i was wondering if the black ranchu or lionhead when they are about 1 to 2" are they black ?? or are they orange??? i've seen gold ones and white ones and orange ones and calico but not black !!! i was wondering wuts up with that ?? in the lfs i can see tons of little guys that is orange or gold or white and sometimes calico but i just never been able to see black ones !!! i really wanna get one... i was wondering do they start off with an different color and then turns color for the black ranchu and lionhead... if it does can u tell me which color to get ?? thx !!

True black starts black and stays black - although most develop white or bronzy underbellys as they grow older.

lol its funny how i've never seen black 1-2" lionhead or ranchu's >< *shrugz
is it really rare ??? or wuts the deal?? and wow u got a nice wen matte black oranda i'm craving for one!!

I heard they don't carry this black ranchu or lionhead in vancouver !!! so disappointed....

Baby fish start out a color called "green" - a kind of gray. They will then "de-color" or get their first colors as they age. Calicos and some soft gilled whites will de-color first - so when they are about 1/2 inch or so on many breeds you will begin to see calico fish in the group. Others take longer to take on adult coloration.

Blue fish seem to wait a LONG time to get their true colors - up to a year or more.

A young fish will often have large spots of black or dark brown on them. As they age, the black is commonly replaced with red/orange colors. Calicos typically stay calico, but the other fish that appear to be "dark" will commonly change to reds as they reach 1-2 inches.

You can often find young fish (under 3 inches) that are displaying "blue" (gray) colors or even black colors. Check the bellies of such fish. There is a slight difference in the belly color of most. A silver white belly indicates that there is a greater possibility of that fish retaining the black color longer. A yellowish or bronzish belly indicates that the fish will most likely change to red/orange in a bit - a month or year. Any black fish that is carrying even a spot of red has a high probability of changing to all red at some time in its life.

Black is a very difficult color to get solidly - a good black is a tough thing. What appears to be a good black for the first 4 years may bronze out or turn red or red/white after a bit.

It is rare that you will find a "black baby" fish - most will quickly revert to other colors. The older the fish is when it is still displaying full black color, the better chance you have of getting a "black fish".

I raised a set of blue Lionhead this past year. All appeared black or blue - but now that they are reaching their first birthday I would guess that over 85% of them are changing to white or white/red. Black is tough.

yeah .. jet black looks really nice !!! but i'm sure the white or white red ones are still as cute !!! i wish i had those to choose here in vancouver !