Amber, Orange or Red?

[larry lob]

hi all,

I was just wondering, what colour eyes do you all like, have and want for your fish?

Are there any deficiancy issues with non red eyes, are fish with other colours geneticaly weaker?

are fish with any colour other than red not worthy of breading?

i would love your input please.

Larry

[paulmat]

LARRY
It seems red eyes are the more desireable,esp. depending on the strain.
IMO If you have all the other desireable qualities like color,roundness,size the fish are definatly worth breeding ;)
Paul

[keno]

I really prefer the red eyes, but thats just me. I do have some fish with amber eyes and I wish they were red but I still love them anyway ;D

Ken

[mench]

As long as they have two ,any color is ok with me.I guess that red is tne most desireable,not a clue why,but for me as lokng as they are healthy ,eating and growing,any color is fine.I guess I should go back and read some of my books and see why red is the hot ticket....

Mench (ole brown eyes)

[DarkDiscus]

I would say that if the fish is great in every other way - size, shape, color etc., the color of the eye is less important to me. If, as I have been assured, red eye genes are dominant, you can work around lack of red eyes in your breeding program.

As for personal taste... As long as they eye is round and bright in color, I like it. Red is really attractive, but I've seen some great fish with other color eyes.

John

[Lynn]

Larry,

I prefer RED eyes...especially on PBs.
If I were picking fish that were equal in everyother way except for eye color, I would pick the red eyes. But that is my preference.
Any fish that has a bar across the eyes will not have completely red eyes or they may be amber. Red turks are like this.
As John said, if all other features are nice, then eye color can be worked around.


Lynn

[mutfish]

I prefer red, but I would never reject a fish based solely on eye color.
Also I think it's a good idea to take note of your fish's eyes when eating well, active and healthy as any change could be the first sign of something wrong....

[rcdg]

It depends on the color of the fish. I generally like red but amber looks nice with a blue bodied fish. JMO

[Al_M.]

Red Is the color, if I bought a grade A blue diamond by way of mail order and recieved a fish with a amber colored eye I would be on the phone in a minute for a replacement. >:( >:(red in most cases is the color prof. breeders strive for.
Al M.

[larry lob]

hello,

Thanks for your oppinions and responses.

To the breeders out there...... is there any genetic deficiancy with non red eyed fish?

look forward to your replies.

Larry

[fishfarm]

Almost all wild fish have red eyes except for Heckels which have amber eyes, Thus with all the crosses that exist I would suspect if the fish does not have red eyes there is some Heckel blood in there somewhere. Asia breeders worked for years to produce the snowflake with white body and white eyes. It's all in the eyes :alien: of the beholder. I look for healthy fish. I have Hazel green eyes, Am I a cull because it is not a common Human eye color? ;)

[Aquatic_Design]

Ken,
You're not really going to make me answer that question are you?! ;D ;) ;D
Donna

[Francisco_Borrero]

Hey Ken (fishfarm),
I know you know your stuff, but I just don't think it is accurate to say that almost all wilds except heckels have red eyes. There are a lot of yellow, amber and light orange eyes out there.
By implication, to say that if a fish doesn't have red eyes there must be some heckel in it, can not be true. Further, some heckels do have red eyes, also sometimes black, sometimes amber. And they seem to change the color of the eye with development, at least some of them.
JMO, I don't mean to offend nor antagonize.
Cheers, Francisco.

[Francisco_Borrero]

This is a wild discus, allegedly Nhamunda, from my home. In my opinnion, and that of others it is not a hybrid.
It has beautiful deep red eyes, that I hope are visible in the picture.

[jim_shedden]

Francisco : I have his brother............. ;D

Regards : Jim

[Francisco_Borrero]

Please show as the picture of the sibling....please ??

Cheers, Francisco.

[jim_shedden]

I will.................as soon as I can get the little bumblebee to stop for a moment. He has been the only one that I have not been able to get a good picture of..............but I am working on it. When he has eaten alot he slows down.......... ;D

[Steve_Warner]

Hi all,
This has peaked my interest. Can anyone point me to solid, scientific studies/info concerning eye color? I am wondering if the eye color is a defensive adaptation of the fish's environmental conditions, such that a red eye would stand out greatly against a light, sandy surroundings in a wild setting, but not in a shaded forest. Amazon travelers, can you clue us all in as to the environmental surroundings in a typical setting for discus......I have heard it is mostly sandy? When I look at a Heckel for example, I see a large black striped bar going directly through the eye region(possibly to conceal where the head area of the fish is), which would probably confuse a predator(due to shading, also) for just the time needed to flee an attack. Just some thoughts.


Steve

[fishfarm]

Hey Fransico,
You can box him up and send him my way, Beautiful fish!
I was just making observations on the wild fish I have imported, Greens from Peru and Browns from Columbia, all had nice red eyes. None of my heckles do. I've talked about this with other wild keepers and they thought the same thing, You may have noticed I said I "suspected". I am no expect and was just making observations! Thanks for imput! 8)

[Francisco_Borrero]

No worries Ken, and thanks for the compliments and nice words.
On another topic, I am from Colombia, but never had discus while there, nor have I been to their habitats. I know one day I will. I would be very, very grateful if you could, if possible, post some pictures of wild browns discus (or any discus variety) discus from. Is that a possibility ?

Thanks again. Cheers, Francisco.

[jim_shedden]

Francisco : This is the best I could do. The little critter is really hard to get on film. It does not show it in this picture but he does have a very deep red eye...............two of them in fact............ ;D

Regards : Jim

[Francisco_Borrero]

Thanks for sharing, and nice fish !
I am happy to hear he has 2 eyes, and both are the same red color.
Cheers, Francisco.

[cobalt]

there are tons of papers on eye pigmentation heradecy.
The cells are called iridophores.
I will dig up some papers on this.
There are no known studies on Discus eye but other chiclids there are lots.
Cobalt

[cobalt]

EGG SIZE AND LARVAL DEVELOPMENT IN CENTRAL AMAZONIAN FISH
ARAUJOLIMA CARM
JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY
44 (3): 371-389 MAR 1994
or
Development of red porgy Pagrus pagrus visual system in relation with changes in the digestive tract and larval feeding habits
Roo FJ, Socorro J, Izquierdo MS, Caballero MJ, Hernandez-Cruz CM, Fernandez A, Fernandez-Palacios H
AQUACULTURE
179 (1-4): 499-512 SEP 1 1999

also
The blue coloration of the common surgeonfish, Paracanthurus hepatus - II. Color revelation and color changes
Goda M, Fujii R
ZOOLOGICAL SCIENCE
15 (3): 323-333 JUN 1998

and
Blue chromatophores in two species of callionymid fish
Goda M, Fujii R
ZOOLOGICAL SCIENCE
12 (6): 811-813 DEC 1995

LIGHT-INDUCED COLOR CHANGES BY THE IRIDOPHORES OF THE NEON TETRA, PARACHEIRODON-INNESI
CLOTHIER J, LYTHGOE JN
JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE
88: 663-668 Part 5 DEC 1987

there are many more but these are interesting
Cobalt

IMO, The lack of red eyes does not make the fish a lower grade or detract from its beauty. Bing Seto, who is an International Judge has no preference of eye color---but eye shape is important! Leopard snakeskins typically have amber eyes so do leopards! I have seen fish win with amber eyes over those with red --it was a better fish!

Al M, Two years after a red eyed Blue Diamond changed to amber---would you still expect your money returned?? IME, a blue diamond 's eye color will change to amber more so than any other strain especially when breeding.No where is it written that an A Grade Blue Diamond must have red eyes. A preference should be stated--- if it is important prior to the purchase to avoid any misunderstandings. Joe ;)