how do u tell if they are pairing up?

[Nathan]

as the subject says, how do u tell if two discus are becoming a pair?

nathan

[Nathan]

come on guys there are so many great breeders in this forum, surely someone knows?

nathan

[Merrilyn]

Patience young grasshopper. Some of us have full time jobs LOL.

Okay, now the first couple of things you'll notice, is that the pair hang out together, usually pick some spot in the tank, and keep all the others away from it.

You may also seem them swim towards each other, and 'bow' to their mate. Next you'll see them 'shiver', flicking their dorsal and anal fin very quickly. It only lasts for a moment, but they usually repeat it several times (this is how they call their fry later).

Next, they'll move to their selected spot, and begin cleaning the site for their eggs. The surface needs to be fairly stable, because they sometimes push pretty hard while they bite and clean the area. This sort of behaviour can go on for days, sometimes weeks, while the couple get to know each other.

Finally the female will decide the surface is ready, you will notice she has dropped her breeding tube, and so has the male. She will begin by making trial runs up the breeding surface, testing it out, but not laying eggs just yet, then when she's satisfied, she will begin to lay a row of orange eggs. All this time, the male should be standing by, guarding her, then when the eggs begin to appear, he needs to do his job of fertilizing the eggs, by making runs up the eggs releasing milt as he goes.

It's normal for her to lay a row or two, and then for the male to do his part. She will again lay rows of eggs and then he will follow. Some males are a bit slow to catch on, and some are easily distracted or too busy guarding the female, that they forget to do their job, and the eggs won't be fertile. It's all a learning experience, and sometimes takes them a dozen spawns before you actually get any live fry from them.

Once they start breeding, you can expect them to breed on a regular schedule. Actually getting them to begin breeding for the first time is the difficult part. Once they start, things usually go smoothly from there.

[Nathan]

thanx a lot ladyred, that really does help a lot. i was just wondering as my BD and fineline ss have been following eachother quite a bit, and sometimes shake those 2 little fins down the bottom (sorry dnt kno what there called). what would the fry look like if a BD and an SS spawned?

thanx again LR

nathan

[Merrilyn]

Those two little fins are called Ventral Fins. They use them like feelers, to feel their way along the surface when spawning. That's how they manage to lay eggs on a narrow twig.

They often shake those fins, but unfortunately it doesn't mean much. When spawning, the fins they shake are the big fin along the top of the fish, the dorsal fin, and the matching big fin on the under side of the fish, the anal fin.

Not sure what a blue diamond and snakeskin would look like. I guess some would look like the male, and some like the female. Maybe one of the members who has actually done that cross might be able to advise further.

[Nathan]

oh well there still following eachother, and i found the SS shake tonight but not sure if it means anything, as ive only seen him do it once.

anyway thanx again lr

nathan

[mcloughlin2]

Heres some information, :P

http://www.discusforums.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4426