Golden Melon Throwback Discus
$75.00 – $190.00
Fire orange tie dye emanating electric tangerine waves inflame this tiny rockstar sun god’s flesh in golden coral marmalade flashes as it freewheels through the blue. It is the fish whose skin is emblazoned in the sun’s aura. It is the golden melon throwback discus. It is the enigmatic color one’s third eye might see in the best in men’s souls.
When I hear the word “throwback”, it takes me back to times when you would just lay back on a summer afternoon, watching the sun go down sitting in a your first car, with the windows down. The Golden Melon Throwback is the color of the sun; the life giver. It’s all the memories of summer in one package. Its flaming body gives off a brilliant fire red, with the bounding yellow of dawn. It’s a pattern that reaches right down into the soul, and calls it forth.
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Every fish we sell bears our gold seal that represents the Discus.com promise to our customers. When you make a purchase with us, you are entrusting our team with shipping you a collector grade specimen of unparalleled quality, beauty, size, and heft based on our judgement accrued over 25 years of experience. We guarantee the fish you receive will match the exact fish represented in our product photos. We are the gold standard of discus. Note: our discus are always measured from tip of nose to end of tail. |
| Category | Rating |
|---|---|
| Care Level: | Moderate, see our Learning Center for comprehensive care. |
| Temperament: | Peaceful |
| Color Form: | Huge variety available |
| Lifespan: | 15-25 Years |
| Adult Size: | 8-12 inches |
| Diet: | Omnivorous |
| Family: | Cichlidae |
| Minimum Tank Size: | 50 gallons |
| Tank Set-Up: | Bare-bottom, or Intermediate |
| Compatibility: | Often compatible |
Natural Habitat for Discus
Discus are found in floodplain lakes and flooded forests of the lowland Amazon River basin and some of its tributaries, including the Rio Negro. These areas experience extreme changes in water level due to seasonal flooding. Discus tend to congregate near fallen trees, known as “galhadas”, along the shore. They prefer quiet water, and are rarely found in areas where there is strong current or wave action.
Discus Water Requirements
Discus prefer warm, soft, acidic water. pH should be between 6.0 and 7.0, with hardness between 1° and 4° dKH (18 to 70 ppm). Temperature should be kept between 82° and 89° F. Water conditions for both wild and hybrid discus are the same. While captive bred discus can be kept in dechlorinated tap water reverse osmosis or deionized water supplemented will ensure the the best conditions. Discus require pristine water quality, and depending on the filtration system being used, a weekly or bi-weekly water change of 10% to 25% is highly recommended. Don’t forget to treat tap water with conditioner before refilling your aquarium!
Housing Requirements for Discus
Discus grow to be quite large, and full sized discus will require an aquarium of 50 gallons or larger when they reach adult size. Tall aquariums are best, to accommodate their body shape. Current should be gentle, and décor if used at all should include large broadleaf plants and driftwood that is arranged vertically to simulate downed branches and trees. A few floating plants can also be added to provide shaded areas and cover. Substrate should be fine to medium grade and smooth surfaced, as discus like to forage along the bottom for food.
Discus Behavior/Compatibility
Discus are generally calm, peaceful fish, but as cichlids they can be aggressive toward one another, especially when attempting to pair off and spawn. Shy or submissive fish should be removed if they are unable to compete. Most serious hobbyists do not mix their discus with too many other species. However, suitable aquarium mates include cardinal tetras, neons, emperor and rummy nose tetras, as well as clown loaches and dwarf cichlids such as rams and Apistogramma species. All of these fish tolerate the high temperatures and low pH/hardness required by discus.
What do Discus Eat?
In nature discus eat a considerable amount of plant material and detritus, but also forage along the bottom looking for worms and small crustaceans. They are omnivores and will thrive on freeze dried black worms, beefheart, frozen blood worms, and a variety of pellet and flake food. Frozen and live foods may be fed as treats or to help induce spawning. For best results, rotate their diet daily and feed only what they can consume in 2 to 3 minutes, once or twice a day.
Discus Breeding Level – Difficult
Captive bred discus will pair up and spawn relatively easily, but young, inexperienced parents may eat their eggs the first few times, particularly if other fish are present. After hatching the young feed on heavy body mucus secreted by the parents for a few days until they begin to free-swim. Parents will transfer the young back and forth several times a day.
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Q: How are your stated fish measurements conducted? A: All measurements are made from tip of nose to end of tail. Photographs are representative of the strain or variety, and not the exact specimens that will be shipped. Q: How do I make a purchase? A: Every discus you see on our website is available for immediate purchase and ready to be shipped to you. Click the “Add to Cart” button on your desired products, adjust your quantities, and follow the checkout instructions. We honor all special requests. Please allow a 2-day minimum handling period for discus. Shipping Tiers for Live Tropical Fish:
Blackworms: Free USPS Postal Shipping Plants: $10 FedEx Priority Shipping, Minimum Order: $15 International Buyers Please Note: Import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges are the buyer’s responsibility. Please check with your country’s customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to purchasing. |
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Here's some pictures of the New Arrivals. Even after the Lack Luster handling by UPS, everyone has acclimated nicely. 4 of the 5 have snacked on Bloodworms & are showing all their vibrant colors Ordered the 3.5 to 4” & all appear to be pushing 4” at least. Thanks for being able to honor my requests regarding patterns. As Always Much appreciated! Another group of Studs. Colors are insane. The Blue Diamond with the Red eye contrast is just Striking! Gold Crystal with the Deep Yellow and an absolutely awesome pattern, the Fuji & the Melon look electric. Plus the Red Eagle besides the great Honeycomb he’s already engaging with me & Ate from my hand last night! What a Line up!
Hi Michael, I tried to call you, but no worries. The fish all made it live, tho there was a small amount of leakage. The bag with the Albino Golden was quite low with water. They're all in the tank and appear to be doing well after the first hour or so. They're still quite shy, but slowly venturing out a bit. The Blue Cobalt appears to be blind in one eye, (his right eye is milky white) and so far he's staying to himself in one corner of the tank while the others are staying close to each other the other side of the tank...so I'll be keeping an eye on him. Their colors are returning quite well and their fins are up so that's a good sign. I'll feed them along with their tankmates at feeding time tonight, about 6pm. The bubble rams appear to be doing fine, having been greeted by the other rams I have. Very nice coloring over all, tho the Albino Golden is a bit pale, but as they're all young fish I expect their colors to mature.
Good night Michael. The fish arrived well and all alive. They had been eating since day one. Thanks for everything. I need your help with something I'm looking at that I've been wondering about. I have observed some black spots (or spots) on some fish. A search on the internet led me to another problem… A few small spots (like micro holes) on my head. A fish from the first purchase died in a very strange way (as if it was injured). I'm observing that they haven't lost interest in food. Please give me some help. I'm new to this species and I'm disoriented! From Michael: black spots = peppering. All pigeon strains have some degree of it, particularly in the facial area.I'm not seeing any holes in the head in your photo, but if it's a problem, you need to treat w/ metronidozale. https://www.discus.com/product-category/medicine-cabinet/hole-in-head/
I received my package, however, I think maybe they could have been wrong about the selection I made! With the exception of the two golden ones, the others look identical. From Michael: You ordered small discus which will take time to grow into the adult forms pictured on my website. However, even in this size, it's extremely clear to me the patterns are different. For example, the leopard snakeskin is clearly showing a spotted/snake pattern, while the Penang Blue Knight you ordered has a clear striated pattern. Don't just look at the colors. The patterns matter a lot, too.
Thank you Michael! All is good, we took the acclimating slow and it paid off. Didn’t know if the Blue Penang was going to make it due to the delay from FedEx, but after a few days all good. Melon was a trooper from the start.
These 3 are the eaters. They are never full! Lol I will have my quarantine tank ready tonight. I did notice the non eaters are picking at the plants and driftwood a little more. And now they do seem a little more interested in the food. So hopefully in the quarantine tank when it's not a feeding frenzy they can nibble peacefully and regain their appetite.
The fish came in yesterday, and as always you picked beauties! They seem happy and healthy. I only wish my tank were bigger so that I could have more. Thanks as always.
All the fish arrived safely! They look beautiful and have acclimated well and have eaten. They all look healthy, except for one of the Ge...More
Hi Michael,
All the fish arrived safely! They look beautiful and have acclimated well and have eaten. They all look healthy, except for one of the German Blue Rams. He seemed stressed from the shipping, but I held out hope. Unfortunately when I arrived this morning, he was dead. I don’t expect a refund or a replacement since it has been a couple days since they arrived, but I just wanted to let you know.
Have a great day!
Emily
P.S.
These fish were purchased for a small family owned aquarium and our guests are very delighted with the new discus!
From Michael: Let's get a lay of the land after everything has arrived, and we will figure out what I owe you and we'll go from there. I will make good on everything owed/DOA.
Yes, everything has arrived. The melon was a bit stressed, but seems to be recovering. I'll be ordering again soon. Thanks!
They look pretty good! A bit stressed going to turn the lights off and let them chill for the day.
I was worried about salient peppering and dark background. The quality fish you sent have such light peppering that it isn't a problem. You ruined me, man...lol. I was going to get a saltwater, but now I'm going to simply get a bigger tank. These guys are worth it.
The fish are fantastic healthy and happy! Wonderful coloring and bigger than expected so happy with your picks! Will only order from Discus.com from now on!
I will update the website soon..just wanted to say they all recovered from there shipment and looking good. Still a bit antsy...but that was expected
Good morning! The discus just arrived! They are beautiful! They were very cold at 69 degrees. I hope they will be ok! I thought the red was dead, but today, Friday, seems ok this morning. Also, a lot of the water leaked out during shipping, but they are so beautiful! My current discus is harassing/herding them. I have the lights turned off and feeding a bit more often, any suggestions? It’s a blue diamond about a half inch bigger than the new ones.
Thank you!
Jody
I put them in yesterday. They looked pretty good but I just let them settle in with the lights off over night. Going to feed them shortly and turn the lights on.
Photo of the discus you requested.
Thanks for checking in. Other than one fish in my last order, all the other fish are growing like crazy.