Australian Rainbows

[natalie265]

I have a group of Australian Rainbows that i got as juveniles about 7 months ago. A friend of mine has a couple of them in his tank, and they are stunning. Mine are very, very plain. I understand that rainbowfish become more beautiful and colorful as they age, but so far, mine look nothing like the fish in my friend's tank. I don't know the scientific name of the fish i purchased, nor does my friend know the scientific name of his, so i realize i might not have purchased the same fish that he did. But, even if i didn't get the exact type of rainbowfish that my friend has, i still keep hoping that they get some color soon. Am i being impatient, or am i stuck with a school of ugly fish?

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Rainbows very much follow the story of the "ugly duckling." Given time, those "drab" looking fish will turn into stunners, in something like two years from hatching.

 

[natalie265]

Two years! Oh my, that's quite a wait! I think i'll throw some platies in there meanwhile so i can get some color while i wait on the rainbows to mature. Thank you!

 

[Jamepsss]

Two years! Oh my, that's quite a wait! I think i'll throw some platies in there meanwhile so i can get some color while i wait on the rainbows to mature. Thank you!

Rainbows usually start showing some of their colour when they reach about 5cm. Females are usually pretty drab though, is there any chance they could be female?

Australian Rainbows could be anything really, it's a lazy way for the shops to label them. Do you have a pic of them? There's a couple of 'bow experts on here who will be identify and sex them for you.

 

[drobbyb]

"Australian rainbows" are a man made species. They could be anything really and often times they remain drab for their whole lives unfortunately. Sometimes the species used to create these hybrids does result in a pretty fish though. Females aren't as pretty as the males and it is possible that you may have gotten females.

 

[natalie265]

This is what my friend's australian rainbows look like, and what i was hoping mine would look like:

http/www.loumarks.com/melanotaenia_splendida_australis.jpg

http/media.photobucket.com/image/australian%20rainbow%20fish/malomir/000_3041.jpg

My fish are at the office, and i'm not, so i can't photograph them now, but i will ASAP. They are all pretty much solid silver with yellow fins. They are well past 5 centimeters. The largest is probably twice that. They could all be female. There's five of them, but i took the last 5 that they had, so if someone else picked the bigger brighter males, i suppose i could have ended up w/all females quite easily.

 

[Jamepsss]

This is what my friend's australian rainbows look like, and what i was hoping mine would look like:

http/www.loumarks.com/melanotaenia_splendida_australis.jpg

http/media.photobucket.com/image/australian%20rainbow%20fish/malomir/000_3041.jpg

My fish are at the office, and i'm not, so i can't photograph them now, but i will ASAP. They are all pretty much solid silver with yellow fins. They are well past 5 centimeters. The largest is probably twice that. They could all be female. There's five of them, but i took the last 5 that they had, so if someone else picked the bigger brighter males, i suppose i could have ended up w/all females quite easily.

Sounds like you have a different species to be honest. The Australis in those links are that colour from a young age. The fish you have sound like chequered rainbows to me (Melanotaenia splendida inornata). These are not the best looking rainbows but they do look nicer as they get bigger. If the fins are yellow they are probably males.

Please correct me if I'm wrong Drobby, I'm still learning about rainbows.

 

[drobbyb]

It's possible that they are inornata. Do they look like this guy?

 

[natalie265]

It's possible that they are inornata. Do they look like this guy?

The fins are exactly like that, but the body is more streamline in shape and not as colorful--they are more a flat silver. I'm disappointed that i didn't get the fish i really wanted. My own fault for not doing more research