Smokey Posted July 15, 2004 Report Share Posted July 15, 2004 The Degree of Difficulty: indicated by the symbol D. - the requirements of a particular fish. - can also be related to the foods a fish requires. D1 - Beginner's Fishes The fish are generally ominivorous and have no specialized requirements. A variety of flake foods are suitable. D2 - For slightly more expierenced hobbyists. Flake foods are suitable. D3 - For advanced aquarists. - In general flake foods are still recommended, but often need to be augmented with other types such as freeze-dried, food tablets and live foods. The selection depending on the species. D4 - Species recommended for aquatic epicures and experts. - Included are fish with highly specialized diets; predators which require live foods, vegetarians which need algae and wilted lettuce and sensitive species such as Discus which present the dual problems of food and water quality. The number indicating the Degree of Difficulty is often followed by letters which explane why a species has been assigned to class 4. The following letters are used: H = Herbivore - Vegetarians which cannot be kept in a tank with live plants Ch - Chemistry - Requires water of the highest quality or needs particular water values. C - Carivore - Predators which cannot be kept in a tank with smaller fishes, though they may often accept tankmates of their own or differing species if of the same or larger size. C also indicates the fish must be fed live foods and that a constant supply will be needed. S = size - The species needs a large tank with plenty of space for swimming. When you purchase young fish you should know, in advance, the size it will attain as an adult. [Reference, page 203, Aquarium Atlas, volume 1.] examples: Xiphophorus helleri / Swordtail = D:1 Potamotygon laticeps / Freshwater Stingray = D:4 [C] Serrasalmus rhombeus / Spotted Piranha = D:4 Pelvicachromis pulcher / Purple Cichlid Kribensis = D:1 Tropheus morrii = D:4 Aulonocara jacobfreibereg = D:2 etc...... Plants also have a Degree of Difficulity classification. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAlberta Posted February 20, 2006 Report Share Posted February 20, 2006 What classifications do raising Discus and Angels get??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toirtis Posted February 20, 2006 Report Share Posted February 20, 2006 Not dissimilar to the way FAAS and CAOAC classify fish for the BAP systems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Froggie Posted February 22, 2006 Report Share Posted February 22, 2006 To be honest I think it needs significantly more levels if Discus and Tropheus are considered "on-par" with freshwater stingrays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Prawn Posted March 1, 2006 Report Share Posted March 1, 2006 What classifications do raising Discus and Angels get??? I believe Discus would be D4, aka the most difficult (as they are stupidly sensitive to water quality, 25% or more daily water changes some people say), and I personally think angels would be a D1 or a D2, I only say D2 as some types of angels are harder to keep than others, such as Pterophyllum Altum, or the Altum Angelfish, which are much more sensitive to temperature changes. They are rare, but an ex-coworker of mine purchased a trio of these online thinking they were just a standard, but attractive, looking angel. This was very recent. I did not know enough about them to identify them simply by looking at them, but I happened to see the receipt that read P. Altum, quickly looked up some images to verify on google, and informed him that his 20 gallon hex probably would not be suitable for a trio of fish that were going to grow to possibly 15 inches, and would eat all his pencil fish if they could. Actually, having recently been, and in many ways still being a begginer, I think there should be no fish that is D1. I wish I had known a lot more about fish before I ever got started in the hobby, as the fish I lost due to poor knowledge could have easily been avoided. -Hideo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAlberta Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 What rating would South American Rams get??? Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAlberta Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 No Reply? Dave What rating would South American Rams get???Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 I would say for keeping the captive bread varieties, they'd be a D1. For breeding... D2.5[Ch] They're pretty easy to keep, and don't take much special care to have them breeding on a consistant basis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toirtis Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 There should probably be another category for spawning difficulty, as, say, Polypterids, are very easy to keep, but extremely difficult to spawn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 I think rams should be at least classified as D3 because of their sensitivity to water quality. I am not a beginner fish keeper, but I just lost 9 of them recently due to a slight nitrite spike, yet my discus didn't even die. So for those who want to keep them, bolivian rams are the hardiest. We lost some gold rams, german blues and some balloon rams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrick Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 I don't think the classification covers anything else than simply keeping the fish. To get the fish to spawn, and then to raise the fry, may not match the degree of difficulty to simply keep the fish alive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted March 28, 2008 Report Share Posted March 28, 2008 I know that, but rams can be more difficult to keep alive. They can be very sensitive with any changes and poor water conditions. They are definitely not recommended for a beginner, even my LFS told me this. And also from my personal experience with them. We lost all our rams except 2 german blue females, and lost maybe a couple kribs as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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