confusion?

[cedar]

Hi everyone,I am relatively new to discus fish, I have had saltwater before so am not totally ignorant to keeping tanks. My confusion is this....I have 8 juvie's in a 55g bf and want to move them to a new 90g. I will of course transfer all media ect and I always have water standing a ready with an RO float and heaters and a power head for oxygen. the understanding to me is the more discus the less fighting, right? so if they are now starting to fight a bit in the 55 bf how will moving them to the 90g stop the fighting? less fish in a bigger area.? will that cause more fighting? i think they are fighting a bit more now because they are like teenagers and just coming into starting to pair off. will moving them help them pair? any advice will be greatly appreciated.

[Kev29]

bullying and establishing hierarchy is pretty normal.. You generally want 1 discus for every 10 gallons give or take.

[Solid]

As kev said, some aggression is normal, they are cichlids afterall. I would only worry about it if one fish is really getting beaten up and/or not allowed to eat. I think you are right, its probably just be teenage angst :D as they do seem to fight a bit more when they are still establishing a pecking order and pairing off.

[Maggy]

With my experience, 50 years of fish keeping, the Discus are so unique. They will always have a pecking order not matter how many you have. Some aggression toward the runt is normal, I make
sure I hand feed him so he is active it fights back but they won't let him grow. I have 6 - 5" in a 60 gal with plants, sand & driftwood. I change 30% water 2 times a week, feed Ca black worms. I have one Discus that changed his partner, the one that was rejected still after 6 months is trying to get him back. Fun to watch!

[DonMD]

I think 8 fish in a 90 is perfect. You say they are juvies, but not how big or how old they are. 8 2-inch fish in a 90 would be lost. But 8 4-5 inch in a 90 gives them room to grow. Hopefully the aggressive fish picks on more than just one. That's been my experience: with more fish in the tank, it's less likely that just one fish will be the focus of the bully.