Anthias not eating much

Discussion in 'Fish Food' started by Sacul1573, Mar 23, 2011.

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  1. Sacul1573

    Sacul1573 Millepora

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    I picked up 3 female anthias (each about 2")(I believe they're flame (Ignitus), but could be Carberryi, ID thread going up tonight) and they showed good feeding response at the fish store.

    Whatever I put in my tank to feed the fish(frozen mysis and brine, assorted pellets), the anthias will show feeding response and go for the food, but will either spit the food back out, or veer away at the last second.

    Thinking perhaps the food was too big, I grated a cube of mysis to finer bits, and fed that. They seemed to eat a little, only swallowing the smallest of bits. Good feeding response, just not swallowing a whole lot.

    Is this typical? Am I going to have to grate food for the anthias to swallow, or will they learn to eat larger morsels? I did grate up about 4 cubes and refroze them in smaller portions last night.
     
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  3. gcarroll

    gcarroll Zoanthid

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    You might want to try Reef Nutrition's Actic pods. Another choice is some frozen cyclopeeze. If you prefer Mysis, try Hikari as it is much smaller breed of mysis.
     
  4. Corailline

    Corailline Super Moderator

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    It is a dry heat, yeah right !
    I would try some cyclops and or pods that you can purchase as well.

    How often are you feeding them?

    Honestly three small/medium feedings a day is what they really need.
     
  5. m2434

    m2434 Giant Squid

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    My lyretails go crazy for cyclops. They go crazy for just about anything actually though... Feeding small meals multiple times per day is key. I feed 4 times per day now. 3 with a eheim automatic feeder. This is a mix of cyclopeeze, prime-reef flakes and nutrafin pellets. The last feeding is manually and is either frozen formula 1 cubes or frozen cyclops. I alternate days, and both are soaked overnight in selcon. To give you an idea of the amount, for 3 lyretails, I spread a cube out over 3 days, not including the 3 feeding with the fish feeder, which are about the same size.
     
  6. dowtish

    dowtish Horrid Stonefish

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    IME there can be an adjustment period for any fish into a new tank. I've had fish do the exact same thing you described for over a week, before they really ate more than a few tiny pieces. Give it some time, and keep trying different types of goodies.
     
  7. Sacul1573

    Sacul1573 Millepora

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    Thanks for all the input. They seem to react to the ground mysis okay tonight.

    I'm feeding them twice a day. Once morning, once evening. I know they're constant feeders, and I'm trying my best to give them a few small meals a day.
     
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  9. Travis45

    Travis45 Scooter Blennie

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    Another thing I'd like to add is, I noticed my anthias loves to nail food in a good current. Everything else is pretty much covered by the rest of the posts. :)
     
  10. O Banks

    O Banks Plankton

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    nutramar ova is what i use to get anthias feeding, i havent seen a anthia yet that hasnt went crazy over this stuff.
     
  11. m2434

    m2434 Giant Squid

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    Hey Sacul1573, I see this thread popped up again. How are they doing now? I forget did we decide these were actually Dispar anthias? I know they can be a bit tricky, hopefully they are eating more now.
     
  12. Sacul1573

    Sacul1573 Millepora

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    Hey, thanks for asking. I'm still pretty set on them being Dispar, I guess I'll wait until one of the females morphs to get a final verdict.

    All three are doing well. I ended up taking a few cubes of frozen mysis, using a cheese grater to grind down the cubes, and then placed 1/8 tsp portions of this in a small ice cube tray with a little RODI water, and froze. Now I (or my wife) can throw one of these in the tank in the morning before I leave for work.

    So yes, they are eating twice a day right now and seem to be doing fine. I still watch them at night when feeding normal size mysis/brine/pellets. Two of the three will take some of the larger peices... I think they're coming around.