Heckels bred on a commercial scale?

[illumnae]

There's someone on a local Singaporean forum making bold claims that the heckel shipments we have started to receive are actually farm bred heckels and not from the wild. He has claimed that heckels are being bred on a commercial scale in Malaysia and possibly other parts of the world. He has also claimed that there's a Penang farm that has been doing so for many years now such that it is no longer a trade secret.

Anyone heard of all this before? Last I heard, Heiko had said that only a handful of people have managed to breed heckels, and certainly not to the magnitude that this guy is claiming.

I'm unsure if he has an agenda against our local importer/LFSs or if he genuinely believes his claims.

[wgtaylor]

4 and 5 inch wild heckels are being sold for $35 and up, retail price. Anyone lucky enough to figure out how to breed heckels on a commercial scale would have a corner on the market and demand rather high prices for those discus. Preposterous to think there is any truth to that story. Bill

[Eddie]

Still waiting to see pictures of Heckel Fry in somebody's tank

[TankWatcher]

4 and 5 inch wild heckels are being sold for $35 and up, retail price.

A bargain. I paid $200 each for wild heckels a bit smaller than that (in OZ)

[Eddie]

I got mine for $50

[TankWatcher]

[illumnae]

I got mine for S$40-S$50/piece for 3-3.5 inchers...conversion rate is about US$1 to S$1.50. But these are the alleged farmbred heckels

[07 Maverick P51]

I heard from my LFS that in Southeast Asia they are breeding these Discus on a large commercial pond like system. The water come from a nearby river or stream, so they are constantly having a flow of river water into their pond and they never feed their Discus, instead they get their food from insects that land on the water and Mosquito Larvae that are in the pond. They are being raise naturally like in the wild.

[Eddie]

And I thought I got a deal!

[Ed13]

A picture is worth a thousand words! If he can't provide a few pics of heckels in the different growth stages and adults then it can't be trusted a 100%. I understand, if this is true, that he might want to protect his methods, but pics of the fish themselves should be a given.
Maybe as Heiko has stated previously they are wild heckel crosses or heckel x domestic and not true 100% heckels.

On the other hand it's probably the correct location to achieve this. Knowledge of breeding discus, correct temp, close to their natural waters, live foods and a clear interest for discus goes a LONG way. Perhaps the pond farming system is the most likely to achieve this too.

I don't doubt it can be done it's just the situation described sounds dubious, but I'd def would love tank raised heckels.

[plecocicho]

When they post me pictures of their ponds, underwater videos of parens caring for their fry i would start to believe it.

[Zulu]

When they post me pictures of their ponds, underwater videos of parens caring for their fry i would start to believe it.

I agree.

[Darren's Discus]

As everyone has said anyone can claim anything show the proof ! Their only fish it's not like their building weapons of mass distruction.I know one thing if i ever manage to breed mine,i would want to share my success and not go "it's a secret i'm not showing you" I was lucky enough to get my heckels for $90 aus.



cheers

[Apistomaster]

Hi illumnae,
Your new Heckels looked all the world like wild Brazilian caught Heckels to me.
No sound documentation and only a lfs owner's word just doesn't constitute acceptable evidence to me.
I wish it were true but I sincerely doubt it.

[manitu]

Still waiting to see pictures of Heckel Fry in somebody's tank

iam a lucky man then because i have a nhamunda heckel female that paired of with a semi royal tefe male the discus larva become free swimming then got eaten my cardinals and rams


i have got pics to proof that