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FAQs on Foods/Feeding/Nutrition, Problems
Related Articles:
Foods/Feeding/Nutrition By Bob Fenner &
Marine Nutrition, Probably the most overlooked component of proper
fish keeping By Aaron Loboda,
Feeding a Reef Tank: A Progressive Recipe by Adam Blundell,
Culturing Food Organisms,
Related FAQs: Foods/Feeding/Nutrition 1,
Foods/Feeding/Nutrition 2,
Foods/Feeding/Nutrition 3, Foods/Feeding/Nutrition
4, Foods/Feeding/Nutrition 5,
Foods/Feeding/Nutrition 6, & FAQs on Foods/Feeding/Nutrition:
Kinds, Amounts,
Frequency, Feeding
Methods/Techniques/Tools, Automated
Feeding, Holiday/Vacation Feeding,
Medicated/Augmented Foods/Feeding,
Products by Brand Names/Manufacturers... &
Brine Shrimp, Algae as Food,
Vitamins, Nutritional Disease, Frozen
Foods, Coral Feeding,
Anemone Feeding, Growing Reef Corals, Culturing
Food Organisms, Butterflyfish
Foods/Feeding/Nutrition, |
Keep foods fresh, or stored properly (out of the air,
refrigerated...) ...
LIFO, Last In, First Out...
The little bit of copper in foods... not a problem.
Watch/observe your livestock, carefully! |
Dogface Puffer inhaled large piece of squid
9/2/09
I was feeding my fish with a rather large piece of squid.
<Best to cut up...>
My trigger and puffer were taking small bites while I was holding the
squid. Then, out of nowhere my Spanish hogfish came out & lunged for it
pulling it from my grasp. He let it go and my puffer somehow just
inhaled it with one gulp. This happened 4-5 days ago. The last 3-4 days
my Dogfaced puffers behaviour has dramatically changed. He just mopes
under the rock the whole day. He was quite active before this incident.
Has little to no appetite as well. Today I noticed that he does not even
open his mouth. Do you think that the large amount of squid he inhaled
is causing some type of problem and what can be done about it?
<Really best to just wait... "this too shall pass"... Bob Fenner>
Fishes Losing Color (Inadequate Nutrition) – 01/26/09
Hi
Guys,
<<Hey Brian>>
I have a 330g reef tank fairly well stocked
with 70g sump, weekly 50-60g water changes, ozone, skimmer, Kalk
reactor, 4 x 400w HQI MH 20k.
<<Cool>>
I maintain good water
quality and stable conditions. I have noticed many of my fish have
slightly lost the vibrant color they had when introduced to the tank,
mostly: Lyretail anthias (the male and females), purple tang and Sailfin
tang. The color is more faded on tangs, and on anthias the appearance of
slight darker spots on them. My blue/green chromis, orange clownfish,
and Pseudochromis still have very good color. I have been feeding:
Bio-Pure mysis shrimp
green seaweed
<<Ah! This alone is not enough
to adequately meet the nutritional requirements of your fishes and is
very likely the reason for their loss of color vibrancy. Food additives
can help (Selcon/Selco, Vita-Chem), but these often are abused or simply
not provided due to the cost/hassle. Offering a wider selection of
frozen foods would also be of benefit…but if you do nothing else, I VERY
MUCH suggest you add New Life Spectrum pellets to your fish’s diet. This
pelleted food is very palatable and amazingly nutritious and wholesome.
I have a 375g reef display housing five Tangs from four genera. Along
with an assortment of frozen foods, I provide daily offerings of the
Spectrum pellets and the colors of these and all the fishes are
(admittedly…my opinion) spectacular>>
I have recently switched to PE
mysis due to higher protein content (although I am starting to wonder if
they get higher simply due to less water mixed into cubes) and
brown/green/red seaweeds.
<<Still not enough>>
Rarely do I use
Vita-Chem and garlic additives.
<<Okay>>
I have also recently
stopped using carbon due to suspected involvement w/ lateral-line on my
tangs.
<<Mmm…this will also likely be “cured” with better nutrition>>
I am wondering if this is likely a nutritional deficiency or what
exactly is the cause?
<<Very much an environmental issue…and in this
case a lack of adequate nutrition, I do believe>>
Thanks a lot as
always!
<<Happy to assist>>
Best,
Bryan
<<Cheers, EricR>>
Re: Fishes Losing Color (Inadequate Nutrition) – 01/27/09
Thanks a lot!
<<Quite welcome Brian>>
What's your opinion on
plankton cubes, brine, and bloodworms? Worthless and not beneficial?
<<The Brine Shrimp is of questionable value, but both the Plankton and
Blood Worms are of benefit>>
I'll look for those pellets.
<<Please
do… The Spectrum food will be of great benefit to the health, vigor, and
color of your fishes>>
Should I continue Vita-Chem and add Selcon
also?
<<These can also be of benefit (the Selcon more so than the
Vita-Chem, in my opinion). I use both on an infrequent basis>>
I
always had read brine is useless except to entice feeding initially.
<<Depends… Adult Brine Shrimp are mostly water with little nutritional
value, but if “gut loaded” before feeding if live, or freezing by the
food manufacturer, they can be of some value. Even so, I don’t think
they should ever be the primary food source. Regards, EricR>>
R2: Fishes Losing Color (Inadequate Nutrition) - 01/27/09
BTW I failed to mention I feed a mix of Formula One, Two, and Reef Blend
w/ an automatic feeder 4 times a day. Does this change anything?
<<Mmm, no… Our previous discussion on the color and condition of your
fishes would seem to indicate it is still not enough/is not “doing the
job.” Make sure the fish are eating this offering…and that you are
providing “enough” of it. And I can’t mention this enough, but if this
were me, I would replace these with New Life Spectrum pellets in the
auto-feeder. Cheers, EricR>>
Blue Throat Trigger Choked to Death on Squid – 6/4/08
Hi crew,
<Hello Wes, Mich with you tonight.>
I've asked many a question on WWM
before. This time I don't actually have a question but was hoping this
could go into one of your many helpful FAQs (though I'm not sure which)?
<Will be placed.>
I never thought this was a potential hazard because
I'd never heard of it before, but just today my blue-through trigger
choked to death on a piece of squid. I guess I'm writing this to warn
people to cut up fish food to an appropriate size (and also to watch
your fish while they eat, which I don't always do.)
I dropped in a
few small pieces of squid (maybe ¾? square per piece) earlier today for
my trigger, grouper, and eel. I only occasionally feed them squid,
mostly opting for formula one. At any rate, I didn't' stick around to
watch them but did hear some splashing noises from the tank. I glanced
over and saw the trigger darting about with a piece of squid in its
mouth. I didn't think anything of it. My trigger has always been
skittish and will often times dart about for no apparent reason, even
when no one's around. I should have gone over to investigate, and I used
to come running every time I would hear this ?darting about,? but to be
honest, I've since stopped because it just seemed like crying wolf too
many times.
About 10 minutes later, I walked by the tank and saw the
trigger dead on the sand bed with the wad of squid in its mouth. I
quickly reached in, pulled the squid out, and tried reviving him in the
flow of my powerhead for about 5 minutes. I even tried pumping him
gently in the stomach as some sort of strange fish CPR, but that didn't
seem to work either.
<A good thought and I have done this
successfully before. Providing artificial respiration via the movement
in and out of the powerhead can work. In my case, the bag broke that the
fish was being transported in and the fish, a Sailfin Tang was very
cold, it took me over an hour of this artificial respiration but he came
back from the dead.>
I'm both sad and shocked and feel a little
guilty that this happened.
But I guess at least I've learned a bit of
a lesson, albeit one I never thought was an issue before. So that's my
story for what it's worth.
<Wes, thank you for sharing your
experience and I'm very sorry for your loss.>
Cheers and keep up the
great work you guys (gals) do.
Best,
Wes
<Thanks Wes, and my
sympathy to you,
Mich>
Stingray possible food poison? 2/5/08
I had a small
to medium Sea of Cortez stingray that I purchased months ago,
<Mmm,
do you know which species? Some are rather cool-water organisms>
living in a 200 gallon custom tank that I built several years ago. The
system is a Monaco system which is powered by two large volume powerhead
with no stray electric volts. The water quality is pristine and temp
stays at exactly 74.5 deg.s and has never been treated with copper.
<Okay>
I have done extensive research on husbandry of this stingray!
And built the tank to suit his lifestyle and needs. Friday I purchased
H20 life aquarium food clams on a half shell and with in an hour and a
half to two hours the stingray started acting funny and died.
<Yikes!>
I am wondering if food poison is a common factor in stingray
death.
<Mmm, not generally, no>
And what kind of testing can I do
at a lab that would prove that it was the food and not my error in
husbandry.
<There are some very standard tests done in this
regard... concerning the sale of such bivalves for human consumption...
to avoid shellfish poisoning...>
If it is my mistake I would like to
learn from it and educate others so that other stingrays do not need to
suffer from eating dinner.
Thanks,
John Loffer
<Could be just
a coincidence... did you necropsy the ray? Still have it? If so, I'd
freeze the body... do call around if there is a "local" college with a
bio./zoo. dept. and ask them re whom you might contact re shellfish
poisoning... testing, necropsying the animal... to check for gut
blockage, et al. Bob Fenner>
Starving Goby? 9/24/07
I've got a 55 gallon tank with one OC
Clown and Royal Gramma along with new resident Brown barred Goby.
<Mmm, I know of a Black Barred Goby (Priolepis nocturnus).
It has
been about 3 weeks since "Digger" has moved in from QT and he had been
acting normal sifting sand and totally destroying my hair algae
and
other algae growth. He still sifts in the sand but could he have eaten
all the critters in the sand so fast?
<Possible.>
I am afraid
that he did too good of a job as he appears to be "wasting away". He
doesn't seem to be very good at eating food, it's hit or miss with
eating brine or flakes. I have just bought algae pellets, shrimp pellets
and Tubifex worm cubes to try and entice some feeding.
<At this
stage, not so sure if he is going to recognize pellets as food.>
Not
sure if it is working or not. What is a boy to do? What can get this guy
to eat something not in the sand. He ate brine fine in the LFS.
<I'd
try vitamin enriched Brine Shrimp and Mysis Shrimp. They are not that
difficult to acclimate as far as feeding goes. Do read here and linked
files above, especially the FAQ's on feeding. James (Salty Dog)>
Thanks again for your help,
<You're welcome.>
Brad
Re: Saving a Starving Goby! 9/26/07
Hey Scott.
<Hello there!>
An update on my starving Citron Goby. I haven't been able to catch and
move him to my fuge. I did buy New Spectrum 1mm pellets as suggested (I
opted for the $15 formula that is supposedly formulated for picky fish).
I searched on-line and also asked for "glass worms" but people at the
LFS look at me like I'm an idiot. I decided to try frozen blood worms in
addition to frozen Mysis, Formula One and Cyclop-eeze flake, as well as
whole freeze dried Cyclop-eeze. Everyone loves the blood worms.
<A
lot of fish do..>
Unfortunately, in spite of feeding small amounts of
pellets soaked in Selcon 2-3 times a day on top of normal feeding, my
Goby continues to starve. I just can't figure this out. He chases down
food like there is no tomorrow, but 9 times out of 10 he mouths the
Mysis or worms for a minute and spits it out. The only thing I have seen
him eat without spitting is Formula One flake.
<Well, then I'd keep
feeding the flakes. I'd keep enriching them with Selcon, etc..>
I
hate for this fish to die. The hard part is that he's not jut sitting
around waiting to die--he's active, attempts to eat, seems to enjoy his
surroundings. At a loss really.
Andy
<Well, Andy- I'm wondering
about possible internal parasites. Sometimes, these fishes come in with
parasites, and need to be "cleaned" internally. I'm wondering if one of
the anti-parasitic foods would help. I've used these foods with
Meicanthus species in the past with great results! Worth a shot in this
instance. Keep trying...Consider putting vitamins in the water, such as
Vita Chem...Could induce algae, but it is absorbed through the fish's
skin, and possibly even consumed. Can help stimulate appetite. Again-
take all necessary action to save the fish! Best of luck! regards, Scott
F.> Grass
shrimp 9/25/07
Hi I live on the bay in wildwood NJ,
and I want to feed my stingrays grass shrimp, what can I put the
quarantine tank to rid them from parasites and disease. So they are
healthy to feed the rays? And how long 2 weeks?
Thank you
michelle
<Mmm, don't know that there are any parasites or infectious disease that
would transfer to freshwater ray species... is this what you have?
Potamotrygonids?
Bob Fenner>
Re: Grass shrimp 9/26/07
no, saltwater, Urobatis halleri. do you
know of a place where i can order them? certified as disease and
pathogen free by the USDA?
<Mmm, have never heard of any food for
pet-fish (and not Grass Shrimp for human consumption) being certified as
such. BobF> Re: Grass
shrimp 9/26/07
oh well then check this out
http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=2191&N=0
now
you have. Drs.Foster always has them they have just been out all
summer....
oh well thanks anyway
<Oh yeah, Penaeids... take a look
at what not having SPF white shrimp has done to the environment,
national markets where they're aquacultured around the world... But not
Grass Shrimp. BobF>
Michelle
Newly Acquired Auriga
Butterfly Won’t Eat – 09/22/07
Greetings,
<<Hello>>
I have
a 120 gallon, 100 pound live rock, Fish Only tank that was seeded from
LR and sand from my former 55 gallon tank (upgraded).
<<Neat>>
I
added a Euro-Reef RS135 PS and a Turbo Twist UV filter to the new setup.
My new tank has been setup for a month now with no mentionable problems
with NH4, NO3, and NO2 (PH is 8.3).
<<Mentionable? If these readings
are not zero…you have problems if you are introducing fish>>
I
purchased the first fish for the system, an Auriga Butterfly a couple of
days ago (4 days ago).
<<After only a month the system is still quite
new/raw, seeded or not>>
I can't seem to figure out what to feed the
critter, as he does not have any interest in the flake or frozen food I
offer. I have tried Clams, Shrimp, Flake, Squid and clip-on algae.
<<I suggest you try some smaller frozen fare like Glass Worms and Mysis
Shrimp…and try adding a vitamin enhancement product to this like Selcon
as it also seems to stimulate the fish’s interest. You can also try
“fresh” Mussels or Clams (served in the shell) from the supermarket>>
In fact he stays in hiding most of the time in the same spot in the
tank.
<<Mmm, this may be a result of its “newness to the system”…or a
result of the “newness of the system”>>
When he does venture out, I
find him grazing on the LR and once on the glass (could be eating
Aiptasia).
<<Possibly>>
I have heard that this Butterfly is hardy,
however, I fear the worst if mine does not eat soon.
<<This species
is quite appropriate for captive care…though there’s the odd chance you
have purchased a specimen that has been damaged during
collection/transport. It’s not all that unusual for newly acquired
fishes to take a while to acclimate/begin feeding. If the newness of the
system is not malaffecting the fish (do check those water parameters
again as things may have changed with the addition of the fish to this
young system), then give my feeding suggestions a try, to include adding
a few “new” pieces of live rock for the fish to browse upon until it
acclimates to the prepared foods>>
I also have halted purchasing
further fish until I feel comfortable with my current situation.
<<Wise>>
Any suggestions?
<<As stated>>
Best Regards,
Scott
B.
<<Good luck with your Butterfly. EricR>>
Re: Newly Acquired Auriga Butterfly Won’t Eat - 09/24/07
EricR,
<<Scott>>
Thank you for your advice.
<<My pleasure>>
I
immediately purchased the Selcon additive and added it to frozen brine
shrimp.
<<And…?>>
He became more interested and today pursued and
ate the offering.
<<Excellent…but do get the fish switched over to
something nutritious soon, like the Mysis Shrimp and Glass Worms
mentioned in our previous exchange>>
I continue to look into my
water parameters and nothing has spiked. NH4 reads 0, NO2 and NO3 read
zero.
<<Very good>>
I will continue to hold off on more fish.
<<Is best for now>>
However, since I have your attention I have one
more question.
<<Okay>>
Long term with this Butterfly fish which
species makes sense to introduce next: Trigger, Angel (love the Regal,
but my LFS says absolutely NO), Puffer, Hawkfish, Wrasse, Tang (love the
Powder Blue but hear it is hard to keep). Suggestions?
<<Hmm, were
this me…maybe a Christmas Wrasse (Halichoeres ornatissimus or another
Halichoeres species…assuming a suitably deep and fine substrate is
available), a Longnose Hawkfish (Oxycirrhites typus), a Gold-Rimmed Tang
(Acanthurus japonicus…and not to be confused with the much less aquarium
hardy Acanthurus nigricans), and finally, a Picasso Triggerfish
(Rhinecanthus aculeatus, or one of the other Rhinecanthus
species)…introduced in the order listed…and leaving the Angel and the
Puffer to a larger system elsewhere>>
Thank you again for your
continued advice,
Scott B.
<<Happy to share. Eric Russell>>
Getting Double Saddle Butterfly to eat - 3/1/2006
Hi Bob and Crew....hope you're all keeping well.
<I am, thanks>
I acquired a Double Saddle Butterfly last weekend for my 55 Gall FOWLR.
<... a small world for this species>
I made sure I acclimated him
properly and added him to the tank on Saturday afternoon. Only other
inhabitants are a couple of Green Chromis.
<Can be bullies in such a
sized system, tankmate>
I was told by my LFS that he would eat
pretty much anything.....
<Mmm, when in good health, adjusted...
yes>
I'd done some research on your site first and found out that he
is one of the easier to keep butterflies. Anyways after he'd been in the
tank for around 5 hours, I added some Mysis for my Chromis and he seemed
to have a bit of a go at it as well (I'm not sure if he actually ate any
of it because the lights were out).
<Not likely to feed the first
day or two>
Day 2 I gave more Mysis and as soon as it hit the water
he was up looking for it, but turned his nose up at it when he saw what
it was. Next day I tried again, but added some Garlic Extreme before
feeding. He went into a frenzy but again never took any (I also added
some very finely chopped Mussel). Day 3 (today) and same...he was
actually at the front of the tank looking for food when I came home from
work.
<Mmm, might have damaged mouth... very common... from capture,
transport, bagging...>
I'm not overly concerned, because he looks a
really healthy specimen. He's about 3 inches and acting fine. I'm off to
my LFS tomorrow to pick up some live Brine Shrimp (does this sound OK?)
<For periodic use, yes>
....can you suggest anything else to get him
eating?
<Posted... on WWM...>
I've noticed he has a pick at the
LR so hopefully he's getting some goodness out of that for now.
Thanks in advance
Phil P
<I do hope/trust you have healthy live
rock in abundance as well. Bob Fenner> Re: Getting Double Saddle
Butterfly to eat - Part II 3/2/06
Bob, thanks
for the quick reply....
<Welcome>
I got the Live Brine shrimp on
my way home and added it to the tank. He takes the food in his mouth but
then spits it back out. It's as if he wants something else instead (but
I don't know what!!). His mouth looks perfectly healthy (no signs of any
reddening at all, or obvious damage).
<Good>
There's plenty of
Live Rock in there (about 60lbs, I'm adding another few pounds of cured
at the weekend)
<Also good>
I'm a bit confused over your comment
re the bullying in the tank. Do you mean the Chromis might be a bully,
or the Butterfly?
<The Chromis... though rare for the genus in
general (in comparison to many other Pomacentrids), in such a small
volume (four feet long is not much running room), even relatively
"peaceful" damsels can pester easily-disturbed fishes like most all
Butterflies to the point of non-feeding. This being said, it is not
uncommon for new Chaetodonts to not feed for a few days after arrival. I
would just keep offering an assortment of small meaty foods and
observing this specimen. Bob Fenner> Monosodium Glutamate in
Fish Food - Is it Safe? 7/19/06
Greetings WWM Crew,
<Cindy>
I recently began feeding my Pleco Hikari Tropical Sinking
Wafers and now it's the only food she wants to eat. I read the
ingredients and discovered it contained monosodium glutamate. No wonder
she loves this stuff so much, MSG makes everything taste good. I try to
feed my fish only the best foods (although I confess I throw in a few
so-so brands, occasionally, for variety). I decided to read the
ingredients on all the brands on my shelf (New Life Spectrum, Ocean
Nutrition, Omega One, HBH, Tetra, Marineland Bio Blend, and
Hikari). Every Hikari label I have (Tropical Sinking Wafers, First
Bites, and Tropical Micro Wafers) contain MSG. I get terrible migraines
from MSG and know there has been a lot of controversy about it and was
wondering what your thoughts are about feeding this to fish?
<Not
much of a problem if any in aquatic use as far as I'm aware. Is indeed
added as an "appetite stimulant", as well as an essential amino acid
source (glutamine). Bob Fenner> Fish Losing Color 10/17/06
Hi Crew. It has been more than three years since my last question was
posted here. <Long time no see ;)> Recently, I have got a 95 gallon new
tank to replace my old one. All my old fishes are doing ok in the last
few years. <Good> Some of them have already been with me for more than
five years. <Congratulations!> They are eating well and have no signs
of diseases except that some of them have lost their color. My yellow
tang is almost a white tang. My blue tang, powder blue tang and flame
angel all have similar problem. I understand that three tangs will be
too packed in my tank. And I am so lucky that they seem to get along
quite ok in the last few years. <Stress from this may be part of your
problem, although probably more related to diet.> My question is what
sort of food I should feed them in order to bring back their colour
apart from maintaining the good quality of water.
Thank you very
much in advance. Eric
<Variety is the key. Use a high quality
pellet as a base, I personally love New Life Spectrum. Then add to this
algae (Nori) sheets, algae flakes, and a variety of frozen foods, Mysid
being my personal favorite. Also make sure your water quality is good,
this can also have a big effect. Hopefully with a little time their
color will return.>
<Chris> Sodium
tripolyphosphate; Is supermarket shrimp safe for marine fish?
4/5/07
Is the sodium tripolyphosphate found in supermarket
frozen raw shrimp safe for marine fish?<I wouldn’t use anything with it
in it. Depending on what livestock you’re feeding, I’d go with frozen
krill, or similar, available through your local fish/pet store. Sodium
tripolyphosphate, or STPP, is a chemical preservative that has the added
merchant bonus of increasing the sellable weight of a product. It also
makes seafood taste funny! We don’t need it and neither do our little
fishy friends!>Thank you for your time.<You're welcome! -Lynn>
Live food for puffers? (03/10/04)
Hi,
<Hi! Ananda here
tonight...>
Is there any risk of passing on disease to my puffer if I
feed him scallops, shrimp, etc. purchased still alive from my local
supermarket?
<Unfortunately, yes. Kelly the Puffer Queen once
mentioned she'd traced a puffer death to something transmitted via
freshwater mussels she'd fed to the fish. You can't assume that any
wild-caught food is safe for your puffer. If you do choose to buy the
live food, I would suggest quarantining it for a month or so before you
feed it to the puffer. Otherwise, freezing the food for a few days to a
week should take care of most pathogens, protozoans, etc. that the
critters might carry.>
Thank you.
<Thanks for asking -- I'm always
glad to help prevent puffer illness! --Ananda> Reef feeding
question (copper as an ingredient in foods)
I have a 120 gallon
reef system and have been feeding primarily frozen Formula One for some
time. All species of fish in my tank have done very well on the Formula
One. I recently purchased a new batch and noticed on the label that one
of the trace elements listed in the ingredients is copper
sulfate. Should I be concerned about copper buildup in the
system? I've trusted the reputation of Formula One and am not sure what
other frozen options should be considered. What would you recommend?
<No problem. The copper amount is of no consequence here. You won't be
able to measure it>
I appreciate all the help and good advice I find
in your forums every week.
<Ah, good. Be chatting, Bob Fenner>
Thanks,
Scott Starving Goby (1/27/04)
Hey guys- I have a watchmen goby who appears to be starving to death.
<signs & symptoms?> the only food I can offer is staple flake enriched
w/ Selcon and a refugium (newly set up). <Why not frozen foods?> I read
on your articles advising of nutritional deficiency and was wondering if
there is anything I can do to nurse sally back to health. thanks again
Justin Barstow's <A new refugium is not likely to be putting out
anything useful yet. Some of these gobies will take flake/pellet foods.
Others will not. Are there competitors in the tank that eat everything
before it gets down to the goby? I'd suggest target feeding with frozen
Mysis shrimp or other frozen marine foods. The Selcon is a good idea
too. Hope this helps, Steve Allen.> ...about that copper
sulfate...
Good evening WWM crew!
<Good Evening Teyah!> Hope
you all are well. <Just peachy so far!>
A couple of nights ago I
discovered that some pellets I was feeding my cleaner shrimp had copper
sulfate in them. While this doesn't seem to have adversely affected the
shrimp, I wanted to discontinue using the product. Prime Reef was
suggested as another possible source of food, and indeed I've read/heard
lots of good things about this frozen food.
<Comes in flake version
as well w/o Copper Sulfate. (At least the plastic jar/jug I have).>
Tonight, however, I discovered that one of the ingredients (trace
elements) in this is copper sulfate. So... just how harmful is copper
sulfate to inverts if given in this form? Since it says right on the
package that this stuff is "ideal for reef systems", & given that I've
heard of other people feeding it to their shrimp/inverts, that leads me
to believe that it can't be THAT bad. What's the word guys? Should I
feed it to them or not? Thanks for the advice/time patience! Have a
great night! TJ
<Well your shrimp should be proud of you for thinking
of them and doing such a great job of reading the labels! I wouldn't
feed this food or the darned brine shrimp pellets either! Frozen marine
meats like those available from your local fish store will do nicely, or
frozen or flake foods w/o copper sulfate.
Keep reading those labels
and enjoy your shrimp! Craig> Trigger Live Food
I have a
question regarding Trigger food --- basically I am trying to find a live
food to feed my Huma and Undulated Trigger --- my experience is that
live food triggers (excuse the pun) a instinctive response in predators
that you don't get with frozen, pellet or flake food (just my experience
with triggers and Groupers when I had across the street access to
crayfish).
<You and I's experiences are in agreement>
The
reaction when a my trigger is fed a live crayfish or night crawler is
noticeably different than when they see a frozen silverside, flake or
pellet food. That leads me to my question --- I have 8 Bearded Dragons
<For unfamiliar readers these are lizards>
and their main diet is
Crickets (farm raised no pesticides) --- now here is the catch --- to
gut load the crickets I feed them fish food --- I know you know where I
am going with this. Is there a problem with feeding the triggers the gut
loaded crickets? ---
I already know they will eat them readily my
Huma devoured about 12 medium crickets yesterday. Pros or Cons or
absolutely not?
<Likely no difficulty... other than the very
response, conditioning you alluded to initially. Do you want your fishes
to "act mean"? If so, feeding live foods will encourage this. Bob
Fenner> Copper sulfate in food
Today I tried to feed
Kent Platinum reef pellet food to my fish. My pepp. and cleaner shrimp
ate it instead. They loved it! I then read ingredients, and copper
sulfate is listed, along with other vitamins, etc... Could this harm my
inverts and my copper sensitive porcupine puffer? Thanks for your help,
Laura
<I doubt that it is enough to harm the fish, although all best
are off on the inverts. Nonetheless, with so many great food choices out
there... consider and alternative since you have copper sensitive
livestock just to play it safe. Kind regards, Anthony Calfo>
Frozen Food & Skimming
Dear WWM Crew,
Hope everyone had a good
holiday. I have a question about some frozen foods I had ordered. I
decided to stock up on some frozen foods from an online retailer and
everything had arrived defrosted. Probably not a
good idea to order
in 95 degree heat. The Formula One, Two, Spirulina and Angel Formulas
were still cool, but they were almost like soup. The clams and squid
were pretty much thawed as well. The dry ice was completely evaporated
also. I have re-froze everything and it looks fine but I called two pet
shops and they both told me to dump it. So, valuing your advice more I'm
asking: Can this food be salvaged or should I dump it?
<Dump it my
friend.>
One more question if you would. I started using a Polyfilter
about a month ago, and ever since my skimmers produce very little
skimmate now. Would I be better off not using the Polyfilter and let the
skimmers go to work?
<This maybe unrelated. Do try cleaning your
skimmer and its pump thoroughly, including a run in a hot water and
vinegar bath to remove deposits. This usually vastly improves
performance on skimmers that have been running for over six months.>
The Polyfilter is not necessary so I'm wondering if it would be better
to let the skimmers take the crud out before it has a chance to break
down. Thanks in advance, Mike
<Have a nice evening. -Steven Pro>
Gelatin-based foods - 2/12/03
Greetings Krewe!!!
<whassup
G-money?>
I continue to have algae problems in my 20 Gallon
mini-reef. My water parameters are good - 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrates, 0
Nitrites, 8.2 Ph. I'm changing about 3 gallons per week with pre-mixed
and aerated water.
<all good>
The only abnormal parameter is low
Calcium. Will/can increasing Calcium in tank help with algae?
<the
calcium does not per se (other than long term support of desirable
calcifying algae that can out-compete nuisance forms)... however, some
calcium like Kalkwasser can precipitate phosphates and raise pH which
both immediately inhibit some nuisance algae>
What's the best method
for this size tank?
<likely bigger water changes actually>
I have
been doing my best to reduce nutrient import. I feed twice weekly with a
mix of Formula 1, Formula 2, and Mysis.
<The Formula foods are
good... but messy>
Export is via Remora Pro skimmer and macro algae
in hang-on refugium.
<awesome>
Today's FAQ's have a reply from
Anthony in reply to draining frozen
food: "Gelatin based foods cannot
be treated this way... of course, gelatin based foods are also catch-22
and arguably not the best fare either. Best regards, Anthony"
I am
doing my best to drain my food, but I'm still having trouble. Are the
Formula brand foods gelatin-based?
<yep>
Am I suffering from
gelatin-based food syndrome??
<likely not for the fine skimmer you
have can temper it... there is some other nutrient issue at hand IMO.
Does the skimmer work well (several cups of skimmate weekly in this
case?)>
One more quick question - I'm having trouble finding a good
method to block large pieces of algae and bubbles from flowing back into
the tank while still allowing copepods and other small organisms to
return to the main tank. Thoughts, ideas?
<not sure... is this an
upstream or downstream refugium? Assumedly upstream? At any rate,
neither the bubbles or algae should exist... we need to stop them at the
source. I fear that your algae is Caulerpa or some other easily
fragmented form (even the fine Gracilaria). Do consider a more stable
macro in this case like Chaetomorpha>
Thanks! -Jeremy
<best
regards, Anthony> I love your BOOK!
Dear Bob,
My name
is Sean. I am sort of new at this and thought I knew a little bit but
when I finished your book, The Conscientious Marine Aquarist, I was
totally amazed! Wow dude you are BAD! (In the cool generation X'er kind
of way!)
<Thanks for pumping me up!>
I did have two questions
though and since I just got off vacation (I read your book two times!) I
have not gone through your whole site to find if these have been posted
before.
<Me neither!>
My first question is this: At one point in
the book you mention to stay away from Gelatin based foods and another
part about homemade foods mentioned Gelatin. Can you help me to clear
this up?
<Thanks for pointing this out... yes to trying other
emulsifiers, preservatives like alginates... overuse of gelatins can be
a "bad thing" (with a nod to Martha Stewart)... but rarely causes
problems in systems that are properly maintained (gravel vacuumed, water
changed...)>
Thanks a million for your great book. I doubly enjoyed
my vacation because of it! I would buy anything you write. Have you ever
thought of being more specific to name brands of certain Items that you
personally use? (i.e. protein skimmers for 125 gallon tanks?) Some of
the different types and styles confuse me and I would rather do it right
the first time. Thanks again.
<Hmm good questions... have listed my
opinions to most all makes, models of any gear used in the FAQ sections
of our websites pages/articles: Home Page ... and hope to be doing
something more in the way of offering such "favorites" in the near
future.>
Sean
>>
<Be chatting my friend,
Bob Fenner>
Prime reef
Have you ever heard of toxicity problems associated
with Prime Reef flake foods?
<Hmm, no...>
Although I can hardly
believe it, this food has killed in a spectacular fashion, many of my
fish, mostly hawks. By spectacular I mean the fish immediately goes into
convulsions, swimming wildly without control until dead a few seconds
later. I also lost a Sailfin tang the same way. I've ruled out any other
possibilities by water changes, salt mfg. changes and dechlorinator
changes. These deaths occurred in different tanks at different times
with only one thing in common, the food. All occurred immediately after
consuming Prime Reef. If you have any corroborating information please
let me know. Thanks.
<This is my first exposure with any reports of
this sort... have you contacted the manufacturer? Had your food sample
tested by a lab? I would do both. Bob Fenner> Re: potassium and
prime reef
Hello Bob. I wrote you earlier today describing the
violent deaths of many of my fish immediately after they had eaten Prime
Reef flake food. As I was reading the ingredient list on the can, I
noticed at least two sources of potassium. I soften my water supply with
potassium chloride salt to remove the calcium which carries an excessive
amount of radium.
<Really? Fascinating...>
Do you think it is
possible that excess potassium in the aquarium water when combined with
the food might have a toxic effect?
<Quite a thesis... but no... not
likely as far as anything I know...>
Has anyone ever studied the
effects of potassium on marine tropicals?
<Am very sure there are
such studies... an essential nutrient... you could/will cause a stir
with adding another "test" here...>
Is the amount of potassium found
in water softened with KCl dangerous to fish?
<If not dangerous
to... than not likely to your livestock...>
If you can offer any
information I would really appreciate it . Thanks again.
<I can only
refer you to existing texts on "Fish Foods", encourage you to pursue a
search of the scientific literature on toxicity of Potassium, its
salts... on aquatic life... go see a college reference librarian with
your query. They can/will help you with a computer search of existing
knowledge. Bob Fenner> Quick Question
Hi Bob,
<Hi
there>
I'm swimming in a sea of boxes right now. I am going back and
forth between this place and my new place moving stuff. Quick question
for ya about fishy stuff.
How long is frozen fish food in the freezer
good for?
<Almost indefinitely... at least several months>
How
long is Amquel and the like good for?
<Even longer...>
Trying to
figure out if I should move them or just toss them in the garbage...
<I'd keep, use both as long as they "don't smell bad">
Thanks!
Madison
<Chat with you soon my friend. Bob Fenner, just back from
FLA> Thawed Fish Food
Mr. Fenner,
I've emailed in the
past about more serious fish matters, but this is a minor one. I thank
you in advance for your help.
I seem to have a bad habit of leaving
frozen shrimp packages out. This evening, I left a full package of
frozen plankton, and a mostly full package of brine shrimp out for ~5
hours. They thawed through, but are packaged in plastic bubbles with
aluminum foil sealing them. In the past I've thrown them out, but is
that really necessary?
<In general not in my opinion. Unless there is
obvious "rot" as in smelly decomposition, I suspect marine and
freshwater animals encounter such states of "freshness" in the wild>
I feel silly about having to ask, but with the frequency I do this, it
could get quite costly.
Thanks very much,
John Sanders
<No
question asked in sincerity is silly. Be chatting my friend. Bob Fenner>
John M. Sanders
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