What causes speckle on fish

[Darbex]

As the title suggests I have a question as to what causes a fish to speckle with tiny black spots? I got two Discus and one is speckling if that is a word and the other is not. I dont know why it is happening and is it reversible?

[szidlon]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

Not seeing a pic, my first guess is that it's peppering.  It's not a desireable trait and happens a lot in the pigeon bloods.  If you have a dark background you can try lightening the background to diminish the visibility.

[Darbex]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

Is it reversible?

[szidlon]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

Not that I'm aware of, just keep them as stress free as possble.  The peppering is one of the reasons I try to stay away from pigeon bloods, but that's just my personal preference.  It's kinda like that sharpie that you put in your pocket without the top  8O , either disguise the spot(s) or learn to live with it.  Not trying to be a smarty pants about it, just stating my own experiences, with both the peppering and the sharpies   .

[nacra99]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

The peppering in Pigeon Blood and Marlboro lines of discus is a genetic trait.
They cannot cannot be removed and appear more prominent when the fish is stressed or if your tank is dark. (they work kinda like stress bars for camouflage)

Some people paint their backgrounds a light tan or blue in order to "brighten" the tank a little and reduce the appearance of peppering.

Nonetheless, peppering or not... i think PB's are still cool.

[Darbex]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

It is a yellow crystal is that a PB?

[nacra99]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

gotta post a pic...
it's sad but common names don't mean anything anymore... people name stuff whatever they want.

But if it is yellow, there is a high chance that its a PB

[Darbex]

Re: What causes speckle on fish

Not that is is a bad thing I just wanted to make sure it wasnt something that I was doing wrong.