Silver angelfish.

Question
Hello

I've had a silver angelfish for for about a year. Lately it's been turning redish around the mouth and upward to it's dorsal fin. He's quite young with a body diameter of maybe 3 inches. He acts normally and eats well, but these new red marks have me worried. Any thoughts? I was also wondering how long agelfish usually live.

Thnaks in andvance.

David E. Finol
Maracaibo, Venezuela.

Answer
Hi David;

If it has been happening slowly, it could be from the foods you feed or he may be just showing his adult coloration now. Color enhancing foods, brine shrimp or spirulina algae can enhance reddish coloration that you didn't see before. If a fish has an infection that causes redness in those areas they usually act sick along with the redness. Take a look at some pictures of adult angels on the internet and see if those with reddish or orange on their foreheads are similar in coloration. Some of the gold varieties have it and if the fish has those genes it may exibit the same colors even though the fish is a silver. Here are a few links I found with some;

http://tinyurl.com/jwv2j
http://home.twcny.rr.com/angelfish/images/goldblush.jpg
http://www.geocities.com/shadowsoftherainforest/angelfish.html
http://tinyurl.com/o4wwb
http://tinyurl.com/rux77

If the fish has an infection instead, "Maracyn 2" or Kanamycin are the medicines to use. They absorb inside the fish to treat them.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins