Purple Pill Bugs

[bugmankeith]

But arent blue crayfish like blue lobsters, a rare color form? Or do you mean the blue crayfish in captivity are genetically engineered by man?

 

[dtknow]

The iridovirus is found worldwide and only affect crustaceans (if you've ever bought a blue crayfish you bought an infected animal). Crayfish often fight off the infection but isopods die from it.

Last I heard the blue in crayfish is genetically based.

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

Last I heard the blue in crayfish is genetically based.

No. Please provide a reference. Do a web search on iridovirus first.

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

But arent blue crayfish like blue lobsters, a rare color form? Or do you mean the blue crayfish in captivity are genetically engineered by man?

There are blue lobsters that are naturally blue (with black and white markings). The blue crayfish are infected by a virus. The virus has probably been around for millions of years, long before man.

 

[Tleilaxu]

No becase the blue is passed on genetically. I have also seen wild crayfish with blue colring and selective breeding can enhance the trait as was done for the electric blues that we see in the hobby.

http://www.aqua-terra-vita.com/CrayfishWP/Care.html#Breeding

Edit: If those pink Katydids are a mutation some one should try and breed that trait, and they will make a tidy profit. I wants it....

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

No becase the blue is passed on genetically. I have also seen wild crayfish with blue colring and selective breeding can enhance the trait as was done for the electric blues that we see in the hobby.

http://www.aqua-terra-vita.com/CrayfishWP/Care.html#Breeding

Edit: If those pink Katydids are a mutation some one should try and breed that trait, and they will make a tidy profit. I wants it....

That's a person trying to sell something (not even close to a reputable resource for crustacean specific iridovirus information) and he doesn't say it is passed on genetically anywhere on his site. If he did he'd be making it up. The only way to 'make' crayfish blue is with the iridovirus that infects them. All sorts of unrelated genera of crayfish are availabe in blue.