look, recently as a natural 'questioner of the status quo' - i have questions the merits and science behind TANNING AROWAWAS.

does it work? i cant tell as i only have one.

does anyone have any articles, info, etc of UV rays changing the colours of fish to be more vibrant?

not just arowanas, but other fish too.

Its pretty easy to see how natural sunlight improves the colour or red/orange goldfish in a pond vs tank, so I guess it would apply to other fish too. Those fish in pics people like Koji post of big aro breeders being pulled out of the ponds always look really nice, and you know they haven't had artificial lighting on them...

yeah but im thinking, is it the maturity of the fish taht does it?

i guess just open to discussion lol wondering other peoples take on it.

Pigmentation in response to UVA/B is a defence against UV induced DNA damage so UV lighting will increase the fish colour. Furthermore some fish are said to have reflectance in the UV range which increases their sexual attraction. Presumably this only happens in fish which live in the zone that experiences UV radiation.

http://biology.unm.edu/biology/kodric/P ... tterns.pdf

Its pretty easy to see how natural sunlight improves the colour or red/orange goldfish in a pond vs tank, so I guess it would apply to other fish too. Those fish in pics people like Koji post of big aro breeders being pulled out of the ponds always look really nice, and you know they haven't had artificial lighting on them...

I know what you mean but it's not exactly very scientific to compare a pond to a tank and say that sunlight is the only difference that could affect fish colour. :slfg:

Henward why don't you install one of those Solar Tubes in your shed to shine sunlight directly on top of Brutus?

I know what you mean but it's not exactly very scientific to compare a pond to a tank and say that sunlight is the only difference that could affect fish colour. :slfg:

Henward why don't you install one of those Solar Tubes in your shed to shine sunlight directly on top of Brutus?

renting, already thoguth of it lol

but also, those things filter out UVB anyways. Most of it if not all.

just interesting, i guess im questioning the rationale behind arowana tanning but when you see aros in ponds, its pretty hard to not be convinced, the redness is way more extreme.

a thought came to me the other day.... outdoor pond during summer.... wonder how hard it would be to heat it during summer lol

a thought came to me the other day.... outdoor pond during summer.... wonder how hard it would be to heat it during summer lol

Up in jafaland? Probably not particularly hard. Hundred meters of black irrigation pipe coiled up on the roof in the sun would do a pretty good job.

Might be easier to get a couple of tanning bed lights and throw them over the tank.

yeah solar heating thats what i was thinking. doable lol

but i think ill do it when i own my home.

My aro is now spooked by the lights , very strange :-?

My aro is now spooked by the lights , very strange :-?

most likely it could be from external source.

a red light from a tv or something can freak them out.

blacked the sides and back?

that helps.