The checkerboard discus has red patterning laid over a pale ground in a net or lattice, which the trade reads as a checkerboard. It is a peaceful, demanding fish for experienced keepers.
Did you know
The checkerboard discus and the red map look close enough that discus forums argue over which is which. Both are pattern grades applied by the seller rather than separate genetic lines. The same fish can be listed either way.
Caring for the checkerboard discus
Give a group of checkerboard discus a tall tank of at least 65 gal (245 L). Furnish it with driftwood and keep the flow gentle.
They want hot water at 79 to 90°F (26 to 32°C), soft and acidic, with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. These fish are demanding about water quality, so keep it very clean and stable. Feed quality flake, pellet and frozen foods, often more than once a day.
Keep six or more, since a lone fish gets bullied and stressed. Checkerboard discus are peaceful, hold the middle of the tank and are safe with community fish. Like other cichlids, they are devoted parents. For the first days of life, the fry feed on a mucus the parents secrete on their flanks.
Pick individual fish, since the lattice is never regular and no two fish match. Small juveniles show only a vague pattern, which sharpens with age.
Good to know
The checkerboard's net comes from striation that is broken up rather than continuous, so blocks of pale ground show between the red lines. On pigeon-based fish the melanin pattern is mostly suppressed, so the background stays light enough for the net to stand out. Those fish also show pepper on the face. The pattern is not fixed by one gene, so spawns range from tight net to nearly solid. Breeders sort out the good ones and sell the rest under other names.
In the wild
The checkerboard discus is a captive strain with no documented first breeder or year. Breeder and retail pages describe it as one of hundreds of man-made discus patterns. The widely sold checkerboard pigeon is that pattern crossed onto pigeon blood stock. Pigeon blood itself dates only to around 1990, so the pigeon version cannot predate it.
Weekly picks
Tank mates
The checkerboard discus is a peaceful, shoaling species that keeps to the middle. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.
Is a checkerboard discus a different species from the discus?
No. A checkerboard discus is a variety of the discus, Symphysodon aequifasciatus, and it wants the same tank, water and food as the species.
What size tank does a checkerboard discus need?
A checkerboard discus needs at least 65 gal (245 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What does a checkerboard discus eat?
A checkerboard discus eats quality flake, pellet and frozen foods. It is often fed more than once a day.
How big does a checkerboard discus get?
An adult checkerboard discus reaches about 5.9 in (15 cm).
Does a checkerboard discus need a group?
Yes. A checkerboard discus is a shoaling species and should be kept in a group, not singly.
How does a checkerboard discus breed?
Checkerboard discus care for their young closely, like other cichlids. For the first days after hatching, the fry feed on mucus from the parents' flanks.
5.9 in (15 cm)65 gal (245 L)81–88°F (27–31°C)
7.1 in (18 cm)75 gal (284 L)82–88°F (28–31°C)
5.9 in (15 cm)79 gal (300 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
5.9 in (15 cm)37 gal (140 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
6.3 in (16 cm)26 gal (100 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)
4.7 in (12 cm)53 gal (200 L)68–86°F (20–30°C)