Question About New Rainbowfish.

[jamster26]

Hi guys new fishkeeper here.

Just got my self 2 rainbowfish, shop keeper said they were boesemani but now I'm not so sure. When I got them they were both blue near the face and yellow near the tail and that was it. After a few hours of them being in my tank, a black band appeared horizontally across their bodies?? Also they seem to lose and regain their colour all the time. One of the fish's black band actually disappears and reappears all the time but the other has a permanent black band now I think

Just wanted to know if this was normal with boesemanis? Or are they actually axelrods or something? I can attach a pic at a later date if it helps but atm I have no camera

Any help is much appreciated.

 

[jamster26]

Also, does this black band indicate that they are both female??

 

[bikerfish]

Hi not sure if the black band means they are both same sex but I had a couple, they were slightly dif to yours in colour but they changed colour alot esp the male when he was feeling frizky he changed colour dramitically ,female not so much even when she was spawning , hope this helps
cathy

 

[hensonc4098]

Females are more drab in colour than the males. The males can fade or brighten their colours dependant on their mood, which sometimes shows as a black band.

Whatever their gender though, they would far prefer to be in groups of 6+ as they are naturally shoaling fish.

 

[alihar]

Black band could be an indication of stress.
How lOng has your tank been set up?
Did you cycle it?
As hensonc has stated they prefer to be in groups.
These guys get pretty big 8-11 cm and a shoal needs around a 4ft tank.

 

[zain611]

I get this similar thing with my flame guppy. A black mark appears on its body then another one appears sometimes then it dissappear which is weird. my tank is cycled by the way

 

[jamster26]

Hmm ok thanx for the info, never heard of the band being an indication of stress. I've had the tank setup for around a month now and I cycled it beforehand yes. I am planning on getting more of them soon and moving them to a bigger tank once they get too big.

I've done a bit more research and I'm sure they are both boesemani.. and that one of them is almost definately female. The other I'm not so sure about. Sometimes he/she will clearly have a vertical split of blue and yellow colour but other times it will appear drab and this black band will appear, then they both look the same. They are both very similar in size/shape too which makes it more confusing.

I've read somewhere that the males will have white fin tips, but other places have said that both genders will have these white tips And it's even more confusing because they both have these white tips!

It's probably because they are still young and havn't matured, but I would like to know now if they are both female or not (because I would like at least 1 male). Maybe I'll have to post pics once I get a good camera.

Thanks guys.

 

[drobbyb]

Here are some pictures:

M. boesemani

That should help you tell the difference between male and female

 

[crazyforcordoras]

Do you have a picture?

 

[mikev]

Black lateral band is possible in younger boesemanis, say up to 1.5", including well-maintained lines. It also may indicate hybridization with another Melanotaenia species (Melanotaenia, incidentally, means "Black Line"). If your fish is small it would also explain male's inability to maintain color, this may come up with age *if the fish is of decent quality" -- not always the case with lfs.

 

[jamster26]

Yeh I've been reading alot and that I shouldn't of bought my boesemanis from a chain fish store... oh well.. will see how they turn out. No picture yet, but one coming soon!

 

[drobbyb]

Hi Mike!

 

[mikev]

Hi Rob!

 

[wroberson]

Male Bosemani Rainbow fish are blue in the face and yellow at the tail. The female Bosemani are kind of brown and tan with some black scales. They are about the easier rainbow fish to sex. In general male rainbow fish have a high arch back while the female are more torpedo shaped. I can tell the sex apart even in very young rainbow fish. I think the term is called dimorphism. The look of the Bosemani is also the easiest rainbow fish to identify.

Many species sold at the LFS are not what you are buying. This is both a good and bad thing. For example, the Yellow Rainbow fish, Melanotaenia herbertaxelrodi and the yellow rainbow fish, Melanotaenia angfa at first look identical, but closer inspect will reveal that the anga's black band is broken up by 6-8 yellow scales.

If you are avid about rainbow fish or wish to learn more, you should read this free online book. It's 576 pages and made free by the author, Adrian Tappin. (peter.unmack.net/tappin/Rainbowfishes.2011.pdf) copying this link will take you straight to the book. It's a big file and will take a while. I thought I'd warn people. It takes a good 5 minutes for the pdf document to load.

If you enjoy pictures of rainbow fish (rainbowfish.angfaqld.org.au/Melano.htm). And to see my example on yellow rainbow fish. This is the most complete list. It's a web site and loads instantly. Knowing the information will mean the difference between buying a Millennium Rainbow, and a Red Rainbow and getting what you paid for.

I love these fish..