feeding Pseudotropheus sp. "Acei" (Msuli)

[happeboy]

I recently got 7 Pseudotropheus sp. "Acei" (Msuli) (thanks Doc) and am wondering whats best to feed them. I read that they are herbivorous, and so tried them on a veggy wafers and a couple types of fresh veggies, but they will have none of it.

They really do like NLSpectrum; is this ok? Can they digest the animal products?

What do others normally feed them?

Thanks

[seajays]

NLS is great food. I am sure RD will chime in here.

[nevchewy]

I use NLS cichlid formula... works like a charm and the fish love it!

nev

[Leon71]

The fish in question were started on Hikari First Bites and then switched to NLS Growth formula. I know because they came from me. I only feed NLS with the odd veggie wafer. Leon

[Vallisneria]

My acei are only fed NLS and are doing great.

[stribbelldk]

Im with the rest and go with the NLS. Great food for all kinds of cichlids :thumbs:

Derek :smokey:

[kem]

In the wild, they feed mostly by scrapping algae from submerged tree roots, eating also any crustacean living there.

In aquarium, they are really easy to feed, being as close to a surface vacuum cleaner as any fish can be. And they will happily splash you with water during feeding time.

Give them cichlid food in the morning, with protein content of 30-40% (NLS, Omega One, Hikari,...), and veggies or spirulina flakes in the evening. It is easier for them to digest as their metabolism slows down for the night. You can also give them bleached spinach, zuchinni, salad. HBH veggies flakes were eagerly taken by mine. You can also give them some glodfish flakes, as these are low in proteins.

Try to get them used to different brands of food and give them a varied diet, but stay away from meaty or high protein foods, as these can cause bloat.

Otherwise, they are not demanding, not aggressive (by mbuna standards) and very easy to breed. You'll soon be short on tanks to keep all the babies :smokey:

[RD.]

The acei that you got from Doc could easily be fed small amounts 4-5 times per day, and at their current size (approx 1/2") I would be feeding a smaller particle size, higher protein/fat feed such as NLS Growth. Their long digestive tracts are designed as such so that in nature they can break down the complex plant matter that they consume, which certainly doesn't mean that when raised in captivity they can't properly assimilate more easily digestible forms of protein. Due to their higher metabolic rates, young fry such as your new acei will show more optimum growth when fed a higher protein, higher fat food.

Keep in mind that the vast majority of cichlids are opportunistic feeders, and are all omnivorous to a certain extent. Cichlids classified as carnivores don't just eat meat, any more than a herbivorous cichlid just consumes vegetable matter.

The key is the digestibility of the protein, and the overall amino acid content of that protein, not the percentage of crude protein shown on a label. Foods that are high in poorly digestible forms of protein, including certain grains & grain by-products may cause dietary bloat, but protein itself is not the enemy.

While the main protein content in NLS is based on krill & herring, it also contains a large inclusion rate of vegetable matter, such as kelp, seaweed, haematococcus pluvialis (a form of micro-algae), and spirulina.

HTH

Edited June 6, 2007 by RD.