Many people love to keep the aquarium fish with beautiful, bright colors. However, not all fish of even the same species will always display their best colors all the time. Experienced fish keepers know a few tips to enhance aquarium fish colors. What can we do to have our fish show their peak coloration?
First, Fish naturally will not always display their best colors. Most fish will not have their adult form colors until they reach maturity. As a result, some fish species will become more colorful as they age.
Some fish colors will become brighter when they are in the mood for spawning. Both male and female of the same species might have the brightest colors during mating seasons. I have two female German Blue Rams. Even though they can’t have babies without a male friend, every once in a while, they would lay eggs, and during that time they have the brightest colors I have seen.
Some fish will display better colors when they are competing or show off aggressive.
For example, My male Dwarf Gourami typically looks like orange colored with some very light blue strips when he was aggressive toward other fish. Not only would he raise his fin, but all the blue strips would also become much brighter blue; thus he is the most beautiful in his “aggression mode.”
Second, Fish colors will become dull if the fish are under stress, or when they are not healthy.
To bring out the best colors of your fish, the first thing you need to do is to make sure your fish are in excellent health, and stress-free
To keep your fish healthy, you must provide them with a good environment.
Tip #1: Excellent Water quality
You need to use a good aquarium water conditioner. I recommend Prime. It not only removes chlorine in the tap water but also it can detoxify ammonia up to 48 hours. You must cycle your aquarium. (For more information on how to cycle a fish tank, please see Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle). You must have an efficient aquarium filter system to keep good biological filtration to ensure ammonia and nitrite stay at 0ppm at all time. We must do the weekly partial water change to keep the nitrate low, and to replenish the water buffer and minerals. An ideal temperature for a specific species is also needed to ensure the fish to feel the most comfortable.
Some fish also need to have hiding places available in the tank to feel safe, even if these hiding places are not necessary. Provide them with some plants and decorations. It is for them to retreat to when they are under threat. They will feel safer that way and thus less stressed.
Tip #2: Excellent Social Environment
Some school fish will be under stress if there are not enough of them in a school. They will not display their best color when they feel lonely. Having a good number of any school fish will bring out not only their natural behavior but also their natural colors.
Having compatible tank mates is another crucial factor. When a fish is under constant threat from one or more aggressive tank mates, the fish will be stressed. As a result, its color will fade. Make sure your tank’s social environment is balanced so that no fish is continuously being bullied or threatened by another fish.
Tip #3: Great Color Enhancement Fish Food.
Yes, what fish food you feed to your fish make a huge difference!
When everything else is excellent, the next thing is to provide fish with a proper diet. High-quality food naturally enhances the fish’s overall health as well as their colors. We highly recommend natural fish color enhance food, while avoiding the artificial ones.
Thank you!