Please indentify this discus

[FishyMatty]

I got this little baby from a LFS about 2 months ago at about 1.5"
He is now about 3" and doing great but still in QT.
I can't seem to figure out what kind of discus he is
He is golden brown with blue/green striations.
Thanks for your help
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c391/lindsayanng/6.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c391/lindsayanng/5.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c391/lindsayanng/4.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c391/lindsayanng/3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c391/lindsayanng/2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c391/lindsayanng/1.jpg

[Squiggy]

Looks to be an LSS....

[FishyMatty]

Is that leopard snake skin? I thought it might be linked to a wild brown only bc I've never seen a brown discus other then those.

[Ryan Smith]

A lot of the striated, non-PB fish (turks, cobalts, LSS, SS, etc.) start out as brown juveniles. The colors come in as they age.

Judging by the number of bars (14 or so on this one) and the striation that's developing on the gill plates, it definitely has some snakeskin in it. Whether or not it's LSS is anyone's guess. It does look like it's trying to develop some spotting in the body.

[FishyMatty]

I didn't know that some juveniles started out brown. That changes everything. I was actually excited to have a brown discus. Oh well I will post some new pics in a month or so. Thanks for the help.
What does the number of bars mean?

[Ryan Smith]

I didn't know that some juveniles started out brown. That changes everything. I was actually excited to have a brown discus. Oh well I will post some new pics in a month or so. Thanks for the help.
What does the number of bars mean?

Most wild discus have 9 vertical bars (1 through the eye, 1 through the caudal peduncle, and 7 on the rest of the body). This carries over into domestics like the turks, cobalts, alencers, etc. Snakeskins often exhibit somewhere around 14 bars (I've seen fish with more and less).

There's a gray area somewhere because you can have 9-barred snakeskins.

Anyway, fish with 14 bars usually have some snakeskin in their lineage.

Ryan

[brewmaster15]

Hi Matt,
I agree with Joe and Ryan... Looks to be a LSS .:)

-al

[FishyMatty]

Based on what you see can you make any guess to what his colors might be? IME the baby discus I get usually show some of their final colors.

[Ryan Smith]

He'll probably have a brown base color with red spotting or striation and the iridescent blue markings that you're seeing already in the gills and fins.