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But Luke, couldn't pattern also be determined after hatching, during early development. Chormatophores start to appear in a few days. However, the "final" pattern (if such a thing exists) may not be decided or preordained untill some time later. Perhaps it is a process which begins in the egg and progresses, at a diminishing rate, until death. Its pretty clear that a shimmie is not predestined to appear and it's appearance is influenced by environment. But at what point is the precise location of the shimmie determined? Pre-hatching, in the fry, as the shimmie develops?
For what it's worth, environment (especially temperature) has been found to have a huge influence on pattern development in goldfish. A pair which almost appears to breed true (no such thing) in one spawn may segregate all over the place in the next spawn. Yeah, I know, goldfish genetics and koi genetics are different. However, they are more similar than koi versus cow genetics.
-steveh
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