Discus Fish Choices

[Yogi]

So looking at my plans around potential stocking.

I have room for 15 fish and I think rather than overly mixing them In going to go for 3 groups of 5.

Red Melons
Blue Turks
Golden Checkerboards

Anyone see any issue with this or have thoughts around other options?

 

[Colin_T]

Are they all varieties of discus?

What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?
Has the filter been cycled?
Have you kept discus before?

What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

 

[Yogi]

Sorry may have caused confusion. I’m not looking for keeping advise as such more around any opinion on stocking just the 3 groups versus a broader mix. Yes they are all discus.

 

[Colin_T]

Is there space for 15 discus in the tank?
15 adult discus will need a huge tank otherwise the dominant pair will bully the others.

 

[Yogi]

Is there space for 15 discus in the tank?
15 adult discus will need a huge tank otherwise the dominant pair will bully the others.

What do you define as a huge tank. I have read lots of conflicting advise on stocking density. I know the average rule thrown around is 1 per 10g.

 

[Colin_T]

Adult discus can reach 8-10 inches in diameter and regularly hit 6 inches in diameter. A breeding pr will take over at least 2 feet of the aquarium. This means in a 6ft x 2ft x 2ft tank, you could have 2 or possibly 3 breeding prs.

We had a 10ft long x 2ft wide x 30inch high discus tank in the shop and it had 10 discus in and when 1 pr started breeding, they took over about 1/3 of that tank and kept everyone out of that section.

While they are young you can have lots in a tank, but as they mature and set up territories, you need to remove the smaller weaker fish otherwise they get bullied to death.

 

[Yogi]

Some excellent feedback for me there thanks. I’m somewhere between an 8x2x2 or reusing a 6x2x2 I currently have which if I’m honest I’m leaning towards the smaller aquarium.

Gives me some food for thought as even in the smaller tank I thought I would be ok.

Maybe I need to just consider one group of say 7. I would rather purchase something special that can grow out as a healthy group than stock extra I have to remove.

 

[Yogi]

Would you maybe advise buying them as a smaller size in a group of say 12 and as they grow thin that down to a group of 7? Couple of males and remainder female?

 

[Colin_T]

Yes, I would buy 8-10 young fish (around 3-4 inches diameter) and grow them up together. Let them pair off naturally and keep the prs. Remove fish that aren't paired off or that are being bullied.

If you set up both tanks (8ft and 6ft), you could put them all in one tank and as they pair off, move a few of the prs into the other tank.

Don't keep uneven numbers of adult discus. They live in prs and odd fish will be attacked, bullied and driven out of the area.

 

[Yogi]

Interesting that they live in pairs. I thought they lived in groups and preferred to be kept in larger groups.

 

[Colin_T]

Juveniles and babies live in groups but as they mature, they pair off and set up a territory.

 

[itiwhetu]

Just keep one type together, they will look much better as a group. I agree with @Colin_T so I won't repeat information.

 

[Fish4dawin]

Just asking, but are all of your water parameters suited for discus? They like very soft water and a pH of around 6.3 I believe.

 

[itiwhetu]

Just asking, but are all of your water parameters suited for discus? They like very soft water and a pH of around 6.3 I believe.

I just assumed he knows what he is doing