Redtail shark, no color???

[RyanBenson]

I bought a redtail shark yesterday and put him in my tank. All my levels are fine, <.25ppm ammo 0 nitrites and <5ppm nitrates ph-7.4-7.8.. I watched him all yesterday and he hid quit a bit. He is a grayish color and his tail is pink to almost transparent! I went to sleep last night thinking he was just scared and I woke up today to fine him with no improvement on color. Is he still just trying to get used to the tank??

 

[bshenanagins]

I bought a redtail shark yesterday and put him in my tank. All my levels are fine, <.25ppm ammo 0 nitrites and <5ppm nitrates ph-7.4-7.8.. I watched him all yesterday and he hid quit a bit. He is a grayish color and his tail is pink to almost transparent! I went to sleep last night thinking he was just scared and I woke up today to fine him with no improvement on color. Is he still just trying to get used to the tank??

Yeah give him a few days. Takes them a while to adapt to the environment but don't worry it will come around

 

[RyanBenson]

Yeah give him a few days. Takes them a while to adapt to the environment but don't worry it will come around

Ok good! Thank you!

 

[LadyApril83]

Happened to one of my tetras and I put a bit of stress coat in and the next day he was more normal black color and the next day he was back to normal. He was swimming sideways sometimes too which has never happened again.

 

[dragonfisher33]

did you buy it with color? if so, it just takes time to adjust

 

[FishCr8zy]

I bought a redtail shark yesterday and put him in my tank. All my levels are fine, <.25ppm ammo 0 nitrites and <5ppm nitrates ph-7.4-7.8.. I watched him all yesterday and he hid quit a bit. He is a grayish color and his tail is pink to almost transparent! I went to sleep last night thinking he was just scared and I woke up today to fine him with no improvement on color. Is he still just trying to get used to the tank??

What type of substrate do you have? Red tail sharks like dark ones. The darker the substrate, the more vivid their color. And usually lfs put rts in light colored gravel tanks so they turn grayish there. He may also get a bit darker as he gets used to your water.

 

[RyanBenson]

Happened to one of my tetras and I put a bit of stress coat in and the next day he was more normal black color and the next day he was back to normal. He was swimming sideways sometimes too which has never happened again.

did you buy it with color? if so, it just takes time to adjust

What type of substrate do you have? Red tail sharks like dark ones. The darker the substrate, the more vivid their color. And usually lfs put rts in light colored gravel tanks so they turn grayish there. He may also get a bit darker as he gets used to your water.

Yes I bought it with color, my substrate is white sand. Will he eventually get all his color back since I don't have black sand??

 

[bshenanagins]

Yes I bought it with color, my substrate is white sand. Will he eventually get all his color back since I don't have black sand??

No don't worry about the substrate. Just give him time to adjust like I said. Unless he's showing signs of sickness then there is nothing to fret over it just mean he's uncomfortable. If nothing changes in a week then something is wrong

 

[Autumnsky]

Make sure your pH is good.

I had a pH crash and I have never seen anything like the color mine turned, so just checking on the side of caution.

And all your parameters are in line. Do you have a pic you can post? A female can be a medium to dark grey color.

 

[RyanBenson]

Make sure your pH is good.

I had a pH crash and I have never seen anything like the color mine turned, so just checking on the side of caution.

And all your parameters are in line. Do you have a pic you can post? A female can be a medium to dark grey color.

I've exceeded my quota or whatever!

 

[RyanBenson]

No don't worry about the substrate. Just give him time to adjust like I said. Unless he's showing signs of sickness then there is nothing to fret over it just mean he's uncomfortable. If nothing changes in a week then something is wrong

Ok! Ill post after next Tuesday if nothing has changed!

 

[FishCr8zy]

Make sure your pH is good.

I had a pH crash and I have never seen anything like the color mine turned, so just checking on the side of caution.

And all your parameters are in line. Do you have a pic you can post? A female can be a medium to dark grey color.

Yup. It could be a female.

 

[FishCr8zy]

No don't worry about the substrate. Just give him time to adjust like I said. Unless he's showing signs of sickness then there is nothing to fret over it just mean he's uncomfortable. If nothing changes in a week then something is wrong

Well, in general, rts like dark colored substrate a lot more than light colored. And I have seen rts turn darker with redder tails when in tanks with darker substrate.

 

[bshenanagins]

Well, in general, rts like dark colored substrate a lot more than light colored. And I have seen rts turn darker with redder tails when in tanks with darker substrate.

I've noticed that rts and rainbows get washed out with a darker substrate, so I'm the devils advocate.

 

[Dallascowboys16]

See my rainbow shark has got great color on a black substrate so I don't really think that is has anything to do with substrate but maybe with tank mates. What fish are in with your shark? They could be stressing him out and causing the pale coloration.

 

[FishCr8zy]

I've noticed that rts and rainbows get washed out with a darker substrate, so I'm the devils advocate.

See my rainbow shark has got great color on a black substrate so I don't really think that is has anything to do with substrate but maybe with tank mates. What fish are in with your shark? They could be stressing him out and causing the pale coloration.

Hmmm. In my experience, rts have better color on darker substrate......
There are however, many other factors that could affect the color. Stress, tankmates, light, ph, etc.

 

[RyanBenson]

See my rainbow shark has got great color on a black substrate so I don't really think that is has anything to do with substrate but maybe with tank mates. What fish are in with your shark? They could be stressing him out and causing the pale coloration.

Hmmm. In my experience, rts have better color on darker substrate......
There are however, many other factors that could affect the color. Stress, tankmates, light, ph, etc.

The only tank mates right now are 5 comet goldfish, I had them in there just for an ammonia source while I was waiting for my next check for the redtail!

My future stock list is this:

1 albino bristle nose pleco
1 bristle nose pleco
5 tiger barbs
1 redtail shark
2 pearl gourami
5 ruby barbs
2 Bolivian ram cichlid


Maybe it will gain more color if there is a school in there!

 

[Autumnsky]

What size did you say the tank is?

I would consider just one male Pearl Gourami as sometimes they can get aggressive with the female. Unless you had a couple to several females, and a back up plan in case he gets cranky, like a easy return policy.

As for pics, when you get to 100 you will need to delete some. A pic would be helpful.

Also you can "darken" your substrate in her favorite hiding place and favorite corner with some flat decorative river stones. See if that doesn't change things. You could also add a dark blue or black background to darken things up.

 

[RyanBenson]

What size did you say the tank is?

I would consider just one male Pearl Gourami as sometimes they can get aggressive with the female. Unless you had a couple to several females, and a back up plan in case he gets cranky, like a easy return policy.

As for pics, when you get to 100 you will need to delete some. A pic would be helpful.

Also you can "darken" your substrate in her favorite hiding place and favorite corner with some flat decorative river stones. See if that doesn't change things. You could also add a dark blue or black background to darken things up.

Ok!

And how do I delete pics??

And I was thinking about adding a black background! Ill try the stones too!!

 

[Autumnsky]

Ok!

And how do I delete pics??

And I was thinking about adding a black background! Ill try the stones too!!

Well I looked and you only have 8 pics on your albums. Maybe when You first join there is some timing thing, I am not aware of it. You can post a question in the Forum Admin & Announcements about why it won't let you.

To delete pics you go to your album, click Edit Pics on the top right side and then mark the box to delete photo, and then click "save changes" underneath at the almost bottom of the page. But you should be able to have 100 pics in your albums... Ask on admin...

You can hang a t-shirt, towel or pillow case on the back of the tank just to get a sense of it, and see if the rts darkens some.

Here is my girl, she is 6.5 inches long 3.5+inches tall.