Underwater environments offer home home aquarists the opportunity to connect with nature up close and personal. Over time, however, many fish keepers notice that the vibrancy of their aquarium inhabitants begins to fade. To restore your fish to looking their best and to maintain that healthy coloration, there’s a few things to consider.
Why Do Colors Fade?
Fading colors can be a caused by any one or a number of factors from inadequate or improper nutrition, lack of proper lighting, stress or disease. To achieve and maintain beautiful colors, you’ll need to try to identify which of these factors is impacting your fish. In some cases, it may be more than one.
Diet’s Role
A healthy and balanced diet is one of the best ways to enhance your fishes’ coloration while reducing stress. Select a daily base diet that is suited to your specific aquatic pets (carnivorous, herbivorous, etc.) and then supplement with other diets from the same maker, frozen foods and potentially vegetable matter depending on your tank’s population. The adage, “you get what you pay for” applies here. A quality food is an absolute must and is should offer a balance and well utilized nutrient mix. Additionally, talk to your local aquatic professional about supplemental foods that can round out your food offering without negatively impacting the overall digestibility.
Other Tricks
Certain species of fish are less social than others and if not placed in an optimal environment, they will struggle to thrive and be under stress that will limit their ability to get their full coloration. For example, aggressive tank mates can stress out less aggressive aquarium fish and prevent them from ever developing desirable coloration. When it comes to selecting tank decorations, you can also add items that provide a contrast in color and offer safe hiding places.
Nature’s Best
Certain species of fish are naturally more colorful than others. Guppies, mollies, swordtails and dwarf gourami are great options for adding color to a freshwater aquarium. Researching your options will the help of your local aquatic professional can provide an ideal selection with the color and movement you desire.