Top 10 Tank Mates for Discus Fish

In today's video, we are

discus

sing one of the most beautiful

fish

in the hobby, the

discus

, and what would be the top 10 lists of

tank

mates

for the discus. This was a highly requested topic so I'm excited to tackle it, so let's dive in first. When we get into the top 10 list, there are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to maintaining discs and ultimately selecting techniques for them. Discus are South American cichlids and are on the more peaceful end and some people will say they are a little more difficult to keep, you really need to make sure you have a cyclical aquarium, keep up with water changes and feed them correctly just to make sure that they are happy and healthy, but one of the most important aspects of keeping discus and I think perhaps the most important thing when selecting

tank

mates

is that the temperature to keep this case will generally be a little higher than that of many other tropical

fish

, some of the larger South American cichlids I have in these two tanks probably would.

They don't do well with discs because of that higher long-term temperature and would probably be too aggressive anyway, but the recommended temperature for keeping discs is usually 80 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit. I keep my tank between 82 and 83 degrees, so any tank I choose definitely needs to be able to withstand that temperature and also needs to be big enough that the discus won't eat them, so something like shrimp could be in danger of that or if you have a very large disk and you really insert them. small tetras, for example, which could end up being a snack for the discus and you also don't want to get fish that stress the discus, either by being overly aggressive with the discus, perhaps bullying or pushing it or worse. even killing the puck you definitely want to avoid that, so all of those different considerations went into developing this top 10 list, which I definitely think is solid, but of course there will be some that aren't on this top 10 list. that you may have had. success and if that is the case be sure to comment below, we would love to hear from you or if anyone on this list has been fish in your discus tank that has also had the same success please also leave that in the comments section below .

So without further ado, let's get into number 10. At number 10 on the list is the rainbow fish. Rainbow fish are relatively peaceful and come in many different color varieties, they are quite active swimmers so they provide that back and forth. behavior for their discus, which might draw them out of hiding a bit, but overall they are quite active and peaceful, they stand their ground, so the cells and their great color make them ideal for discus, they tend to like temperatures slightly lower than discs, but I've seen them do very well at 82 or 83 degrees Fahrenheit, so I think they make a very good tank companion.

Album number nine on the list is one of my favorites and that is Clown Loach. Clown loaches make a great tank. companions because they basically stay on the bottom, out of the way of your drive and have some cool orange and black patterns, some really silly behavior that's really endearing. I love clown loaches, especially if you have a large group of them, they get quite large. However, you will need a large tank which hopefully you already have if you keep discs, they also work well in the 82-84 degree temperature range and are really good collecting equipment, like I said, if you have that big enough. tank and just a quick disclaimer, we are cichlid brothers and we love keeping cichlids together so this list might have a few more than the run of the mill list you will find, but the first cichlid is a dwarf cichlid.

Apistograms are a bit territorial, but only need a small space in the tank and are usually located in the lower third of the tank, while discuses can be in the middle or upper levels more often and are relatively peaceful cichlids. that won't do much damage to the discs in most cases, as long as they aren't playing or are very aggressive you should be fine. Pistograms come in many different varieties and have great color, especially the males, they are just absolutely beautiful. So they are a really cool and unique option made for tanks. You could put some epistograms in there and it would look really cool.

I definitely thought about doing that with my 90 gallon tank and then the next cichlid on this list and getting to the number. seven is the angelfish, some people may not even realize that angelfish are cichlids, just like discuses, and with all cichlids they can be aggressive at times or territorial and for the most part both Angelfish and discus have fairly similar temperaments, they are relatively peaceful, they move around the same size, they are both fairly tall fish and are not overly active, stressing each other. Sometimes angelfish can be a little aggressive if they are in breeding mode, but as long as you don't have a partner breeding you.

It should be fine, especially if you have a 75 gallon or larger tank, there should be plenty of room for the angels and discus to coexist. Both are South American cichlids that would do well in a sand planted tank. Floating rock angels will too. you do well in those higher temperatures so you should be fine there, it's a really great tank made option and one that I've seen have a lot of success at number six on the list is a fish I had years ago, which It's the Harley. Ken raspora Harley Ken rasboras are a really unique fish, they are very peaceful which is great to accompany your discus.

They have some really cool color patterns with a little bit of pinkish orange and then that darker purple and black along their body and they have great breeding. Behavior so I would recommend a group of eight or more of these guys and it would really look great and because they will be active swimmers at times that brings the discus out of hiding once again as long as you don't introduce them when they are small, they should be fine and big enough that the discus won't eat them and they will make very good tank mates in the right setup.

Number five on the list are bristlenose plecos. Bristlenose plecos are great because they stay relatively small in comparison. For some of your other pleco species, they also eat algae in the tank, so if you have a planted discus tank, bristlenose plecos would make amazing cleaning equipment and will help you with any algae problems in your tank. . There are also several types of bristle nose. which you could use with super reds or chocolates or albinos, there are multiple different options and while most would say that bristly nose plecos prefer the lower temperature range, I have seen them work very well in that 82 to 83 degree range with your disk.

They are very adaptable and vigorous fish, so they will do very well in this case as long as your tank is not in the super hot range, but they are very peaceful fish, they will stay to themselves and hide a lot and do a great job cleaning up. Number four algae on the list: your Cardinal and Neon tetras, which some people may put up with, but there are some really good options when it comes to keeping this case that just ranks above these guys. Neon cardinal tetras are a staple in the hobby. I group them together because they are quite similar, although cardinals may be my favorite of the two when it comes to keeping them with discs, they have an extra bright red coloration and really do well in those. warmer temperatures like your discus, if you have a large school of one of these types of tetras they would do great alongside a group of discus, they give their behaviors that really cool schooling behavior than some of the others on this list they would have.

Provides that pop of color that looks great against the discs or live plants in the tank. They are also from South America, so you keep it region specific when you keep them on discs, which is another plus. I really love this combination. that's why it's at number four and then number three on the list is another cichlid and that's the German blue ram. The German Blue Sheep has many similarities to the Apist and that is why it would be great with the discus and those include them. being relatively peaceful they don't require too much territory in the tank, they really keep to themselves and like the episto they have some cool color patterns something that is quite unique and would definitely stand out in the tank and although they are rather dwarf cichlids.

Being quite small, you don't need a huge tank to keep them. They will probably do well in some of the smaller sized tanks you would see with discs. They are also from South America, so they have the same thing. parameters and water requirements like The discus overall fits the bill perfectly and is perhaps the best cichlid to pair with the discus if that's something you're looking to do and then getting to number two on the list is your corydoras, there are a lot of different ones. types of corydoras, but there are some specifically that I think pair very well with discus.

I really love the scramble of corydoras, skunk quarries or even rusty quarries, they all work great in slightly higher temperature ranges and get a little larger than say your Panda Quarry, so they don't If they're really in danger of being picked on by other tankmates, the runners will act more like a group of scavengers, which is great because if some uneaten food falls next to them, they usually make sure they wallow. anything in the substrate that drives it towards the filters, some hide during the day, but if you have a good sized group of these guys you will probably see them quite often and they will swim to the bottom of the tank which provides dimension really nice for any discus tank as they will be at the bottom you may find your discus floating in the middle of the tank and if you supplement it with a large school of tetras I think it is one of the most ideal. disc tank builds, so it's a really good segue into number one on the list and that's the rummy nose.

Rummy nose Tetra tetras are perfect companions for discus because they prefer those higher temperatures. They are also from South America. They have a really cool red coloration. on their faces, gray bodies with a really cool black and white color pattern on their tails, they look absolutely amazing in a really big school of them. I currently have 20 in my tank but I will be adding 12 more soon to make this truly The big cool Romeo School tetras, another really cool thing about them is that they will show that great color and that pop of red if the parameters of the water are great in your tank, if they have more off color something could be wrong in your tank and it is a sign that you need to check your water, maybe do a water change, it is a really great indicator that something could be evil.

I also think its color pattern contrasts very well with different types of discus, its active behavior can bring your discus out of hiding. Very active fast swimmers and it's great when they swim around your discus and your discus relax a little there, the Rummy Nose Tetra is one of my favorite smaller fish in the Hobby and that's why it's number one on the list and , finally, just to go with some honorable mentions that were almost missing from the list. I should start with a few different cichlids, Geophagus Fini and Geophagus toppos are two of the most peaceful geophaguses and I have seen them work with discuses in some cases.

Higher temperatures might be a little tough on the GEOS, but I think they could do it, especially the top hose, it could definitely work in that 82 degree range. I think a couple of other South American Pacific Cichlids like Festivum or Curvaceps could work very well as well. Your other rams like your Bolivian ram could definitely work with discus and just to round out the honorable mentions, of course there are some other tetras that could work. There are too many to add to a top 10 list, like your Congo or your lemon tetras. Anything that's not too small that it can be eaten by the discus or too thin and agile would work great and you should be fine, so you could do something like the hatchetfish or even a Siamese algae eater if you wanted to go that route. of a bristlenose pleco, those should do very well with discus too, that makes it for the top 10 lists of tank mates by discus, like I said, comment below what your experience is with any of these fish or Any fish that were not on this list, we would love to hear from you.

I hope this information has been helpful or educational. Thanks again for watching and we'll see you next time. Thank you.