# Will Angelfish stripes darken over time?



## zanardi (Nov 26, 2011)

Hello all. I'm brand new to the forum. I've been a long time fishkeeper. For the past twenty years or so I've had one tank or another going - both fresh and saltwater.

My latest project is a 65 gallon Angel tank. I've been searching all of the stores in my area for the best looking young Angels. My favorite variety are the basic silver striped fish with plain tails.

Anyway most all of the young Silver Angelfish (maybe quarter sized) I find do not have very well developed stripes. Some do - but most have either very faint stripes or partial stripes or "spots".

As the fish mature will the characterisitic stripes likely start to fill in and darken or is what I see now pretty much how the fish will look when it grows out?

Thanks!


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## BelieveInBlue (Jul 17, 2011)

When they're that small, yes the stripes will usually darken and thicken as they grow; it could aldo be that they're stressed out in the dealer's tanks, in which case once you bring them home you'll notice that the stripes darken quite a bit. I have some 2-3 inch zebras atm, and I find that their stripes come and go with their mood. Its quite normal for them to have dark stripes one moment, and very faded stripes the next.


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## xshellx (Nov 26, 2011)

i recently bought a silver angel from a lfs and found that stripes that were only light turned black within minutes of being put into the tank at home.

She is now settled and has paired up with my largest angel and her stripes are bold black and only get lighter if im messing around in the tank during cleaning. i think it must be a stress thing during cleaning and in the over stocked tanks in the lfs .

Im new to Angels too though so maybe someone in the know can confirm or not.

Michelle


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## Stellaluna (May 8, 2006)

The stripes are definitely going to show up best when the fish is comfortable and not stressed. Any kind of social disruption, water quality problems, moving the fish, etc. will cause it to lose definition in the stripes, as a rule, though this applies only to the wild-type silver - I can't comment on the other varieties!


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## BelieveInBlue (Jul 17, 2011)

Happens with my blue zebras (they have more stripes than the reg. silvers, but they also have a blue-green sheen). Whenever i'm doing maintenence, the stripes fade almost completely, but bout 5 minutes after I'm done the stripes come right back. They also darken when I'm about to feed them, and if I dont and just taunt them, the stripes turn very dark, and then fade once I walk away  Honestly, if the angels look healthy, are active and eating, and are otherwise in good condition, I wouldnt worry about the faded look too much. The stripes will darken nd intensify once they're ina much more comfortable surrounding.


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## MonteSS (Dec 8, 2008)

If you are looking for Silvers, consider spending a little more and get some wild Scalare angels. The colors are so much nicer that from the LFS.

Here is one of mine. It is an old pic and the subtle colors are even better now. As said, the stripes lighten and darken with mood.










...Bill


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## zanardi (Nov 26, 2011)

Thanks all for the input. I picked up some fish and indeed the stripes have darkened sine they have settled into my tank. My biggest concern was / is that the stripe in the middle of the body is simply incomplete on a couple. On some that middle stripe appears to be only a "spot". I'm curious to see if those incomplete stripes fill in with age or if the fish will always have the exact same pattern they do now as they grow.

Bill - your wild angelfish is beautiful. A lfs had some wild specimens while I was out looking last week. I don't recall if they claimed they were P. Scalare or maybe Altum? They looked big and healthy. The biggest problem for me is they were asking $ 45.00 per each. Pick up a half dozen of those and that is some serious money!


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