Emp Angel not changing???

[7duster3]

I bought my emperor angel maybe 6 months ago in his second set of color changes (almost an adult) and he seems to not want to change. Does it normally take this long to change? The lfs said that he would have about 3 more months till full adult coloration but I've yet to see a difference. He is the king of the roost in my 135 FOWLR. I feed 2-3 times daily with Angel formula, clams, spiralina (sp), and an occasional spectra thera +A. Any ideas as to speed the process up?

 

[rcreations]

I read that feeding New Life Spectrum pellets helps with the color change in emperor angels.

 

[pastor b.]

Don't feel bad. I have a 10" Queen angel fish in my 150 which has streamers and its crown,but hasn't turned blue around the head. My Corris wrasse is the same way. I've had it since it was a juvenile, now it's 8", but still doesn't have the deep blue body with light blue speckles. A friend of mine has a Blue faced angel fish,which doesn't have its full blue and yellow face,and its size is 8".. I don't know why it takes longer for some fish to change colors, while others it seems to happen quickly. But what I do suggest is to keep giving your fish vitamins and keep your water quality good,as this may be the key to our fishes adult morphism .

 

[crypt keeper]

How big is he? Can you post pictures?

 

[7duster3]

Has anyone else had any luck with the color enhancing pellets? I'll give that a try and see what i get out of it. He is about 5 inches long. I have a bad quality pic of him, ill have to get some better shots tomorrow. This is a few days out of qt, in this pic he looks stressed from the smaller tank. Could that have stunted his development?

Almost all faded spots are gone and more yellow has shown through almost to the bottom fins but he has remained like that for some time.

 

[crypt keeper]

IMO and with my own emp you arent feeding him enough variety. Check my emp thread out in the aggressive section. Also They take till almost 6 inches to fully turn from what I have been reading.

 

[srfisher17]

I agree with cypt keepers post; more variety will help. Does he have plenty of mature LR to graze on? Try adding some dried algae/seaweed and some good, meaty frozen stuff. Mysis, spirulina enriched brine etc. I've raised a few large angels from juvi to adult and they all took longer than I expected. I have an Emperor now that is about 1/2 changed, tail has recently turned mostly yellow, most of the mask has changed. I bought him 2 years ago as a juvi, about the size of a silver dollar.

 

[ccampbell57]

There are a lot of factors that cause an emperor to change. In the wild it is very common to see a 4-5" emperor in full adult coloration. You see this more in the areas where the water is pristeen and there is not a lot of "other" outside obstructions. My emperor took about 3 years to change from a 2" juvie to a 7" full adult and he is still changing at 11+".
You need the following to enable the color change and keep the bright colors:
- New Life Spectrum pellets - IMHO these are the best food that I have found and they are my main source of food for every one of my fish.
- Formula 1 and 2 pellets - For a mix of meaty and veggie diet
- PE Mysis - I feed 2-3 times a week to keep the fat in their diet...
- I mix in Angel formula cubes, spirolina cubes, and a home made meaty cube
- Seaweed - I feed 4-6 sheets every 2-3 days
- Vitachem suppliment
- Garlic
- Selcon
Variety of food is key.