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discuslover87
11-11-2002, 12:30 AM
What size constitutes an adult? Or does size not really matter and age does? When do the juvies stop needing so much food and so on?

11-11-2002, 12:43 AM
Discus are usually considered adults when they come of breeding age, which can be anywhere from 9 months to 2 years, depending on strain. Females mature a few months before males do as well. Size doesn't really matter as far as being an adult...but the best adult discus are 6-8" without counting the tail. they're always going to eat you out of house and home though.
good luck,
Brad

April
11-11-2002, 02:43 AM
their eating does slow down once adult...not as ravenous and continuous as babies.

11-11-2002, 11:50 AM
yes, but they still eat me out of house and home...

keno
11-11-2002, 11:53 AM
I always get get sad to see my juvies starting to pair up, it means they are probaly done with most of their growth. I have a redmarb x red pigeon from cary that is about 6.5" now and showing lots of promise that he will be huge, when i see him starting to pair i will be bummmed! I think after 12 months they have put on most of their length.

Ken

red_monk
05-11-2007, 10:28 AM
I wonder if a mature discus of 1 year starts to pair up let's say at 6" diameter. Will it continue to grow to 8" as time goes by or will it just stay at 6" and no more growth?

brewmaster15
05-11-2007, 10:41 AM
Many feel breeding will cause the discus to stop growing or slow its rates considerably... It takes alot of resources and energy to breed,

HTH,
al

Apistomaster
05-11-2007, 07:40 PM
I wonder if a mature discus of 1 year starts to pair up let's say at 6" diameter. Will it continue to grow to 8" as time goes by or will it just stay at 6" and no more growth?

Once Discus reach six inches before spawning the problem is much diminished as compared to under fed early maturing Discus that begin spawning at well under four inches. Sadly, I have seen this happen several times to folks who's first discus were subjected to less than optimal care.

The problem is most pronounced with the females, obviously they are having to divert more of their energy to egg production. If both mates start spawning at six inches they are more likely to continue to add bulk and diameter. These pairs may take awhile but still have the potential to grow very large, if they raise their spawns.
Apparently feeding the fry takes less resources away from continued development andtheir physical resources are generally shared more equally between the pair.
The problem is worst among the chronic egg eating pairs. They may spawn every 5-7 days for several months and if they are constantly eating their eggs, that quickly leads to stunted burnt out females.

tdr1919
05-12-2007, 07:42 PM
My fish seem to max out at around 6 inches, and I have some 6 year old fish.
I envy you people who raise them to eight inches. My fish are fed well, with good food, clean water. but my largest setup is only 72 gals. I have fish from many different sources, all matured about a year for the blues & the turqs, longer for the diamonds.

Tom

pheonix
05-13-2007, 04:58 AM
So is there a way to prevent them from breeding?

red_monk
05-13-2007, 12:14 PM
How about isolating each fish? 1 mature discus in 1 aquarium let us say 20 to 25 gallons capacity. This will not encourage breeding since they are alone. What do you think.. Will this work?

pheonix
05-14-2007, 12:23 PM
How about isolating each fish? 1 mature discus in 1 aquarium let us say 20 to 25 gallons capacity. This will not encourage breeding since they are alone. What do you think.. Will this work?

They wont like that as the love company.

my worry is what to do with hundreds of fries?

April
05-14-2007, 01:28 PM
well..dont get too excited about hundreds of frys yet..breeding part is easy. its the raising part thats hard. alot of people dont end up with 100's. it takes awhile to fine tune it. you can try keep the temp up higher..that discourages a bit..and encourages eating and growth. or just leave them in their setting..and most eggs, wigglers,,etc will get stolen. till your ready. if you see one get to fry attaching stage..then if you want to give it a try..move them to their own tank.
keeping each one in a glass cube separate is not the answer..mays well have a betta ina bowl. discus like groups..or display tanks.not cubes by themselves.

tdr1919
05-14-2007, 04:45 PM
I was getting hung up with the notion that I couldnt get the 7-8 size, but you learn after time that good healthy 5.5 -6 inch fish that have great form and color are just as important. I think if I had a 125 gal tank, and used the same routine, my fish would achieve the 7+ inch size. But my largest tank is 72, with now 8 adults that greet me every morning and when I come to the tank to give them their treats. In my office I have 10 other beauties looking at me ( in a variety of smaller tanks) as I write this post. I like watching my pair hang out together, getting ready to breed again. Now big fish! My Koi which I raised from babies are 5 -7 lbs, and still growing (18ft x 14ft 4ft deep pond).
Tom

pheonix
05-16-2007, 01:41 AM
what happens if there are only males or juat females in a tank? will they kill each other?

April
05-16-2007, 03:35 AM
no they wont kill each other. most discus are quite peaceful. you might get a few males jostling for head guy..but not serious fights . just a bit of tail slapping or lip locking..or shoving the other guy away. some females will push other females away. if you do get a pair..they will send the rest to the other side of the tank. but ive never had knock down drag out fights..just gentle shoves to show who belongs where and with who.
they will continue to grow till they are 2 or so..just not as noticeable. but one day..you'll look..and say wow he has grown.
just keep watching them and enjoying them.
theres alot of people who enjoy the growing out part the most. including me.

pheonix
05-17-2007, 02:30 AM
This is good to know..thanks.

Yes, I enjoy the growing part and want it to last as long as possible!:D