Albinism is a mutation that can occur in almost any animal species, including humans. The word is derived from the Latin “albus” = white. The expression of the mutation is admittedly different. In some forms of albinism, some melanin (the black cell pigment) is still produced, in other forms hardly any or none at all. A conspicuous feature of albinos are the red eyes, which come from the fact that the blood vessels in the back of the eyes shine through. In addition, albinos are lighter colored on the body up to a complete white animals. But there is also the paradoxical case of black colored albinos with red eyes. This can happen when the genes for melanin production in different parts of the body are located in different genetic regions and are only partially affected by the mutation.
The Ancistrus Gold Albino is an albino breeding form, in which all black is missing, but the red color cells in the body are strongly developed. This is the reason for the intense golden-orange coloration. The eyes are always red in this breeding form. The fish enjoy great popularity because of their pretty color. Normally such fish are traded only in relatively small specimens, most often in sizes of 3-6 cm. They reach this size relatively quickly. Fully grown animals, however, become about 15-16 cm long. By then they are often many years old, so actually priceless, if you count care costs and labor. But sometimes – even if very rarely – such chunks come to us!
For our customers: the fish have code 204061 (2-3 cm) to 204068 (12-15 cm) on our stock list. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
