mcdonald.kk

I've had a yo yo loach (his name is Malcolm) for a couple of weeks now and I've noticed he has recently become more reclusive. This evening, when I put some bloodworms in for everyone I noticed that Malcolm was very pale looking when he emerged from his driftwood. Is this normal or a sign of stress? Once he had been out for a bit chowing down his color returned to its usual vibrancy. Do yo yos grey out when they sleep?

Butterfly

Not sure about when they sleep. Loaches need to be kept in groups of three or more so it could be stress.
Carol

FL CommunityFans

I currently have 3 yoyos and 1 has been very pale since we brought him home. The other two look great. I'm not sure if he's sick or that's just him. It sounds similar though.

primerowan

I just had this happen to me! I have five yoyos, and woke up one morning to find three of them stark white/pink instead of black and white! After some research, I found that yoyos and other loaches "fade" or grey out when a) under stress, and b) resolving hierarchy issues amongst themselves. Mine went back to their normal colors within a matter of an hour or so.

mcdonald.kk

I bet it's because I added a school of neons to the tank which is definitely stressful. He regains his color in a minute or so when he fades out so maybe he is starting to get used to the neons....? Thanks for the feedback Prime, Community, and Butterfly. ps-I am aware of the loaches needing to be in groups. The guy that owns the store told me that yo yos are semi-aggressive toward each other and are best kept in groups of 6 or more otherwise they pick on each other until only one is left. I will be upgrading my tank this spring and plan on adding plenty of buddies for Malcolm. =)

primerowan

I'm just pleased that I was able to help - I had the exact same panic attack yesterday when it first happened!

In terms of the loaches needing friends - I agree. I have five in my tank and they are wonderful to watch together - they do all their exploring as a group and it's really quite neat.