New to this Black lines looking for first to buy

[crystalview]

I read that the black lines on some discus is for hiding. I was looking at Red Spider Web and in the two pics I saw it had a black stripe thru its eye. Will this stripe stay out all the time? I was looking for my first Discus and like the red and white. Any Idea's

[brewmaster15]

Hi,
Those black lines are often called "stress Bars" but they are more appropriately "mood" bars... and yes they probably are beneficial in hiding in the wild.. Eye bars are just another "mood" bar.

The strain that you mentioned may or may not keep their bars as adults..In some strains the bars are there as juveniles and fade as adults...in others they never have bars...like blue or white diamonds...Some bars fade in and out depending on the "mood" the fish is in... stress can also cause this... some lines have bars all the time....

So basically it depends on the particular strain... you should ask the seller or breeder before buying them if you have concerns or interests in the fishes expression of this trait.

HTH,
al

[crystalview]

Thanks
Does this site have a rating on Sellers? I see about 4 or 5 sellers or importers listed a lot but is there a specific thread? Since these are my first I was looking for certain traits. I saw several fish that where rated on this site. Of course they are a lot older then these 2". I saw the Pairs of parents and compared there ratings to the adults on this site and similar traits in these four young. I am not someone to show or even breed indescriminatly just for the sake to see the fry. I just want healthy fish that thrive.
I am buying off of Aquabid but he does have a web site: http://www.majesticaquatic.com/2indiscusforsale.htm
I did ask him question of the stripes and his stock. So far he has sent me pics of the 2 sets of parents and of all their young. Now I will wait to see if he answers my questions.

[White Worm]

Dont do it!! :shocked: You want to start your hobby with the highest quality. From my experience, you will not get what is considered high quality from that source.:thumbsdown:

[jerhbear]

I bought from Majestic, and had no problems. Out of a dozen, some are reasonably high quality, some are so so as in some peppering, but I think they're still really cool,
but I do not intend to breed or show any of them (other than to friends and neighbors), so for average to good quality fish that have been doing very well, I would buy from them again.

If you want some decent fish at a good price, you should do ok. If you are looking for show quality stock for breeding to become a millionaire selling the offspring, you may have to buy more than a dozen and grow them out to find the gems.

[AADiscus]

If you will look in the sponsor section, those are all the sponsors for Simply Discus. They all go thru an approval process. Quality of discus they sell, etc. You will be better off buying from one of our sponsors. IMO If you are looking for certain types of strains all our sponsors have different strains or can refer a reputable breeder who would have the strain you are looking for.

[crystalview]

Thanks I did not know sponsors where breeders thought they were like sell fish stuff.

[Don Trinko]

If at all possible go to a reputable dealer to buy your 1st discus. You can see what you are getting and take them home with you. Shipping can be hard on fish and you want to start with minimum stress on the fish. Don T.