Pretty fish not so pretty

[Anna94]

My lemon tetras don't look very lemon-y. They look more grey with little strips of yellow on their fins. Is this how lemon tetras are supposed to look or is their whole body supposed to be more yellowish? Same with my Celebes rainbows. They don't look as pretty as they do on Google. I'm feeding my fish Omega One Super Color Flakes. Will this food help them color up more?

 

[Lev]

How old are they?

 

[Anna94]

How old are they?

Idk. I bought them from my lfs. I'm guessing they're adults.

 

[Lev]

They might not be, most of the fish I bought haven't been fully grown yet. I was concerned my rainbows looked really Grey before realizing they were just puppas lemon tetras as juveniles only have a hint of yellow and it deepens as they get older. How big are they?

 

[Anna94]

They might not be, most of the fish I bought haven't been fully grown yet. I was concerned my rainbows looked really Grey before realizing they were just puppas lemon tetras as juveniles only have a hint of yellow and it deepens as they get older. How big are they?

This is what they look like. Sorry about the bad pic quality. The pics were taken on my phone. They look to be about 2-3.5".

 

[Lev]

To me they just look like juveniles? I thought about getting some of these guys but the LFS didn't have any for a while - my dad used to keep them when I was just a little potato . I would have thought yours will colour up as they mature

 

[Barliman]

They might just be juveniles (some platys I've been raising since early last summer are just getting their adult colors now). What's the background on the tank? If it's clear with a light wall behind it, that might be causing them to "wash out."

Also, have you checked your water quality to see if anything might be stressing them?

 

[Anna94]

They might just be juveniles (some platys I've been raising since early last summer are just getting their adult colors now). What's the background on the tank? If it's clear with a light wall behind it, that might be causing them to "wash out."

Also, have you checked your water quality to see if anything might be stressing them?

As of Monday, nitrates were between 10 and 20, nitrites were 0, and ammonia was between 0 and 0.25. The background is just my brown wall for now, but I plan on getting a background for it soon.

 

[Barliman]

As of Monday, nitrates were between 10 and 20, nitrites were 0, and ammonia was between 0 and 0.25. The background is just my brown wall for now, but I plan on getting a background for it soon.

I'd give it some more time, then and see if time and good food doesn't bring their color out. You might want to add frozen brine shrimp to the menu: fish love that.

 

[Anna94]

I'd give it some more time, then and see if time and good food doesn't bring their color out. You might want to add frozen brine shrimp to the menu: fish love that.

I'm feeding them Omega One Super Color Flakes and frozen Bloodworms.

 

[Barliman]

I'm feeding them Omega One Super Color Flakes and frozen Bloodworms.

Both good foods (I like the Omega brand). I'd only give them bloodworms as an occasional treat, like once or twice a week, and follow it with frozen brine shrimp. Some fish can get constipated or bloated from bloodworms, and the shrimp act as a laxative.

 

[Anna94]

Both good foods (I like the Omega brand). I'd only give them bloodworms as an occasional treat, like once or twice a week, and follow it with frozen brine shrimp. Some fish can get constipated or bloated from bloodworms, and the shrimp act as a laxative.

Good to know. I will look into buying frozen brine shrimp when I get my next check.