The Boys in Blue

[Keith Perkins]

Okay, so they're not really all boys, or at least I sure hope not. These guys, all expecting dinner, are a combination of four growouts from my BD male and BSS female, along with three cobalts compliments of Northwoods Discus. I ended up with four fish left from a batch about a year ago that after the last sale sort of fell through I decided just to keep them and grow them out. Not thinking that four was really enough to growout and have pair off, I reached out to Bill knowing he had some cobalts that were just a little younger. He very graciously contributed three fish to the effort for future considerations and the seven fish are now residing in a 72 bow...enjoy.



Bill's cobalt contribution.



Just discus chillin.



Probably my favorite of the group.



Another I like a quite a bit.



Just a nice group shot.

[William Palumbo]

Looking good Keith!...Now you of all people should know better than to pick a "favorite"...Bill

[Keith Perkins]

LOL, well other than the one jumper it's been a couple of years since I've lost a fish so I'm not too worried. Okay, maybe I should have just said I like the unique coloration and markings of that fish. I'm curious to see if they become more distinct as the fish gets a little older.

[Disgirl]

You have some beautiful discus there Keith! The Turqs are still my favorites. Nice clean tank too I see. Well done!
Barb

[Keith Perkins]

Thank you very much Barb, maybe some day I'll have to see how they look matched up with one of your magic cones. That's one of the great things about keeping discus I think, there is a lot of variety so there's something for everyone. The tank gets about a 90% to 95% WC every third day, and this group leaves virtually no uneaten food, so keeping the tank looking clean isn't a real big trick. It's the one tank in the fishcave that's not near a drain though, so I've got a pump with a pvc riser tucked in the opposite back corner and a 25' potable water hose running through the rafters and to a drain in the utility room. The only trick with it is remembering to break the siphon if I don't want to empty the tank.

[Cevoe]

Nice tank of blues there, Keith.

[Keith Perkins]

Thanks Chris, and to think these were the ones everyone else chose not to take.

[alpine]

Very nice Blues !

Roberto.

[Second Hand Pat]

Nice Keith and love the color on these guys (or gals ). Your favorite is mine too. So these are the rejects? pretty darn nice.

[Skip]

nice!

[Keith Perkins]

Thanks Roberto, Pat, and Skip. Yes Pat, in the dodge ball game of discus selection, these were the ones no one wanted on their team. I had sold off all my previous fry worried about space and the extra care required for one more tank, but when the fishcave was completed I decided I wanted to see for myself what some of the growouts would look like. I also wanted to expand the available breeding stock a bit, so when the intended buyer ran into tank problems and backed off buying them I told him that was fine and in that case I was just going to keep them and they were no longer for sale. Thanks to that decision and Northwoods Discus Bill I now have a display tank again with these seven in it, at least until they get a little older and in the mood.

[Second Hand Pat]

Keith, so how old are these guys? If the same as Jay's then about 7 months? Around 4+ inches (guessing here).

[Jason K.]

hey pat, I fish sat those guy's a while back. when I had them they were much larger than the turk's. had them all in a 37 high was a little nervous having them all together but they got on well. that being said i'd say they are at least a year and larger than four inch's...
almost forgot to mention nice pic's keith...

[Keith Perkins]

My four are from a batch that was prior to the RTs Jay got, so I think they're right around a year or so at this point. You know I netted and moved all 7 from my 55 to the 72 they're in now and never measured a one of them. Dah! Just looking at them now with a tape measure on the outside of the tank I'd say they're right about 5". Now that they're in the bigger tank and on there own they're eating like never before too...and Jay would tell you they ate plenty before.

[bnbfishin]

Awesome looking fish Keith! Glad to see that 72 bow front is up and running with fish in it