Please help ID my discus

Hey guys

Please can you help ID my discus. I know she's a female, and I suspect she is a red turquoise discus but just want confirmation.

Also, I was thinking about trying to breed her, as she has already spawned twice in about a month or 2, and doesn't have a mate. How easy would it be to find an adult that she will accept and pair off with? Is it possible to introduce a younger, but not juvenile discus and let it grow to her size and mate with her, or would it have to be a male adult already?

Now the scary question... would could that set me back?

Also, those vertical black bars that come and go.... are they what people refer to as stress bars? The things that indicate a dominant fish, or not?

 

It looks to me like a Red Turquoise.

Have a look at this website, it might help you identify her.
http://www.xs4all.nl/~hlc/fons/strains/pictures.htm

 

Hi there. Yes that is a red turq. I just have a question. You say she spawned twice but doesnt haue a mate. .. How would she then spawn? She will not do so by herself. . ? Regards, Marco

 

Thanks guys. That looks like a great site! That is definitely her.

Marco - She is the only discus in the tank, and she has spawned again this evening, 3rd set of eggs. No mate, so she will just eat the eggs just before they go rotten.

I am desperate to get her a mate. Any ideas about my other questions? I know juvenile discuses can go for R300-R400 but would love to know how I can get a mature male, or even better, if a 'teenage' discus could mate off with her.

I will post something in the livestock classifieds, but would like some advice first on how young I can get a mate for her. I guess it would have to be a fish around her own size/age? She is about 15cms from nose to tail.

 

hi again. The problem you have is identifying a male. . . You would have to try and find a mate of similar size and age. Just another thought, she would do better with some discus mates in the tank. Regards, Marco

 

I agree, but I dont have the largest tank and dont want to overload the bio-load on the tank, which is already stretched.

But yes, I would like to build a discus only tank, with maybe my pleco, as its not a planted tank, and therefore algae could be a bit of a problem without him.

So similar age and size you say? Any ideas what a fully grown red turq goes for roughly?

 

I dont want to sound negative, but a pleco in a tank with discus is an absolute NO! Your other question - depends where you buy, anything between R500 and R900. Problem with RT's are, people want the newer strains (leopards, albino's etc) and this make other 'older' strains less expensive. You would probably do best getting some juve's and allowing them to pair of. Putting a confirmed male with that female will not nescessarily mean success. Discus are difficult in that way. Regards, Marco

 

Note the price of a proper strain. :noworry: It is a big investment that might not always reap rewards. You can almost expect nothing in return if you don't have successful experience with keeping them happy. You might just break even if you plan on breeding and selling these fish...:blink1:

I've heard of plecos sucking on discus till the discus died. 30*C is much to high for some/all plecos anyway.

 

I did have an issue once with my albino pleco having a suck on the side of my discus a while ago. The discus nipped back and there have been no issues since. I have 2 plecos in that tank, I know, too much etc... but before I knew about bioloading and nitrogen cycles I was told you could keep all these fish together, so ignorance was bliss.

And, to be honest, they have all survived together for several years now and are all a good size. Discus is 15cms, common pleco must be best part of 30cms, albino must be around 25cms, 3 talking catfish are all at least 15 to 20cms.

Yes, yes, yes, overstocked, I know. But the LPS where I bought them from never told me about bioloading. Just wanted to confirm that fish wouldnt eat other.

As you can see, my discus is very happy, and spawning, and she wouldnt be spawning if she wasnt happy.

Back on topic, I am looking at building a discus tank, and hopefully get at least 2 or 3 breeding pairs, and yes, they will go into breeding tanks once they've paired off. But initially, I would keep them in a community tank.

My current girl is spawning like mad, so I really wanted her to have the experience of trying to raise fry, and therefore looking for a pure strain red turq, so even if I barely break even, or not, thats not the point. I want to give her the chance of letting nature take its course. Surely thats not a bad thing to ask? Irrespective of ROI :blink1:

 

Hi. Yeh I can agree with that. Breeding fish should not be done for monetory gain, it wont easily happen that way. Just remember that breeding Discus is not easy. Its a big challenge and require lots of patience and dedication. Read as much as you can and get to terms with the challenge that awaits. In my opinion, you will struggle finding a mate for the female you have. You will have to get at least 8 to 10 large fish and hope and pray. Even then it doesnt mean the pair will make a success of it. Regards, Marco

 

And thats the problem, I certainly dont have a tank that size! It breaks my heart that she doesnt have a mate and is so dedicated to her eggs. :sad2:

Watched her fend off my rummy noses AND my pleco with such dedication. I really think she will be a very good mum. She hovered just a few cms away from them standing guard like a real trooper

 

What you can consider is selling her. That way you get bucks to get a bigger tank and move towards achievhng it. You think she is happy, but Discus is a schooling fish and should be kept in groups of 5 and more. In your position I'd sell her, as tough as that might be, get a biggeq tank and start with 6 to 8 juveniles. That way you will get to where you want to be quicker, and she will be with other Discus.

 

Is it me or is my advice that I PM'd you similar to Marcos?

You can sell your existing fish. People in Durbs kill for 24cm plecos and other catfish. fishcrazy might know someone who is interested in your tank busters.

@ Marco I told grunjhed he rather do that than lose a guaranteed female. Her spawning will be larger the next time and might pair easier than fish that have not spawned before. You might want to check with the professor on this point.

The overall Idea here is that he wants to breed as a hobby which is very rewarding.

How much can he buy these fish for at 6-8cm?

TM

 

Hi TM. Discus spawning, as all fish is related to the size of the female, her genetic ability and her condition. Progressively the spawnings become smaller and less frequent the older they get, until eventually it stops. Like I said, prices vary from supplier and strain. The last Discus I bought were 4 Blue Diamonds that I paid R350 each at 4-5cm. I have been quoted R1300 for 6-8 cm Eruptions and R80 for Brown Discus at the same size, from the same supplier. Again, and Prof. Dirk will go a step further than me I presume, but I think 8 to 12 fish will guarantee a spawning pair. That however is not the end of the road as a pair that spawn will not nescessarily raise the young, and that is where the trick with these fish and breeding them lie.

 

Just for interest sake, I'm sitting in my fishroom at the moment watching my pair of Snakeskins spawn for the second time. They in a tank with 5 other Discus so no hope they will hatch. I intend moving them to a tank in two to 3 weeks and then focus my attention on getting them to be succesfull. The female has made about 5 runs and there seem to be about 120 eggs by now. Incredible to watch!

 

It's a safe bet to sell her then unfortunately. Starting of afresh will ensure a young and healthy stock and eventually a pure strain pair.

The brown Discus is cheap at R80! I just saw it in a pet store in Gateway. they had brown 5cm Discus for R150! I was shocked. And they probably don't stock a pure brown strain either.

Blue Diamond is cheap as well for the size.

@ Grunjhed Post your fish in the classifieds as see what offers you get.

TM

 

You can also contact Prof. Dirk. He has some Alencer babies which should be ready anytime soon, as well as Blue Diamond Snakeskins. I have seen Prof.Dirks prices and for the fish you get you will not get a better price! Brown Discus are, reputation wise, the easiest Discus to keep and breed. The only pair I have had success with was a Brown female/Royal blue male some years ago. I still think Browns are one of the most beautifull Discus out there, though you hardly ever still see them.

 

Guys, I couldnt bring myself to sell her. She is just far too precious to me. I would much rather buy a bunch of juvies and have her as the 'mother hen' over the lot.

I will however consider selling my 3 big catfish and one pleco, in favour of building a discus tank.

That will give me time to get a breeding tank built and set up and ready.

If anyone wants to make offers on my albino pleco and 3 catfish then you are more than welcome to