My discus might be breeding!!! :D

star_rider said:
now comes the hard part..
leave them alone

if you bug the parents too much they may eat the eggs.
but it is early ..the eggs will sit there for about 3 days then hatch to wigglers.. they may move the wigglers but often they leave them there..eventually the fry will stick to the praetns and feed of the slime of the parents.

the problem is..if they Discus feel threatened..they may eat the babies.

if you want to have a breeding pair you can move the pair to a breeder.
but if this is their first spawn..I'd leave them alone and see if they keep spawning.

tand the spawns actually have some hatches..then consider a breeding tank.
set up with sponge filters and a breeding cone.
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"OO NOO I'm scared, LET'S EAT OUR CHILDREN!" Lol, discus.
That's really cool that they did this on valentines day though, I can't wait untill my fish get old enough to breed.
 
star_rider said:
take it one step at a time.
if they hatch..the wigglers will either be moved or the parents may keep them where the eggs are..when they become free swimmers..they will latch on to the parents..to feed off the slime..I am not sure how long they do that but they will look like tiny discus when they are ready to eat food.. discus develop a bit slower than other cichlids so it may be a few weeks from egg to eating food.
once they eat food (several small feedings per day) it will still be several weeks before they are seperated and viable for shipping.

these are in a community tank..correct?
you have a lot going against you in a community tank as tank mates will eat freeswimming babies when they get the chance.

but it is interesting to watch.
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Yeah, they're in a community tank. (specs in my sig) I'm hoping that the cardinals/harlequins don't go after the newborns (if they actually hatch, its their first spawn, so they may not do anything at all) or at least that a few survive to the point of being fry. The feeding part will be interesting... as I work full time. Perhaps I can coax my family and gf to wander in and administer a small dose of baby brine shrimp every few hours while I'm gone. OH, big question: will baby discus eat FROZEN baby brine shrimp? (I'd thaw them, of course... but do they need to be alive for them to see it as food?)
 
Keiferd,
it is pretty common with Cichlids to do this-eat their fry.
that is why it is best to leave them alone or at least minimize traffic and activity in their breeding area.

gatotsu
they will eat bbs..fresh hatchedd is best..discus juvies are pretty picky but you can get them to eat bbs. once they are weaned off the parents slime.
 
Since I've not really encountered much on the net about what the eggs are supposed to look like, I figured I'd ask you guys. Most of the eggs are still yellow, as they were in the pictures I posted. 3 of the eggs went almost white, and are much more opaque. Does this mean those 3 went bad? That's not fungus, is it? They don't look fuzzy, and I'll see if I can get a pic before I leave for work.
 
Those 3 white eggs didn't get fertilized. It's not fungus. The parents will take care of the white eggs by eating them. Sounds like the rest of them might be fertilized. Keep the lights on in the tank. And watch for the wrigglers. You'll have to look close to see their little tails. It's an awesome sight!
 
They actually managed to fertilize 105/108 on the first try? (yeah, I actually counted them on one of my macro shots) Hahahaha.... I'm really excited! I'm still really worried that since they're on the intake tube to my xp2 they will get sucked into it if they head too far south. (only about 4-5" above the strainer) I don't want to upset the parents by trying to sneak in and put a sponge on the filter, but I at least want the wrigglers to have a fighting chance. I'll be taking more macro shots in the next 24-48 hours, as based on what I've read, that's when the wrigglers will start showing up. :D
 
you could shout the filter of and do daily water changes
 
A good idea... but I'm not sure I'm willing to go THAT far for them. I've already partially resigned myself to accepting the fact that most, if not all, of the fry will not make it. :-\ It gives me high hopes for when I am able to set up a specific breeding tank though, then I can house the male and female together and find out just how many babies they can make. :p: Working 40+ hours a week, being a student, having a gf, caring for a discus tank, being a free lance photographer, and trying to have a social life all mixed together leaves me worn out by the end of the day... daily 50-70% changes would be great for the fish, but would probably not be so great for me... besides, the plants are doing better now that I only do 2 big changes per week rather than daily/semi-daily smaller changes. Once I'm able to set up a breeding tank, I can set up a proper sponge filter and do a bare-bottom tank, with perhaps a few pieces of driftwood, so cleanup will be a LOT easier.
 
the wiggler will be stuck to a surface..they get moved to the parents from there..they will eventually freeswim..if you get that far.
 
Latest update

Well, I was kinda busy yesterday, so I was unable to post any updates. At any rate, the eggs hatched. :D I saw about a hundred wrigglers yesterday, after thinking that all the eggs had been eaten. I noticed that the eggs were gone, and was disappointed, but when I noticed that turq and sapphire were still defending that end of the tank, I poked my head around beside the tank, and sure enough, they had moved the wrigglers over to the driftwood near the filter tube. This morning, they seem to have moved them back, and I don't believe all of them are still there. :| I did a real rough count and figured about 50 to still be there. I'll get some pictures up in the next few hours :)
 
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