Food

Feeding (Fish), pastel on paper, 24" x 18", 2024, Catching, pastel on paper, 24" x 18", 2022 Eleanor Swordy

Food
Variety is the spice of life~ same for fish. Try different foods from different companies.
Most fish enjoy the hunt as well, if you can provide some live foods it's more nutritious and an enrichment activity.
For some adult fish, one day a week fasting is healthy.

Live
Live food is the best chose for most carnivore/omnivore fish.
Buy at local fish store (LFS), online$$$, or grow your own in *gross bug buckets!:D
Fish love it, the hunt is on! (see bottom of page for more info)
Adult fish: Moina, black worms, grindal worms, daphnia and scuds.
Fry: Moina, microworms/vinegar eels(very small), rotifers, black worms, grindal worms, daphnia and scuds.

Whole Veggies
Blanched is considered easier for fish to digest but some will eat raw cucumber, zucchini, spinach, shelled peas, etc-
Use metal spiral weight, clip, fork or chopstick to keep vegetables from floating.
Remove uneaten vegetables after 24 hours.

Frozen
Frozen daphnia- nutritious and good for digestion.
Frozen bloodworms and Brine shrimp- like steaks for fish, high protein. Cubes of pure protein do not have all essential vitamins your fish needs, add something like vitachem added to meal for balanced health. For some species frozen worm/bug cubes should not be everyday meal.

Dry
Too much dry food can lead to issues in some fish.
Look for "whole fish meal" and named species(Whole Herring Meal, Whole Salmon Meal, or Whole Sardine Meal) rather than just fish meal. Avoid non-nutritious dry foods using soy flour, cornmeal, wheat flour, rice bran, artificial colorants, Ethoxyquin, BHA and BHT.
Buy sinking wafers for bottom dwelling fish, there are carnivore/omnivore/herbivore specific wafers.
Pellets are most convenient and nutritious choice for everyday staples of carnivore/omnivores.
Nutrients in flake formed foods degrade faster than other foods, leaving them not as nutritious. Flakes are generally more messy for the tank than other choices.
Dehydrated cubes should be rehydrated before feeding to prevent expanding after consumption in fish bellies. Cubes of pure protein do not have all essential vitamins your fish needs, add something like vitachem added to meal for full health.

Gel
Repashy(or another brand) dry powder is mixed with boiling water to produce a gel. There are different blends can be good as a supplement if you do not have enough algae for biofilm/alage eating specalists.

Wood
Some fish eat driftwood and/or biofilm on wood. Bristlenose Plecos, Longnose Whiptail Catfish and Whiptail Twig Catfish.

Nano and baby fish (fry)food

Bacter AE- feeds the biofilm microorganisms for algae eaters and fry to then eat
Repashy- a powder you can boil into a jelly food that picky fish will eat different mixes
Buy- Live baby brine shrimp, cyclops
Grow- live fry food, Infusoria(microorganisms) in a separate container, squeeze dirty filter sponge water out, add yeast-wait 24hours till water is clear then scoop into fry tank. *See below

Daphnia

Scuds

Baby Brine Shrimp

Cyclops

🪲🪣Gross bug buckets!🪣🪲*optional!

🌿&🦠Grow "Aufwuchs ": food for Stiphodon gobies, Hillstream loaches, Otocinclus and Plecos

Equipment:
5-10 gallon container, smooth stone(slate etc.), strong light, air stone and fish food/aquarium plant fertilizer.

1. Set up:
Fill a container with old aquarium water and place under strong light.
Ideal temp 72-78°F for diatoms, green algae, bacteria and protozoans.
Colder=slower growth, warmer=more algae & (bad)cyanobacteria.

2. Grow:
Add a tiny pinch of fish food or aquarium plant fertilizer and run an air stone.

3. Harvest:
After 7-14 days, move coated rocks into the aquarium. Replace them as fish clean them.

*Brown diatom-covered rocks are especially nutritious

🌿Grow "Green water": food for Daphnia, Moina & Rotifers

Equipment:
1-5 gallon clear container, grow light or sunny location, aquarium plant fertilizer, dechlorinator, (optional air stone and air pump)

1. Fill a clear container with dechlorinated water. 70-78°F

2. Add a tiny amount of aquarium plant fertilizer.

3. Place in strong sunlight or under a grow light.

4. Wait 1–3 weeks until the water turns green.

5. Use it to feed Daphnia, Moina & Rotifers.

*Keep two cultures as backup.

🪲Grow "Daphnia, Moina or Rotifers": food for adult fish and fry

Equipment:
5–10 gallon container, dechlorinated water, Daphnia, Monina or Rotifers, air stone, light, and green water. *Fine-mesh plankton sieve for Rotifers.

1. Set up:
Fill a container with dechlorinated water and install airstone.
For Daphnia keep 65-75°F/Moina 75-86°F/Rotifers 72-80°F .

2. Add Daphnia, Moina or Rotifers:
Add starter culture purchased online or local fish store.

3. Feed:
Add small amounts of green water as needed. The water should stay lightly cloudy- not foul or opaque.

4. Maintain:
Change 10-20% weekly and remove debris.

5. Harvest:
Net some every few days, leaving plenty to reproduce. *For tiny rotifers harvest with fine-mesh plankton sieve

*Keep two cultures as backup.

🦟Grow "Mosquito Larvae ": food for adult fish and fry

Equipment: 5–10 gallon container, dechlorinated water, fine-mesh net.

1. Set up:
Fill a container with water and place outdoors in a shaded area.

2. Grow:
Leave uncovered so mosquitoes can lay eggs. Check daily for larvae.

3. Harvest:
Scoop larvae with a fine-mesh net and feed immediately. Harvest before they pupate into adults.

*generally considered low risk to harvest wild mosquito larvae

🦠Grow "Infusoria/microorganisms": food for extremely tiny fry(baby fish)

Equipment:
1-5 gallon clear container, dechlorinated water, a squeeze from an established tank filter sponge, baker's yeast, optional: air stone

1. Set up:
Fill conatiner with dechlorinated water (optional: install a gentle airstone.) Squeeze mature sponge filter into container. 72- 80°F

2. Feed:
Add a tiny pinch of baker's yeast.

3. Grow:
Keep at room temperature. Wait 2–5 days.

4. Harvest:
Add small amounts of culture water to fry tanks.

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