# Angelfish - Ever seen a completely transparent one?



## pdxfishguy

I am breeding angels right now and in one of my batches I came out with about five angels that range from completely transparent to transparent centers radiating to varying degrees of black on at the outermost edges of the fins. Very cool, but I haven't seen any like them before. They are healthy. I'd be interested in knowing if anyone has seen this or know what to call them.

Jon

PS. I'll have to see if I can get some pictures to post.


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## SueM

Yes pdxfishguy, I have seen it before. Especially in my Platinum strains. 
they are devoid of pigment, and need to be kept in very subdued lighting. 
Water quality is also very critical, they have less tolerance for any chems what so ever.
Good luck  if you can get them past 6 months, you have a rarity


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## GForce

What you have described is what is called a Blue Blushing or a German Blue Blusher. Both of your parent fish must carry a stripeless gene. Two stripeless genes form a "blushing" angelfish. Are the gill covers clear? The gill area should look pink. Koi angels are gold marble blushers and are highly sought after but are hardly rare. If both of your parent fish carry one stripeless gene, 25% of your fry should have been blushers of some variety. What kind of angels were the parents? If they were anything other than Silver Ghosts, you should have other varieties of blushers in your spawn too.

I am going to assume you had silver ghosts for simplicity sake.
Genetic notations using The Angelfish Society standards:

Sivler Ghost ( +/S) x Silver Ghost (+/S) where + = wild type gene and S= stripless

This cross will throw the following providing there are no other hidden genes. it is possible for there to be a hidden gold gene since gold is recessive:

25% silver (+/+)
50% Silver Ghost (+/S)
25% Blushing (S/S)

If there is a hidden gold gene in both parents the result is a little different.
25% of the fry will be gold based. About 25% of the golds will be blushing(sunset blushing) the break down gets a little more complicated because the genes are on different alleles and are completely independent of each other. But they are predictable if you can determine the gentics of the fish.

Sue I have to disagree with you about being difficult to raise. They are no more difficult to raise than any other angel. In fact most blacks are harder to raise than blushers. I was very successful with my black blushing strain a few years back until I was wiped out by a hex outbreak. The free swimming stage is where you have to practice some extra care, but after that just treat them like any other angel brood. And the lighting thing? Can I ask where you got your information? I have been breeding angels for years and that is a new on on me...especially with blue blushers. Dr. Joanne Norton has some documentation on how lighting effects color development on some varieties, but thats all it effects.


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## GForce

Sue, I almost forgot...Tell Pete we all miss him on AB!!! I will be in contact soon for a big ol' box of plants! Been wanting to do that for a long time.


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## SueM

I'll tell him, We miss you guys too  

I originally used Gold's with allele Stripeless gene. That had no blushing phenotype to develop my Platnums. The "transparent" I believe was a result of my trying to breed out any iridop*ors. The Gold's that had the darker orange color trait I introduced with my Marbles to strengthen the orange carotenoids, Which I eventually used to develop a non Blushing Koi.

Here's a paragragh by Angels Plus that you might find interesting.........

Environmental Influences: Many people assume angelfish genetics control the look of our angelfish almost exclusively, however, the appearance of our angelfish (the expressivity of the genes) is very much influenced by environment. Most, if not all color genes are influenced by environment, some more than others. Genes like Dark and Marble are not affected much. Genes such as Gold, Smokey, Albino and Gold Marble are intermediate in their susceptibility to environmental conditions, whereas, genes like Halfblack, wild- type, Zebra and Pearlscale are highly affected by environment. Fish containing the Stripeless gene appear to be on the highest end of the spectrum of variability due to environment. In other words, Stripeless and/or it's modifiers appear to be very susceptible to the affects of environment, especially in angelfish that normally exhibit the orange pigment layer, like Koi or Sunset angelfish.


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## GForce

Yes but how does lighting effect a blue blusher? There's no orange or any other color for it to effect? I was just discussing this topic briefly with Madeto today regarding HB's and Koi's. Yes in HB's, smokies, zebra's and angels witrh orange expression, lighting can effect how the colors are expressed.The genetics for the expression must be there, but proper lighting can bring what is already there to its full potential.


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## SueM

Not sure how it affects Blue Blushers, havent tryed them yet.
The only ones that I use lighting affects on are the 1/2 blacks. I heard if from a knowledgeable breeder, tryed it, and that batch had a much richer black.


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## GForce

I don't have any experience with Halfblacks, but I just got good sized group that I will be working with. SOme are already turning, others still look like silvers and ghosts. I have suspicion that these were recently outcrossed to wilds just based on the finnage, but I haven't confirmed it. Even if they don't turn they will be some of the best looking silvers and ghosts I have gotten my hands on in a long time.. I can't wait to work with them.


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## SueM

If they were back crossed to wild, they will be strong  
hmmmm, maybe we can swap good genes. I have some wilds I want to 
reintroduse into my 1/2 blacks, but arent interested in each other yet :?


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## GForce

I wouldn't mind swapping. I have about 35 of the little piggies( about 5 of them are turning at dime size...others haven't quite yet shown the markings.) And 8 more coming from Tarmack...a totally different line. To save $$$ tho I bought the non-expressers. As long as the genes are there..thats all I care about. Tarmacks fish seem to go for big dollars when he sells them. The only way I could afford them was to get the ones that didn't express. 

So I will have plenty of fish to swap. Believe me I won't have enough space for the # a pairs I may be pulling from these tanks as they mature.


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## SueM

Man do I hear that !!!
What is it about angels that makes us want to set up 30 pair tanks, and 50 grow-outs!!  
I guess once they are in your blood, there's nothing better.


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## GForce

Yup, but I have been trying other stuff too. I have done albino aeneus cories and Bolivian Rams and now my Bosemani rainbows are constantly spawning all over them place. Don't know if I will do anything with them....there doesn't seem to be too much demand for them so I may just leave them in the community tank.

I do want to try my hand at bristlenose. I wan't longfins, but the budget right now is kicking me inthe teeth. A few zebras would really be cool, but can't afford them. $$$200+ each...yikes!


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