Discus - Symphysodon discus breeding
Every fish breeder dreams to having an aquarium with discuses, to being able of breeding even reproducing discuses. This superb fish, from every point of view: shape, size, color, behavior, represents the top of pride in our aquariums, pride top which most of times we can`t reach. 
For being able to breed this fish, we need more years aquaria experience, and theoretical knowledge that most of us don`t have. It`s not enough to have an aquarium, water, aquatic plants, a vibrator and maybe a heater in order to buy two or four discuses and claim that we are discus breeders. We can`t say we are discus breeders even if we have discuses in our aquariums 
The literature about Symphysodon discus has improved in the last 10-15 years, but most of the aquarium fish breeders don`t have access to it, same thing happening with other aquarium fish species too. In Romania there are some breeders, also in Bucharest, who reproduce this fish regularly, which used to have a methodic price before the revolution (anyone could afford buying it). But let`s get back to the requests of breeding discuses, requests that are very important to fulfill. Of course we need an aquarium (but not any kind of aquarium), water (but not any kind of water) and temperature (but not as for other aquarium fish species, discuses need a constant temperature maintained at 28-31° C using a thermostat). Why do the discuses need such a special care, different than any other species? What are the differences between discuses and other aquarium fish, even those from the same natural habit?
The discus is a fish which has a continuity of only 50-60 years in our aquariums; I`m talking about the wild discuses. The reproduction is not as hard as the fulfill of the needed conditions. These conditions are the same as in the natural environment. The fry care is a big difference between discuses and any other aquarium fish. Everything is special with discuses: from food to water, spawning, diseases (some diseases are specific only for discuses). So let`s see what we know about discuses.
There are two ways to go about obtaining a breeding pair of discus. The most common is to buy a group of young discus and grow them up together. For a good chance of getting a pair, at least six discus must be purchased, hopefully from a few different sources so as to get some genetic diversity in the breeding program. These fish are then housed together until pairs can be determined. When two discus pair off they will defend a territory in the aquarium against all of their other tank mates. When this behaviour is observed it is time for the breeder to move the “newlyweds” to an aquarium of their own. The second way to obtain a breeding pair is to go out and buy one. This is a more expensive route, since proven pairs sell for several hundred dollars, but it will yield the fastest results.
Regardless of how you get your pair, you will need an aquarium set up for them with the objective of breeding in mind. A twenty or twenty-seven gallon tall tank is ideal for these “tall” fish. The bottom is left bare, so that removing any left over food and other debris is easy. The only decor required by the pair is a spawning surface. Discus lay their eggs in the same manner as angels, and so a vertical surface should be provided for them to deposit their eggs on. I use an inverted ceramic flower pot, but the discus aren’t picky and will use whatever surface is available. A potted plant or two can be added to the breeding tank if so desired, and will provide some shelter for the pair, but this is not essential. As far as filtration goes, a sponge filter should be used to handle the biological load, and an outside power filter to pick up any debris that may be in the water. I also like to add a mesh bag of peat moss in the power filter so as to better replicate the natural water conditions that discus come from.
This brings us to the first and most important secret you will need to know if you are going to have any success breeding discus. This is the secret of water quality. Discus come from the warm, soft, acidic waters of the Amazon River. It’s no surprise then that discus thrive when these conditions are replicated in the home aquarium. For both general maintenance and breeding of discus the pH should be kept at 6.5, and the temperature around 86 F. Any alterations that need to be made to the water chemistry should always be done prior to the water being added to the tank. For general maintenance water changes should be performed weekly. However in the breeding tank, a small water change should be done every day, or every second day. Frequent water changes increase appetite and promote mating activity in discus. It’s no coincidence that discus will often spawn after a water change.
The second secret is related to the first, and this is the secret of food. If good water quality is maintained the discus will have large appetites and should greedily accept any food offered to them. My discus get fed only frozen bloodworms. The reason for this is that they are clean and convenient to use. Other foods that can be used include beef heart, Tetra Color Bits, frozen or live brine shrimp, and live white worms. If feeding beef heart, one must be careful that none is left over because it will foul the water very quickly. Live tubifex or black worms should never be fed to discus at any time, as I can guarantee that they will introduce parasites to the tank.
Once these two secrets are mastered, breeding discus is a cinch. The breeding pair will lay eggs as often as every week, as many as fifteen times. They will usually go through two of these spawning cycles in a year. The eggs take 48 hours to hatch , and are free-swimming another 72 hours later. Immediately upon becoming free-swimming the fry will move to their parents’ sides, and start feeding off the mucous secretion that is produced by the parents during this time. The fry will feed off their parents’ sides for as long as you leave them together, but they should be offered newly hatched brine shrimp after being free-swimming for five days.
February 6th, 2008 at 1:19 am
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