How much does a discus fry cost? A detailed guide to keeping them

Friends who like keeping fish should all know the discus, which is a very beautiful aquarium pet and has the reputation of being the “king of tropical fish.” The fish body is rich and varied in color, and many people like to keep it at home. So how much does a discus fry cost? How do you keep it?

I. Basic information about the discus

The discus is native to the waters of the Amazon River basin in South America and belongs to the family Cichlidae. It is also called the discus or seven-colored swallow. The fish body is nearly disc-shaped and flat, with a body length of 20 cm, a very short caudal peduncle, and symmetrical dorsal and anal fins. The fish's body color is rich and varied, including red discus with red as the main tone, brown discus with brown as the main tone, and blue discus with blue as the main tone, accented with red, yellow, blue, green, black, brown, white, purple and so on.

II. Price of discus fry

The price of discus fry is related to the size, color and variety length of the fish, and the price differences are very large. Overall, the discus is a relatively expensive ornamental fish, so when buying discus you cannot just listen to the price; you should go and see them with your own eyes. If buying wholesale, it is generally a bit cheaper, at about 20-30 yuan each; ordinary varieties sold retail in stores are about 40-50 yuan each. For specifics, you still need to ask at your local aquaculture market.

When selecting fry, pay attention to a few little tips:

1. After deciding on a variety, carefully observe whether the fish is healthy and lively, swimming around everywhere, whether it actively looks for food, and whether the ratio of eyes to body is normal. Note: the smaller and redder the fish's eyes, the better, which indicates that there were no problems during its growth;

2. Also pay attention to observing which of the whole group of small fish play a leading role; generally these leading small fish are relatively strong.

III. How do you keep discus?

Compared with other ornamental fish, the discus is more troublesome to keep, and when keeping it you must pay attention to the two major aspects of water quality and food.

1. Water quality

The discus has relatively high requirements for water quality. It is recommended to use a large aquarium (length above 90 cm). It is best to plant aquatic plants of moderate density in the tank and place a few rocks. Keeping discus requires acidic soft water, with a pH value between 6.0 and 6.5, and a water temperature of 28℃. The water quality environment must never undergo drastic temperature changes; the content of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate in the water should be as low as possible, lower than for other fish; if it is a bare tank, then water must be changed daily, and the amount of water changed is positively correlated with the size and number of the fish.

Note: Soft water refers to water that contains no or fewer soluble calcium and magnesium compounds. River water, stream water and lake (freshwater lake) water are natural soft water. Household tap water is hard water and can be boiled to soften it, or when changing water, mix the water from the water heater with tap water before changing the water.

2. Food

The main bait foods for keeping discus include beef heart mix, bloodworms, fine earthworms (nematodes), color enhancers, medicated feed, pellet feed, flake feed, etc. In the process of feeding discus, you should pay attention to feeding a reasonable combination of multiple foods, and do not give it only one kind of food for a long time.

(1) Small fish stage (1-5cm): The feeding stage for small fish is very critical. Generally they need to be fed once every 2-3 hours, with the portion based on the principle of being eaten within 3 minutes, mainly fine earthworms (nematodes) and frozen food. Secondly, the water can be changed 2 times a day, with the amount of water changed each time above 80%, and the water temperature controlled between 28 and 30℃.

(2) Medium fish stage (4-12cm): During this period, the number of feedings per day can be reduced to about 3 times. In terms of water changes, one-half or one-third daily is fine. During this period, the discus's staple food is beef heart mix, with bloodworms as a supplement.

(3) Adult fish stage (12-14cm): Adult fish can be fed 2 times a day, mainly beef heart mix, and in terms of water changes, changing one-third daily is enough.

Conclusion: That is all for sharing the fry prices and keeping methods of discus. The colors on the discus's body will only formally show when it reaches the adult stage of above 12cm, so during the keeping process you must pay attention to the maintenance of the environmental water quality, so that you can see the brilliantly colored discus.