A. cf. borellii

[jose_vogel]

Could someone explain me the differences between A102 and A105 (both A. cf. borelli and both could be named "Opal")?

I´m very curious because 20 days ago we went to catch borellii in the north of our country (we call that action "charquear") and found remarkable differences between the fishes depending of the "catching site".

Thanks in advance

 

[Mike Wise]

The original Opal (Opalita) was a domestic strain of A. borellii that was produced in the 1960s in the then DDR (East Germany). This stain produced fish with blue and green scales on the flanks, yellow and blue fins and red markings on the face. This strain seemed to disappear once the DDR was reunited with the west, and fish were more easily imported. Breeders became occupied with new species available to them. Now the fish that we call Opal is ANY of the super colorful, red face forms of wild A. borellii or their offspring. Super specimens are found in virutally all parts of A. borellii's range. They don't come from a single area. The photos in DATZ only show one form from the various populations listed, but most have several different color variations. At the moment all are considered A. borellii. With DNA studies, who knows what will happen in the future.