Discus

Discus
Discus

Video: Discus

Video: Discus
Video: Men's Discus Final | World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 2024, March
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The emergence of new breeding forms of discus such as dragon, pigeon's blood, Schillingmann's red, Solid Red, as well as high-bodied and high-fin mutants, probably served as a strong impetus for the increased interest in discus.

Aquarium with young discus fish, photo fish photography
Aquarium with young discus fish, photo fish photography

Indeed, at the current level of development of aquaristics, not only the maintenance, but also the breeding of discus has long ceased to be an insoluble problem. Regular massive water changes combined with a relatively high temperature and suitable feed are the main factors in this matter. As it turned out, neither huge aquariums, nor the most complicated filters, nor any special exotic food are needed.

It is known that only two species of discus are found in nature: Symphysodon discus and Symphysodon aequifasciatus. The first has two subspecies: S. discus discus and S. discus willischwartzi; the second - three: S. a. haraldi (blue discus), S. a. aequifasciatus (green discus) and S. a. axelrodi (brown discus) supplied to the aquarium market from South America. Along with them, more than twenty stable varieties of discus are bred on a commercial basis all over the world, and in recent years our eastern neighbors from China, Singapore and Japan have significantly succeeded in this business.

Discus, photo photography aquarium fish
Discus, photo photography aquarium fish

Obviously, discus breeding, as, indeed, all our aquarium hobby, has covered many years of stagnation. But, judging by the experience of other countries, this will soon pass. Therefore, I would like to briefly acquaint our amateurs with the experience of the leading disc-makers of the eastern and southeastern regions of the world.

Equidistant Discus (Symphysodon aequifasciatus)
Equidistant Discus (Symphysodon aequifasciatus)

Related article Equivalent Discus (Symphysodon aequifasciatus)

Discus aquarium. An aquarium with a volume of 100-120 liters is sufficient for keeping, growing and breeding discus fish. Japanese breeders successfully use aquariums in the form of cubes measuring 50x50x50 or 45x45 x45 centimeters. Shuichi Fude believes that a cube with an edge of 45 centimeters is ideal for keeping a dozen young discus fish. In the future, a couple that has left for spawning is left in the same aquarium. This is quite consistent with the experience of breeders in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. Moreover, the spawning aquariums of Singapore's largest discus breeding company, the Gan Brothers (Gan Kian Leng and Gan Kian Tiong), rarely have water levels higher than 35 centimeters. True, in such aquariums, discus are still cramped and should not be particularly disturbed by endless walking, slamming doors, sudden movements, etc.

Discus, photo photograph of a cichlid fish
Discus, photo photograph of a cichlid fish

To maintain a stable water temperature in the range of 27-35 ° C, aquariums are equipped with two heaters with thermostats. Personally, I was very surprised that even in Singapore, despite the tropical heat (up to 30 ° C at night), in aquariums with discus (only with them!) There were always heaters to maintain a guaranteed stable temperature regime in a given range.

To ensure cleanliness and a stable hydrochemical regime, two mechanical filters with activated carbon are usually placed in the aquarium. Lo Wing Yat, a well-known Hong Kong-based discuss maker, recommends using at least 5 grams of coal per liter of thieves. It is necessary to clean the filters one by one so that a certain complex of utilizing microorganisms, disturbed by washing, can be restored in the filter material of the washed filter. Typically, mechanically cleaned filter media is washed every 5-7 days. This procedure is simple and does not take much time.

Water for keeping discus. It is known that in their homeland, discus live in soft water with a weakly acidic or nearly neutral active reaction. However, the experience of keeping these fish in aquarium shows that the hardness and pH of the water do not really matter, it is only important that these characteristics are stable.

Discus, photo photography aquarium fish
Discus, photo photography aquarium fish

And one more indispensable condition: water pollution by waste products should be minimized. For this it is necessary to regularly replace part of the water. According to Japanese fish breeder Fumitoshi Mori, at least 30-50% of the water needs to be changed daily. But on specialized disc-breeding farms, 80-90% of the water per day is replaced (Gan Qian Tiong).

Let us dwell separately on the active reaction of water - pH. As you know, at a low pH value, the development of microorganisms is suppressed and, accordingly, the risk of diseases is reduced. Therefore, in aquariums with discus, the pH is usually maintained in the range of 5.5-6.5, using chemically pure hydrochloric, nitric or phosphoric acid, as well as special buffer mixtures, to acidify the water.

Discus, photo of a cichlid
Discus, photo of a cichlid

Japanese fish farmer Hiroshi Yamada believes that some healthy specimens of discus can withstand pH drops as low as 2.8 (!). However, at pH 4.5 and below, the eyes of discus from irritation by an acidic environment become cloudy. In healthy fish, this passes almost without a trace in a day or two after the normalization of conditions, while weak and sick individuals suffer longer and do not always fully recover, so you need to handle acids carefully, Lo Wing Yat notes that a sharp increase in pH even by 0.2 causes pronounced stress conditions in fish, while a decrease by the same amount does not have a negative effect.

For breeding discus, water with a hardness of 2-4 ° is used with zero carbonate hardness. However, these parameters are common for tap water in many areas of the aforementioned countries. But the pH has to be invariably controlled and maintained within 5.5-6.0.

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