orange color. Now, as these are growing up, some of them are becoming very light orange and some are pretty bright orange. 

Is this due to some sickness or is it because of gender? Are the female red zebra ligther orange color than the males?

Regards,
sabv


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## PACMAN (Mar 4, 2010)

I have a red zebra and it used to be a sexy orange. I have indeed noticed that it has become a lighter shade orange.


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## sabv (Jul 9, 2010)

Do you know if this is because of disease or is this natural?


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## PACMAN (Mar 4, 2010)

well I dont think my fish has a disease, so im going to say its normal.


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## characinfan (Dec 24, 2008)

It might be partially due to age but also to diet. You could try adding some food high in natural orange or red pigments. If your fish eat red pepper or carrot, they work well. There are also some commercial colour-enhancing supplements available.


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## PACMAN (Mar 4, 2010)

I usually feed my cichlids greens, but can I feed them carrot/peppers??? How do I go about preparing those two vegetables?


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## characinfan (Dec 24, 2008)

Slice the veggies thinly and add a small bit to see if the fish eat them. (You can leave the slices in overnight in case your fish prefer to eat at night). If they do, great. If they don't, just remove them from the tank.

Oh yeah, sweet potato is another option.


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## PACMAN (Mar 4, 2010)

so I leave the carrots raw, and just do thin slices and they will eat that? I even find it hard to chew. how would they break pieces off? or am i dicing the carrot? please advise  


red pepper is much softer and I can see them ripping them and eating small pieces


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## characinfan (Dec 24, 2008)

If the carrot is sliced thinly enough (like with a vegetable peeler), they should be able to bite through it. Alternatively, you could blanch the carrot (dip slices in boiling water) to soften it.


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## PACMAN (Mar 4, 2010)

cool, thanks! I'm going to try it tonight or tomorrow, I'll let you know how it goes!


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## characinfan (Dec 24, 2008)

Colour change as a result of diet will take weeks/months, but a bit of extra veggies in the diet doesn't hurt. If they like the veggies, just keep feeding them some on occasion.

Good luck!


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## Cory (May 2, 2008)

They are most likely males and what you are seeing is them coming into their adult colours. Males will be lighter orange with a blueish sheen to them that you can see well in the fins. They do tend to be more of a deep orange when they are younger and it fades with age. If you see good hints of blue in the fins and some in the body it is just a male and you can rest easy.


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## cichlidsnorth (Dec 2, 2009)

they are males, the males lighten up quite a bit more than the females, the dominate male will lighten up the most.


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## zray11 (Aug 18, 2010)

the color is due to the gender. light ones are males and brighter ones are females.

don't bother to slice the veg. they won't touch it. if you wanna try, try to make they food by yourself. try this

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/food_recipes.php

I got over 100 of them in Winnipeg. Sadly move to Toronto.............


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