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Wildtype confusion

Stumpy

Stumpy

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Hi all, just wanted to clear up some confusion I'm having on colour types.

From reading around on some nicely established and well informed (using my general observational skills here*) sites, I got the impression that there are two types of black axolotl.

One is a black wildtype, where the dark pigmentation has likely been preferentially bred,
and yet they still present iridosphores on gill branches and eyes and such as is typically wildtype.

The other, which I can't seem to be clear on but seems to be entirely black and lacking iridosphores. Yes, I do get that melanoid is derived from presence of melanin, but I'm just quite a bit confused. Are these infact just wildtype strain with the iridosphores bred out?
 
Darkmaverick

Darkmaverick

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Melanoids do not have iridisphores like you correctly said.

Melanoids can come in many colours, yellows, brown, black, grey, white, although the black 'velvety' looking type is more commonly encountred.

On that note, melanoids do not classify as a 'wildtype with no iridosphores'.
 
Stumpy

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Brilliant! Thanks for that, I was kind of getting worried. I've bumped into a few people who were under distinctly different impressions, not to mention a few spontaneous shouts of "Melanoid!" at what I'd thought was quite distinctly a wild type.

But yes, thanks for clearing up this confusion :)
 
Daniel

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The easiest way to determine whether an Axolotl is melanoid or not is to look closely at it's eyes: If it has a shiny ring of iridophores, it is definitely not melanoid. If it does not have this ring, it certainly is.
 
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