How many different color phases for a porcupine puffer?

[kv2wr1]

I have seen on various sites blue, red, yellow and also some gray or tan color variations of the porcupine puffer Diodon Holocanthus. I was just wondering how many color phases there were and if they are indigenous to certain areas of the ocean?

My yellow when I first got him was yellow with light brown blotches and 3.5 inches. A month later he is still a bit yellow, but becoming more brown in the blotches and growing like a weed at almost 4.25 inches. Do they darken as the get older as well? The coloring is still nice and he is fat & happy. I offer a variety of foods twice daily and add selcon & vita-chem.

[bertie 83]

This is a question for Corvus. He has touched on colour morphs of the porc before, I think the blues etc are just young diodons and they grow out of it, darkening and intensifying their brown blotches. Don't take my word as gospel, wait for Corvus to clarify lol

[Corvus]

Studied small D. holocanthus larvae are yellow with reddish spots. I don't think the colors of juvenile D. holocanthus of different areas have ever been examined in a scientific way, usually they are olive to tan. I'm not sure if there are significant differences at all. The blue ones are most likely not D. holocanthus at all. D. hystrix and D. eydouxii are blue when young (D. eydouxii keeps some blue color). Diodon nicthemerus has also occured in trade a few times and is obviously yellow, and there is D. liturosus, which is different from D. holocanthus with regard to color.

I think on pictures lighting and sometimes photoshop color enhancement plays an important role (different illumination of the same fish can lead to much different pictures). D. holocanthus also have some ability to change their colors between bright with little contrast to high contrast depending on lighting, mood, etc.

There are differences between D. holocanthus around the world with regard to color, but this is mostly about how the darker bands are developed and how many of the small black spots are they have. There are even differences with regard to the spines and possibly the size between Atlantic and Indo-Pacific specimens. The populations in the pacific (Easter Island, Pitcairn, Hawaii) are quite isolated and the ones from the Atlantic didn't have a lot of contact with the others for some millions of years, so they may possibly have started to develop into new subspecies and in the future own species.

[Corvus]

And here's a similar thread:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=30450

[kv2wr1]

Thank You both for this information.