Discus - aquarium fish, which in nature were found in the Amazon River. Then they began to meet in Brazil, Peru and Colombia, where the discus tried to keep secluded places, hid in the root system of trees, off the coast. Their flat body allowed them to quickly maneuver through the barriers.
To date, aquarium fish are very popular, but they require some attention. First, coming from the waters of the Amazon, they can live in water only high temperatures (+ 26-30 ° C). Secondly, for them the rigidity and acidity of water is important, approximately at the level of 4 to 8 units. However, the selection of these fish has led to the fact that the discus has learned to adapt to tap water, but before settling into a common aquarium it is recommended to quarantine for them.
Appearance, size and color of the discus
Fish discus got its name from the bizarre shape of its body: almost flat and round. The size of adult discus reaches 15-20 cm, so you can admire all the splendor of these fish.
Varieties of discus - in a variety of natural colors. You can meet the royal blue discus, whose body emits a soft blue color, and on the sides has dark stripes. Red-blue discus also has a few red spots in addition to the blue color. Green discus impresses with its azure patterns throughout the body and a bright green fin. Brown discus is a chocolate shade with overflows in bright yellow.
As a result of mass breeding and crossing of brown discus, discus gold appeared in nature. In fact, this fish is bright yellow, but there are no dark stripes in its color. Breeds of discus, obtained from the crossing of fish of different shades, differ in colors and overflows.
False discus is the name of the fish north, which also belongs to the family of cichlids. Severum is less demanding than the discus, but in appearance it is somewhat inferior to the latter. The false discus has a more dense, massive body.
Maintenance and care of the Dixies
Fish discus love a spacious house. It is recommended to use an aquarium of 100-200 liters, since the discs grow quite fast. The optimal size will be 35-40 liters per adult fish.
The aquarium should be high enough, not less than 50 cm. Do not forget about substituting part of the water. It is necessary to do this a couple of times a week, approximately 20-40% of the aquarium.
As for feeding, the discus like small portions 2-3 times a day. For nutrition, both combined feeds, tubulars, bloodworms, crumbled shrimps or squids are suitable. Diskus often select food from the bottom, without eating from the surface.
Discus - flock, so they are recommended to breed in groups in one tank. On whom the discus live, depends their well-being and life expectancy - about 10-12 years in favorable conditions.
It is not recommended to settle in the aquarium with the discus of other fish. It is caused by several reasons:
- Discussions like very warm water,
in which most fish will not survive - Discussions require frequent substitution of water, which can be bad for neighbors
- The behavior of discus is calm, most often they can not stand up for themselves
- Discussions are rather slow, so when active neighbors in an aquarium risk being left without food
- Disks are susceptible to diseases, carriers of which are almost all fish
Not get together discus and scalar, but discus and neons or discus and soms can be neighbors.