To catch wild Discus fish in the wild, exporters will use a bright light at night to attract the fish. Then, they slowly draw a net around them. River guides know the best areas of the river and the parts of the river that are structured to allow the best use of the nets. There are two methods that are generally illegal but are still being used by some unscrupulous collectors. In one method they use mild explosives such as M-80s that will shock the fish and make them float to the top and then the fish are easily collected and then they put them in containment structures to allow them to recuperate. Another illegal method is to use high voltage electricity in very short bursts to once again shock the fish and then they are collected from the top of the water and then collected to recuperate in pools (containment structures). These containment structures are designed to keep the Discus contained but also to allow free flow of river water through waters in which the Discus are kept. Both methods end up in a high percentage of the fish, not just Discus, dying.
These wild Discus are often caught from pristine forest pools where they have had no contact with chemical medications or common aquarium pathogens, making them suitable for aquariums without use of antibiotics. Wild caught Discus usually have immunity from Discus Plague. These Wild Caught Discus fish will typically have a stronger immune system than tank raised Discus. On the negative side, some of them will often have parasite(s) and/or worms, usually requiring isolation and treatment before export.
In the wild, Discus fish are found in South America, particularly around the Amazon. They thrive in clean water, often swimming in small Blackwater rivers, lakes, and pools. Their
Last article we went over Spawning Tank set up. This week we will go over how to get your Angelfish to spawn.The first thing you need to understand is that you are not in total control. If Angelfish do not want to pair off, there is nothing you can do about it. The only thing you can do is provide the right conditions so that it is more likely that they will pair off. If you have a sexed pair and they are the only Angelfish in the tank, it is likely with about a 80% chance that they will eventually pair off if left together for a long period of time. To hurry our potential young lovers along, we provide conditions that are conducive for romance. We put 12 newly mature Angelfish in a 55 gallon tank and let them acclimate to it for two weeks. We then start doing some sudden changes in the tank conditions to stimulate courtship. Some of the changes we make are • Change the water temperature to 72 degrees for a few days and then bring it up to 86 degrees over about 12 hours and then leave it at 86 degrees for the remainder of a week. • Let the tank get somewhat dirty, not doing the daily water changes for a few days and then doing a 80% water change. • Feed them heavily for a few days and then stop feeding them for four days, followed by feeding them live food for three days. • Do two 60% water changes four hours apart where the Ph goes from 6.5 to 7.0 at the first change and then from 7.0 to 7.5 at the second change. • Leave the tank dark for two full days and then turn the lights
Last week we went over how to get the Angelfish Breeding Pairs. This week we will go over the tank that we move the pairs into for spawning. We keep our breeder pairs in 30 Gallon tanks. Some breeders use 20 gallon tanks. We think the larger tanks are more beneficial to the breeders as they will pretty much stay in that tank for the rest of their lives. We use both an outside filtration and a sponge filter in the breeder tanks. Having extremely clean water is very important. The angelfish will breed in tanks that are a little dirty, but the chance the eggs will develop fungus after spawning is increased dramatically if the water is slightly dirty. We recommend a base temperature of 84 degrees for breeding angelfish. It is very important that the water not be hard. Hard water will significantly increase the chances that eggs will be infertile, or the fry will die when they start becoming free swimming. Hard water will also increase the chance of deformities in fry. We recommend a Ph of 6.5 and a TDS under 100. Lighting is important for spawning. We recommend that you set your lights on timers with 14 hours of light and 10 hours of dark. You should do two 40% water changes each week. We will go over how to get your breeding pairs of Angelfish to spawn in our next article.
Discus fish are native to South America, specifically the Amazon River basin. In the wild, they inhabit slow-moving waters, including small streams, ponds, and lagoons. However, they cannot survive in most parts of the Amazon where water flows too quickly or is not clean enough. Instead, you’ll find them swimming in very clean water and in small Blackwater Rivers and lakes, deep pools, shallow streams, creeks, and small lakes off the Amazon River. These areas are characterized by immense tropical forests and long periods of rain, which provide the ideal environment for Discus fish.
Discus fish thrive when they receive continuous flows of fresh water. They often live in small groups among submerged tree roots, decayed wood, aquatic grasses, and other vegetation. These natural hiding spots offer protection from predators. The wild Discus’ distinctive stripes help camouflage them in their surroundings. The substrate typically consists of sand-like gravel and decomposed tree leaves. Additionally, plants like the Amazon Sword serve as both protective hiding places and natural breeding grounds for these colorful fish.
In summary, the natural habitat of Discus fish includes clean, slow-moving waters in the Amazon basin, where they seek shelter among submerged roots, vegetation, and aquatic grasses.
Understanding their native environment helps hobbyists provide perfect environment for these “Kings of the Aquarium”.
Discus Fish are considered a good community fish. They very rarely will chase or bully other species of fish in the tank. The one exception I have found is they sometimes do challenge Angelfish, but by far and away, most of the time they ignore them.
In an established tank with no new Discus added in several months, they will usually be generally calm around each other and the only interaction will be a larger one chasing away a another one that comes to close and is smaller, but close to the same size.
There are two exceptions.
First, when two Discus Fish are getting ready to spawn or have recently already spawned, they will aggressively chase away any fish that get into their spawning space. The male is the most aggressive as the female will be cleaning the spawning surface. Once the eggs have been laid, the roles reverse and the female becomes the most aggressive. This is just a general rule and the aggressiveness can vary from couple to couple. While they will chase any other fish away, they will most aggressively chase away other Discus, especially males.
Second, when the pecking order is disrupted, they will bully until the pecking order is again established. Firmly establishing a pecking order can take several months, sometimes even up to 6 months. Most of the fighting is between fish of the same or close size. Large Discus generally will mostly ignore other Discus Fish that significantly smaller than them. That is one reason why we often recommend adding smaller fish and not ones that are larger or of the same size.
The good news is, while the fighting may seem intense, Discus Fish will almost never kill each other. The biggest concern is
Discus Fish can range anywhere from $15.00 for a juvenile common Discus Fish such as a Red Turquoise at an online store to over a Thousand for a fully mature very rare Discus such as an Albino Platinum Long Finned Discus. A proven breeder pair of Long Finned Albino Platinum Discus Fish could cost around $10,000.00. You will find the starting point for Discus Fish at your local fish store is around $50.00 if you can find them at all.
Discus are in my opinion the most beautiful freshwater fish. The most prominent species of Discus (Symphysodon Aequifasciatus) has more color and pattern variations of any other fish, with possible the exception being Guppies.
That is why they are in High Demand.
They are notoriously in hard to breed, with the fry needing to eat slime off the side of their parents for the two weeks. Unfortunately, the parents almost always eat them. If you try to raise them artificially, it is extremely labor intensive for the first two weeks, requiring you to do water changes and feeding the fry every four hours. They also grow much slower than other Cichlids that are similar, such as Angelfish.
The reason that they are so expensive is because they are in high demand and in low supply as there are less of them than is necessary to drive the price down.
1) ALL SPECIES OF PLECOS ARE DIFFERENT! Some like muddy, hot, slow moving water (Stripes Peckoltia). Some like crystal clear, fast moving water that is a little cooler (Blue Panaque).
2) All Plecos have different food requirements. Some eat algae. Some are carnivorous. Some are scavengers. Some eat wood. Most will eat a combination of the above.
3) Some Plecos can be aggressive to other fish, especially slow moving or sick ones. The most aggressive are the Gibbiceps. Royals can also be somewhat aggressive to each other, but rarely to other fish.
4) Many Plecos can grow quite large, so make sure that you have enough aquarium space for them to grow into.
5) Coloration in Plecos can be remarkably different within a species, depending on the region where the Pleco was caught.
6) Most plecos show some characteristics of chameleon like color changes depending on their background (the L060 Lyretail Chameleon Pleco and the L110 Red Spot Bristlenose are good examples), so keep that in mind when you set up their aquarium.7) Many, if not most, are good community fish. Ones we recommend the most to keep with slow moving fish such as Discus and Angelfish are the Bushy and Bristlenose. Some of our other favorites are Striped Peckoltia, Snowball, Clown and Royal Plecos.
8) While it does seem to be counter intuitive, Plecos can be jumpers, especially the Bristle and Bushy nose. We recommend keeping the water tanks with Plecos about an inch and a half below the rim.9) The best Internet reference for Plecos is Planet Catfish who’s link is http://www.planetcatfish.com/core/
We feed our Discus primarily Beef Heart Flake, but supplement it every day with other Flake and Freeze Dried Foods. The Multi Pack is great way to get started. As for the Freeze Dried Foods, I would start with the Brine Shrimp. Once your Discus get larger, you should switch to Earth Worms. Larger Discus also like Glass Shrimp. Beef heart Flake is extremely high in protein (higher protein than most other flake foods). It is also fortified with Vitamins and Minerals, and you will find your Discus like it more than any other flake food. Your juvenile Discus will grow significantly faster when they are fed Beef Heart Flake.
Please feed your Discus three times a day, morning, noon and night. The nighttime feeding should be with the lights out. Discus are naturally nocturnal grazers. If there is some bullying or aggression in your tank, please feed them at both ends of the tank. Feed them as much as they can eat in 10 minutes. They should be kept with some Corydoras Catfish, Plecos or Loaches to eat any food uneaten by the Discus.
If you are acclimating new fish into a tank, please do not feed your new Discus for 24 hours. As we detail in the Acclimation Instructions, you should not feed your new for fish at all for the first 24 hours after delivery. Any food given will likely not be eaten and can end up clouding the tank. After the stress of shipping, they will typically have no appetite. Feed them very little for the first week as they will still have little appetite. Over the next few weeks as they get used to their new home, they will slowly get their appetite back. You can increase
Discus in an aquarium will typically live around 8 years, but some can live to 10 years old. There is some evidence that keeping the temperature at the low end of the range for Discus at around 80 degrees will slightly increase their longevity.
In a 120 gallon or smaller tank, Discus will typically grow to 6-7 inches. In a larger tank that is very clean and when you feed them properly three times a day with high protein food like beef heart flake, they can grow to around 8 inches. Having some current will also have the slight effect of them growing larger. Despite some misinformation on the internet, males and female will usually grow to approximately the same size. It is not uncommon for wild Discus to grow to 9-10 inches. I have heard stories and even seen pictures of wild Discus that a reported to be 12 inches, but I have never seen one with an actual ruler next to it, so I cannot verify if that is correct.
