Will discus work with these fish as tankmates?

[TheEelKing]

I have personally experienced clown loaches chasing discus because are attracted to the mucus that discus exude. Others have had this work out fine. I would never take the chance again.
I would first determine if the discus needs are met and then look at the compatibility of each other fish based on these needs:

*temperature: 82-84 degrees
* feeding- discus eat slowly and cannot be with fish that out-compete them for food.
*compatibility: discus are gregarious and need to be in group of at the very least- 5.
* activity: discus are very low activity and are diurnal. The move very slowly ( in terms of the fish we keep in aquarium) so need to be with fish that are not too active or move to quickly. They are active in the day and do not do well with nocturnal fish.

With this, I would scratch all the fish you have listed with the exception of Congo tetras- this may work, but you will need to make sure feed enough that discus will get enough food.

In the 16 years I have kept discus- these are the fish I have successfully kept with them:
Corydoras: c. adolphi, duplicareous, and weitzmani.
Characins: Hemigrammus bleheri ( Rummy nose tetra), Paracheirodon axelrodi (Cardinal tetra), Paracheirodon simulans (Green neon tetras- adults), Hyphessobrycon pulchripinnis ( Lemon tetra).
Cichlids: Mikrogeophagus ramirezi ( German and Electric Blue varieties).

So, would an african knife fish work with the discus then? Say a stocking of the following:

1x African Knife Fish (they get 8" in the aquarium)
12+ Congo tetras
7+ Discus
Several groups of cory cats.

Your discus look very nice in the photos you posted.

 

[Lilyann]

So, would an african knife fish work with the discus then? Say a stocking of the following:

1x African Knife Fish (they get 8" in the aquarium)
12+ Congo tetras
7+ Discus
Several groups of cory cats.

Your discus look very nice in the photos you posted.

Considering 82 degrees marks the extreme temperature range that this fish will be temporarily exposed to in a given year- I would say, no. You could, but it would raise its metabolic rate much higher than it should be and greatly reduce its lifespan. This is the thing about temperatures, the middle ranges are what it is best for long term health and what they typically are exposed to. The extremes are seasonal changes that they are able to handle for short periods.

If you do go with the Knife-fish, when it gets larger the regular size corydoras species will most likely end up as snacks. I would go with the brochis splendens species instead, they can also take the higher temperatures.

But, no discus will live very long in temperatures below 80 degrees. They are not exposed to temperatures below this. They will succumb to external bacterial infections or internal conditions like Hexamita.

 

[Bonytang]

Discus keepers will always play by the book. Seen 1 discus tank seen them all for the most part. Not a bad thing just pretty typical so where's the challenge? I'm not saying my way of keeping fish is any better, it's just that I get super bored of doing the same thing over & over unless you're a breeder than yeah u win. For a non breeder, just a keeper & here & there sell a few fins once in a while, it's always fun for me to keep the hobby challenging. I'll mess up a ton but usually end up getting it kinda right....once in a while at least.

Though, I do love it when people prove me wrong. Especially if it disproves the cynic in me, good to know I didn't hope in vain! xoxo

 

[philipraposo1982]

My own opinion is that discus show best and act naturally when in a group of their own kind with or without diggers.

 

[Hendre]

African knives generally do better in mid-tropical temps. And like well decorated tanks.

Discus keepers will always play by the book. Seen 1 discus tank seen them all for the most part. Not a bad thing just pretty typical so where's the challenge? I'm not saying my way of keeping fish is any better, it's just that I get super bored of doing the same thing over & over unless you're a breeder than yeah u win. For a non breeder, just a keeper & here & there sell a few fins once in a while, it's always fun for me to keep the hobby challenging. I'll mess up a ton but usually end up getting it kinda right....once in a while at least.

Though, I do love it when people prove me wrong. Especially if it disproves the cynic in me, good to know I didn't hope in vain! xoxo

This is not a great attitude to have. Discus keepers work by the book because that is what works to raise proper healthy fish. The idea is to cater to the needs of the specific fish instead of throwing it in and "making it work". You can see the difference between sub-par and excellent care in a moment.

I'd do just discus if you really want to raise proper fish.

1x African Knife Fish (they get 8" in the aquarium)

Biggest I have seen is 10" at London zoo, mine are all around 6-8" though.

 

[Bonytang]

My own opinion is that discus show best and act naturally when in a group of their own kind with or without diggers.

You are 10000% correct. My discus will never breed, never win any beauty contests, they live in 77/78 temps w/ other fish kept in similar temperament. I'll always love a solid straight up discus tank but that's not what I'm into anymore, for now at least. Just wanna mix it up w/ the weirdest coolest community & build from there. I kept discus 20+ years ago & I learned the right way to keep them from ppl like you guys. Not saying my way of keeping is wrong, just trying something diff to see what's cool+what works. For the most part i like how it's turning out just wish i had a bigger tank so i could triple the same stock & add an aro or 2.

 

[Hendre]

If you do go with the Knife-fish, when it gets larger the regular size corydoras species will most likely end up as snacks. I would go with the brochis splendens species instead, they can also take the higher temperatures.

There is no way that an African knife can snack on corydoras. Not a chance. African knives have rather small mouths to be honest, definitely too small for cory cats.

 

[Bonytang]

African knives generally do better in mid-tropical temps. And like well decorated tanks.


This is not a great attitude to have. Discus keepers work by the book because that is what works to raise proper healthy fish. The idea is to cater to the needs of the specific fish instead of throwing it in and "making it work". You can see the difference between sub-par and excellent care in a moment.

I'd do just discus if you really want to raise proper fish.


Biggest I have seen is 10" at London zoo, mine are all around 6-8" though.

Thing is my contributions to this forum are genuine, not same old same same. I love that you have the A+ standard, great. When I reach your level with my own style, I think u can see where I'm coming from. I'm not a bad guy or by any means mean to portray a negative attitude, well... jk. Pretty much I just want to show what's not always against the grain..

This is my set up & it's getting better every time I work with it so any support is great. I support new tanks and pitch in my 2 cent all the time. Some like some don't. That's not really the point though, most important thing is just to look outside the box + keep mixing it up or yeah...end up losing interest in this great hobby. I'd rather have fun at the end of the day.

 

[Lilyann]

There is no way that an African knife can snack on corydoras. Not a chance. African knives have rather small mouths to be honest, definitely too small for cory cats.

Thanks for letting me know this. I will remember going forward.

 

[Stanzzzz7]

Thing is my contributions to this forum are genuine, not same old same same. I love that you have the A+ standard, great. When I reach your level with my own style, I think u can see where I'm coming from. I'm not a bad guy or by any means mean to portray a negative attitude, well... jk. Pretty much I just want to show what's not always against the grain..

This is my set up & it's getting better every time I work with it so any support is great. I support new tanks and pitch in my 2 cent all the time. Some like some don't. That's not really the point though, most important thing is just to look outside the box + keep mixing it up or yeah...end up losing interest in this great hobby. I'd rather have fun at the end of the day.

Let's just ignore decade's of collective knowledge and care experience from experts and experienced hobbyists.
Let's experiment and try weird conditions and stocking and dress it up as thinking outside the box.
Let's ask experienced members for advise and ignore it.
I have never heard such a load of crap in my whole life.
Discus have evolved to suite their environment. There care should mimic their environment.
But let's think outside the box eh? They're only living creatures after all.