The Ugly Duckling

Took me sometime to think of a title for this and this is one of the more commonly asked question and also one interesting fact about this. In this post, I’m going to share with you something that is usually not known to many and would probably be a good information for those venturing into either Black or Red fancy. As we all know that there are different grades of shrimp and likewise for Black or Red fancy, but to make things simpler I’ll just touch on BFT.

Is there a chance for my Ugly Duckling BFT Juv to be nicer when they grow up?

Possible!

We have seen on many occasions that a ‘not fully covered’ BFT will have the potential of having a full dark base (if it’s of dark base lineage) when it grows up. So, when do we know that the changes are still possible? Usually when it passes 1.2cm there is not much left for the shrimp to change in appearance, for example a very transparent BFT at 1cm, there is no chance this will become a dark base. Small adjustment are possible not major ones.

However, a very nice looking Juv will only become nicer as it grows up. Usually by 1cm one can actually tell the current grade of the shrimp, for example at 0.8cm, if it’s at Grade 3, there is still potential of going to Grade 2. If the shrimp is already Grade 3 at young adult, then its grading is kind of fix till it ages. Please note that there is almost absolutely no chance for a gene shrimp to become Graded ones, so please do not get ‘con’ by breeders who tries to pull a fast one. Getting Juv is really a draw of luck but a very good breeder is able to split out the gene from the graded before 0.8cm so there isn’t much chance to get a graded BFT from a pool of gene BFT. For BFT grading, please look at my earlier posting.

For example the above it is highly unlikely the belly area will have any advancement in future to cover up the transparent area. However, not all is lost, with this we can easily cross it with black ninja to “patch” them up. So if you’re a breeder and have these, you don’t necessary need to cull them away, as there are still ways to still make use of it. You can however start a new tank with it to fully utilize the gene in it. The face pattern does have potential, the lines/stripes are decent as well. It will take at least 2-3 generations before some results can be seen, so all roads lead to Rome, it only depends how much time you’re willing to invest in it.

You can also consider crossing it with earlier generations of 4 line to introduce the BFT genetics into them in a new tank. Many possibilities!

However, if the BFT Juv has lots of undesirable trait then it need to be cull away. Some of the undesirable trait that i look out for:

• Color:
  • base is white
  • more than 30% of shrimp is transparent
  • brownish
• Shape
  • Head to body ratio uneven (ideal 1:3)
  • legs too thin
• Pattern:
  • few lines
  • no lines

A short post! Hope you guys like it.

Cheers!