Salvini Cichlid Color!

[btwaltz]

I recently purchased a Salvini from a very reputable store a couple days ago. It is about 2.5", and was in a tank full of other Salvinis that were in good health. I am noticing that my Salvini doens't have the full out yellow and bright coloration I know Salvinis can have. It is a pale dark green/grey color and of course is hiding all the time. It seems to have lost a little bit of color from when I first saw it in the tank at the store. Could this just be a temporary stress issue, a sex issue, or is there something else that could be causing this lack of coloration? What do you recommend I do to get it to show its nice bright Salvini colors? (Because it is relatively new, I cannot tell if it is eating a lot. It could be eating when I'm not present, but when I feed it cichlid floating pellets, it doesn't come out of hiding.)
Attached is a picture of my Salvini (I think it's a male?). It is only in a 10 gallon tank for now while it is small, but in a couple weeks it will be moved to a 40 gallon.

Thanks!

 

[Freakgecko91]

Looks like a mixture of stress and immaturity. First off, I'd add a large decoration, like a big piece of driftwood, this will help it feel much more secure. Also, throw a background on the tank, I suggest a piece of black poster board, works great. That will also help. Finally, add a few dither fish, like some neons, not a ton, maybe 6. Dither fish help shy fish know that it is predator free and safe to come out

 

[Freakgecko91]

Forgot to mention: try to get a cheap dither fish species, as salvini are pretty aggressive as they mature. Don't want to invest a huge amount of money into targets for aggression lol

 

[Rivers2k]

My Salvini is the same way. Was very yellow in the store but now he is in with my other fish he has lost allot of color. I have lots of hiding places too. You do need a cave or something for him to hide in. They spend time hiding among rocks while they are young. I am expecting mine to get more color as it grows.

 

[btwaltz]

Good to know i'm not the only one with this issue! I kept telling myself it would get better coloration with age, but It's always good to hear it from others. I have some plants in there as well as a decent sized rock and a small PVC tube that it hides in.

 

[Rivers2k]

Nope I think it is pretty common. The backing that freakgecko mentioned is also a good idea. That way they don't feel like they have to watch all directions. Dither fish are always good to.

 

[AtoZ Cichlids]

I think he looks bada$$ like that lol!

 

[HUKIT]

Genetics plays the largest part in coloration, stress may be playing a small part here but not nearly as much. Here are a few of my old first generation fish which were only 1-1.5" and you can see the difference in color, these pictures were taken the day after I brought them home.

The other issue is your goal to get a 40g would only be enough room for a single fish without tankmates, these fish are predators with a nasty set of teeth. I recommend spending a little time researching the requirements of these fish as they are not your average semi-aggressive fish.

 

[Rivers2k]

Mine looked like yours when I bought it but now looks like the OP's except with more red in the fins. I have him in with a larger JD and two larger Firemouths. I researched them and found out how nasty they are that's why I put him in with larger fish. Do you think mine will color back up? I also keep my temp a little warmer 79-80. Maybe that has something to do with it?

 

[HUKIT]

Mine looked like yours when I bought it but now looks like the OP's except with more red in the fins. I have him in with a larger JD and two larger Firemouths. I researched them and found out how nasty they are that's why I put him in with larger fish. Do you think mine will color back up? I also keep my temp a little warmer 79-80. Maybe that has something to do with it?

The temps are fine as that's what all my tanks are set to, adding the opposite sex will do wonders for Cichlid color and behavior. The only downside is obvious aggression issues that leads to such as conspecific and breeding problems.