Anthias, Wrasses and Gobies, How to Feed High Metabolism Fish!

[Reef By Steele]

Popular species such as Anthias and Wrasses need an almost constant food supply as they are in perpetual motion as they cruise your reef. Many reefers pick these fish in part because of this hunting behavior, as it provides movement, activity and interest in the aquarium. This aspect of their behavior contributes to their high metabolism, making them higher maintenance fish in captivity. You will find many recommendations on how to properly provide for their needs and care. One method is to supply multiple smaller feedings daily, up to 8 times a day. Why so many feedings, this seems like all you would do everyday is feed your aquarium. Feeding small amounts often though is beneficial as less of the food will escape being eaten so it won’t collect and deteriorate increasing the tanks unwanted nutrients. This can be accomplished manually or with an automatic feeder or a mixture of both.

While these multiple small feedings can be positive for our fish, they can also pose challenges for us and our tanks. Higher nutrients creating challenges with water quality, conditions favorable to nuisance algae, increased need for maintenance and water changes, and being very time consuming. Automatic feeding, at least without a complex DIY system, implies feeding dried foods such as freeze dried previously live foods, pellets and or flake foods. While there are a plethora of these products available, it seems to be a general consensus that these types of prepared foods produce higher nitrates and phosphates relative to the energy/nutrition they provide. This is partly due to the processing and partially because the very nature of the food allows more to slip past our fish settling into inconvenient locations to deteriorate. Sinking pellets that fall faster than our fish can catch them, floating flakes that no matter how we crush them and try to stir them in remain on top of the water to be drawn into our filters contribute to the decay. And just like we find in ready made foods for us, often the process and preservatives used in these foods both diminish the actual nutritional value and increase the pollutants they contain.

While frozen foods can be better nutritionally, while still loosing some through the preparation and feeding, there will be a portion of this lost within our tanks and filters just like the dried foods. And honestly how many of us have the time to manually provide 8 feeding a day. Even if we thaw these foods daily, and refrigerate between feedings, some decomposition is inevitable as it spends the hours sitting in a measuring cup or similar item waiting to be fed.

There are many fish in the hobby that would truly benefit from an established or frequently supplied population of live food to flourish. While there are many live food options, pods may very well be the easiest source to provide for a variety of reasons. Copepods and amphipods are some of the easiest to introduce and reproduce in our aquariums. Copepods are quite possible the easiest live saltwater creature to ship as they can survive under reasonable conditions for several days when properly packaged, unlike fish which might not survive if experiencing any shipping delay. Both amphipods and copepods are also far more likely to reproduce and colonize in our aquariums that other live food sources like rotifers, brine shrimp, or grass shrimp. To provide the optimum environment for these species it is important to not only provide copepods for them, but to provide the right copepods. Cruising hunters like Anthias and wrasses are in almost constant motion contributing to their high metabolism. This cruising is in large part due to their constant search for the small meaty foods they seek. For this reason these species will be better served with pelagic (free swimming) copepods than with benthic (crawling) copepod species.

Pelagic copepods are by nature harder to establish in our aquariums largely due to the very fact that they are being eaten by the fish we are providing them for. Also providing phytoplankton is necessary for long term success with these species. This doesn’t mean that they won’t colonize, but may require more introductions to reach quantities that allow for a continual supply. Apocyclops are the most likely of our pelagic pods to colonize. Largely due to the fact that they are both pelagic and benthic during different life stages. Our Acartia, Pseudo and Parvo copepods are pelagic providing an optimal food source for these cruising fish. These species will benefit greatly from daily dosing of live phytoplankton to help maintain their nutrition content from being cultured in our nutrient rich blend and maximizing their health and energy to enhance reproduction. Maintaining these species can often require more frequent additions, utilizing refugiums, and proper initial introduction minimizing an initial feeding frenzy.

Along with having a constant and available food source for these fish, a strong population of pods provides additional benefits. Being a live food, help to avoid the accumulation of residual food waste deteriorating by reducing the frequency and amount we must feed. And an additional benefit is the natural reduction of the detritus and corresponding nitrates and phosphates as copepods are an amazing micro CUC (Clean Up Crew).

You can find these, and many other quality live products at www.reefbysteele.com. Where you will experience exceptional customer service and products backed with our guarantees and commitment to product excellence.

We Got The Reef!