Brilliant Blue X Red Turquoise

[Tito]

Does anyone know what I would get from a Brilliant Blue (F) and a Red Turquoise (M)?

[Tito]

Also - I already have two pairs formed from my group! I got them all at about 2 to 3 months old. That puts my oldest Discus at 8 months!

When is the typical age for Discus to reach sexual maturity? Mine seem to have gotten there pretty early.

[cschwaderer]

Congrats. Sounds like they're happy and healthy or they wouldn't be pairing. Sexual maturity seems to vary based on the strain. My BDs aren't typically mature enough to have a viable spawn until they're about 22 months old. I've had other non-BD pairs have viable spawns at closer to 18 months.


Brilliant Blues are typically Blue Diamonds. I'm a little confused on the term "Red Turquoise" veruse "Blue Turquoise", but I believe the genetic history of the Blue Diamond comes from Turquoise Discus. It goes something like Turquoise-->Cobalts-->Blue Diamonds.

I've heard that you don't usually want to cross a red based Discus with a Blue based Discus, but I've had a friend cross a Blue Diamond with an Alenquir and the juvies are barred with lots of blue speckling and partially blue bodies - kinda neat looking.

Blue Diamonds are genetically recessive and don't have bars, so crossing them with whatever I think tends to produce ok fish simply because BDs aren't prone to throwing juvies with peppering since they've long since lost their bars.

I'm not sure if a "Red Turq" is any different from a "Turquoise", but I'd guess you'd probably get a mostly blue fish with some of the striping and mottling that turquoise tend to have.

Good luck!

[Tito]

Thanks for the reply!

To help out a little - here are the links to the adult fish:
Red Turq:
http://64.26.25.241/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=DM&Product_Code=da7&Category_Code=da

Brilliant Blue:
http://64.26.25.241/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=DM&Product_Code=da15&Category_Code=da

My Brilliant Blue is almost at adult coloration and the red turq is still in it's juvies colors....but this is what the look like when fully grown.

[cschwaderer]

Thanks for the reply!

To help out a little - here are the links to the adult fish:
Red Turq:
http://64.26.25.241/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=DM&Product_Code=da7&Category_Code=da

Brilliant Blue:
http://64.26.25.241/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=DM&Product_Code=da15&Category_Code=da

My Brilliant Blue is almost at adult coloration and the red turq is still in it's juvies colors....but this is what the look like when fully grown.

Oh - ok. From the pics it looks like the brilliant blue strain are just closer to the Cobalt part of the genetic Turq spectrum. The red turqs look exactly like my checkerboard turqs. but in general those strains just look like they are at different ends of the color/patterning spectrum, but they are both still Turqs.

I wouldn't have any problems mixing those strains. Now keep in mind that Discus genetics are quite complicated and anything in either strains' ancestries might yield unexpected results. But I'd imagine those fish would throw more Turqs ranging from mostly blue (like the brilliants) to perhaps slightly less mottled/patterned Turqs like the red turqs.

I have a pair of checkerboard turqs that look almost exactly like the pic of the red turqs and they throw about 75% checkerboard turqs like the parents and 25% of a more "blonde" 9-barred Discus - unfortunately, they aren't old enough yet to have their full coloring, so I can't figure out if they are going to end up being Pidgeons or snakeskins yet.

Beautiful fish though - both strains! Good luck with them.

[Tito]

Thanks for the comments and info!

Right now I think these guys are young and more than likely trying to breed in hard water. My pH out of the TAP is 7.5 and I would imagine lots of TDS. But it's good to know should I decide to breed these guys. Right now I'm glad they are still growing and happy enough to want to spawn.

[Eddie]

Also Tito, when a female lays eggs, growing is slowed down. ;) So as the can still age, their size may not increase much more.

Eddie

[Tito]

Also Tito, when a female lays eggs, growing is slowed down. ;) So as the can still age, their size may not increase much more.

Eddie

So I've read.

Should I seperate to stop the spawning activity?

I want her to grow more.

[Eddie]

So I've read.

Should I seperate to stop the spawning activity?

I want her to grow more.

Even if you separate, she may just keep laying. Kind of one them natural instinct things. :o

Eddie

[Tito]

I just read a really good article by a guy named Marc Weiss. He says that he tries to get his females pumped up by the 8 or 9 th month because many begin laying by then - in fact he says pairs begin forming by then. As well he said that males at this age shoot blanks.

So I can only hope I can get another 1/2" from them. Right now they are measuring 4.25" and 4.5" so it would be nice to get them to the 5" mark.

Most of my fish were bought at the same time with an estimated age of 2 to 3 months. Being that Mathias at D. M. has been around for a while I trust him.

So that puts my fish at the latest for some of them 8 months.

Ed - what do you think is a good size for an 8 month old Discus based on your experience?

[Eddie]

I just read a really good article by a guy named Marc Weiss. He says that he tries to get his females pumped up by the 8 or 9 th month because many begin laying by then - in fact he says pairs begin forming by then. As well he said that males at this age shoot blanks.

So I can only hope I can get another 1/2" from them. Right now they are measuring 4.25" and 4.5" so it would be nice to get them to the 5" mark.

Most of my fish were bought at the same time with an estimated age of 2 to 3 months. Being that Mathias at D. M. has been around for a while I trust him.

So that puts my fish at the latest for some of them 8 months.

Ed - what do you think is a good size for an 8 month old Discus based on your experience?

Thats difficult really.....If you are asking what my goal is at 8 months, then I am shooting for 6 inches TL (including tail).

Eddie

[Tito]

Thanks for the straight answer. I don't think I can achieve that on Prime Reef and Bhrine Shrimp.

I can see now that Beef heart is the way to go in order to grow these guys to six inches in under a year.

But...at least I know I have four fish that are not stunted. I'm sure I will see most of the large guys reach at least 5 inches in the next four months.

I can't speak for the rest of them - I think out of the other five I have three will more than likely be stunted. What I have noticed about those three is that they are very slow and very picky at eating.

[Eddie]

I can't speak for the rest of them - I think out of the other five I have three will more than likely be stunted. What I have noticed about those three is that they are very slow and very picky at eating.

Yup, IME picky eaters just don't grow well at all. I don't keep them together with my others. Picky eaters will all go into the same tank.

Eddie

[Tito]

Yup, IME picky eaters just don't grow well at all. I don't keep them together with my others. Picky eaters will all go into the same tank.

Eddie

Yeppers - that's just what I did yesterday. I put those three slow poes in their own tank.

[wgtaylor]

Does anyone know what I would get from a Brilliant Blue (F) and a Red Turquoise (M)?

I think this used to be a common cross. Should get you some nice fry.
I don't think many are crossing back with red turquoise and the brilliant are getting more solid in color. This is a quote from a website on strain development.
Bill

"The Turquoise is a descendant of the Wild Blue Discus (Symphosodon Aequifasciata Heraldi)
Popular crosses include
Red Spotted Green X Red Turquoise = Red Diamond
Red Turquoise X Brilliant to intensify the usual brick red striation of future spawns of the Brilliant.
The Male Heckel is also crossed with turquoise."

[Tito]

I think this used to be a common cross. Should get you some nice fry.
I don't think many are crossing back with red turquoise and the brilliant are getting more solid in color. This is a quote from a website on strain development.
Bill

"The Turquoise is a descendant of the Wild Blue Discus (Symphosodon Aequifasciata Heraldi)
Popular crosses include
Red Spotted Green X Red Turquoise = Red Diamond
Red Turquoise X Brilliant to intensify the usual brick red striation of future spawns of the Brilliant.
The Male Heckel is also crossed with turquoise."

Nice info! Thanks.