parrots

[zull]

I am having a problem with my jellybean parrots, my ammonia reading in my tank is 0, but my tank has not finished cycling yet. I have read everthing that I could get my hands on about cycling. My one blue parrot is turning black, and the blue and pink one where up at the top of the tank, the little yellow one seems to be doing fine, we have a 60 gallon tank. I have done water changes every day. This morning I woke up and they are begging for food and swimming like normal, but I thought for sure I would have lost them to new tank syndrome by this morning. I don't want to lose them. My husband has called them the tweedles. I think they are the most intersting fish we have ever had. Yes I know there dyed. Can any one give me any sugestions.

 

[cichlidmaster]

Can any one give me any sugestions.

Just one..............get used to it!!

The so called jelly bean parrots are artificially dyed to attain those colors.

The process is very painful to the fish. Dye is injected just under the epidermus to produce these bright colors.

The dye will eventually fade and what you are left with is a normal colored blood parrot.

You are also left with a fish that is horribly deformed and has a shortened life (due to the dying process).

CM

 

[teknikz]

how old/big are ur parrots?

ive got 3 also....my lil yellow 1 and my black 1 (still a baby....not dyed so thats why its black) change colour all the time....they do it when their moods change

from the name it suggests ur parrots are dyed tho......but if its goin black then maybe its not been

 

[Alien Anna]

I don't know much about the process because I believe it may be illegal in UK (still, that doesn't stop unscrupulous importers), but as I understand it the dye will eventually wear off and the parrot will go normal parrot colour (which seems fairly bright and interesting to me so I don't know why people feel they have to change it).

I suppose it could be a side-effect of the dying process, kind of like a tattoo going bad.

Since you already have the fish all you can is try to get your tank cycled as quickly as possible, keep that water as good as possible and feed the best food (plenty of live food, I recommend). If you are lucky, your fish will simply turn their natural colour and continue to live healthily as parrot fish. If not, at least you did your best.

For future reference, nature already makes fish in a spectacular array of colours so you don't need to look far.

 

[mrV]

Something about blood parrots: http/www.cichlidae.com/askpam/p034.html

 

[zull]

sorry it took me so long to answer, yes i have three one pink, one blue and a baby yellow, not sure on the age though. Only had the pink for 5 weeks and the blue for 4, the little yellow for a week. They are my favorite,but pinky is my favorite.

 

[ChiclidBoy]

THE ARE DYED AND THE LOOSE PIGMENT U SCREWED UP WITH UR SELECTION OF FISH AND I HOPE U WONT MAKE THE MISTAKE OF BUYING MORE

 

[fish&chips]

is this 1 of the breads of fish that is cross bred and man made
by sum 1 who swapped the eggs and sperm is is that just the other tpye???

 

[zull]

thanks for everyones response. My tank is finally near the end of cycling, and all the fish seem to be doing fine. They eat like little pigs. thanks again. i think everyone is intitled to their oppinion. i have read everything about these fish and if they die i would bye more, i find them more entertaining then i do most fish, and i think that they are so darn cute.

 

[dwhite93]

My parrot (well, ex-parrot) got black streaks on her fins 7 tail. I did research online and looked at a book on cichlids at a pet store and found out that parrots get black streaks when they are getting ready to spawn. My parrot hid in the cave & laid eggs, then a few days later her black streaks faded. I can't say for sure, but it might be that yours are getting ready to spawn as well.

 

[fish&chips]

THE ARE DYED AND THE LOOSE PIGMENT U SCREWED UP WITH UR SELECTION OF FISH AND I HOPE U WONT MAKE THE MISTAKE OF BUYING MORE

why not HE LIKE THEM AND ALSO LEAST HIS TAKING THEM FORM SUM MADE SCREWED UP TWISTED PERSON THATS DOING IT

if sum 1 can do it to them then think wot care they get in tanks

very nice you to do this not my choice fish im notto keen and think its wrong to dye them but RESPECT TO YOU for taking them and looking after it

but i hope WISH you dont encourage them to do it and only bought them as they where availble

 

[fish&chips]

also dont parrots turn black in deffence when upset angry or just stressed

they change color to black then come back to orig form

i may be very wrong but thought i saw this sum where online

 

[zull]

I'm still not a 100% sure at what is going on but i have noticed today that the black is disappearing, only it's tail is black. I am now wondering if it was only stress due to high ammonia levels. They all seem to be doing fine. Thanks for the help.

 

[JimG]

I'm still not a 100% sure at what is going on but i have noticed today that the black is disappearing, only it's tail is black. I am now wondering if it was only stress due to high ammonia levels. They all seem to be doing fine. Thanks for the help.

Hi Zull -
I started keeping Blood Parrots about a year ago, I know they are artificially hybridized but I don't care about that. Mine are quite healthy, good eaters and strong swimmers. Dying is a nasty process and I would never buy fish I knew were dyed. My BPs are reddish-orange, orange, yellowish-orange and yellow respectively and have grown from 3" when I first got them to over 6" (their growth slows after about a year when they get to aprox 5-6" and they can live 10-15 years when they can be as big as an oscar!). They get black streaks on them when stressed or when driven by their hormones to spawn. Being hybridized between two species distant enough from each other and their common ancestor male BPs are sterile but female BPs' eggs can and have been fertilized by other closely related cichlids like convicts. The black stripes may just go away with the ammonia.

Cheers
Jim

 

[cichlidmaster]

Just curious, but where did you hear that bloody parrots can get as large as an oscar??

Oscars can get up to 16" and I highly doubt that a BP can attain that size.

I would love to see a 16" BP!!

CM