Inheritance of trunk banding in the tetra (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi Characidae)

The tetra (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi) exhibits two phenotypes associated with trunk banding. Fish possess either a smoky-gray coloration with two prominent black vertical bands located directly behind the operculum (black tetra) or a lighter coloration and lack these bands (white skirt tetra). Segregation patterns observed from the progenies of 11 different crosses suggest that the inheritance of these phenotypes is controlled by two autosomal loci acting in a complementary fashion, with dominance at both loci required for the expression of the darker, banded phenotype.