turtlechick Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 I dropped a few pellets of my Lg. Fish formula NLS into my ray tank, and they gobbled it up like crazy. So, my question is: Is there a specific NLS formula that rays can eat? The Lg. fish formula seems a little small for them, and they would have to eat a whole lot to be full...can someone point me in the right direction? Also, is this a good staple for them, or should I stick to worms and shrimp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatpuffer Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 I fed mine ol' ray the algae discs (NLS). Js Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skynoch Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 Nls large fish formula is the nls product most ray keepers feed. There is a member on here that can help you out with amount and knows nls inside out. You can also use hikari carnivore and massivore which I'm more familar with. The best thing to do is mix it up with pellets, shrimp, worms (which are pricey when rays get big), clams ,mussels , squid (seafood medly bags). The bigger the variety the better. I mostly feed shrimp and pellets with established rays and for sick and new rays live blackworms and canadian nightcrawlers are the main source Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 Cool! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boydo Posted June 27, 2009 Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 NLS Wafers are great for rays no other food variety needed unless you wanted too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 27, 2009 Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 The motoro below was raised on an exclusive diet of NLS H20 wafers, supplemented from time to time with NLS 3mm Large Fish formula. Just keep in mind that NLS is a very nutrient dense food, and unlike shrimp & other fresh/frozen food it does not consist of 80-90% water, hence ounce for ounce you can feed far less. Here's a pic of one of Sean (Froggie's) motoro's closing in on some 3mm NLS pellets. which I believe was the main staple for this fish most of its life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlechick Posted June 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 WOW....they are beautiful!!! I have both NLS types on hand now. They can still have worms and shrimp sometimes right? I found they LOVE their worms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 27, 2009 Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 Yes, if you feel the need you can still supplement their diet with worms, seafood, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudy Posted June 27, 2009 Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 Pellets are great for rays. Some however may cause upset stomach so watch for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kraken Posted June 27, 2009 Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 Nls is a good diet but I find they do love many other foods. I use nls for the staple and switch up worms , silver sides , and shrip from safeway. The change its like a treat. :smokey: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 27, 2009 Report Share Posted June 27, 2009 As I recall, Connie was already feeding NLS as part of the diet to these rays so I would think that there should be no issue with Turtlechick doing the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
letsgofishn Posted June 28, 2009 Report Share Posted June 28, 2009 Pellets are great for rays. Some however may cause upset stomach so watch for this. Hey that's what my poop looks like, I mean my Ray's poop. Gee I thought that was normal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 28, 2009 Report Share Posted June 28, 2009 (edited) Be careful as to the quantity that you feed at one time, NLS pellets especially are a very nutrient dense food. Here's a vid that Ryan (rdfishguy) posted a while back showing his motoro eating wafers & pellets. http://albertaaquatica.com/index.php?showtopic=24117 BTW - for anyone that questions the growth potential from simply feeding NLS wafers, the ray in the vid above went from a very skinny 6", to a fat & sassy 10" in less than 6 months time. Harold's (fairdeal) AU lungfish has grown 3", and has tripled in girth in 6 months time, and that species is known for only growing an inch or two per year, and it also eats an exclusive diet of NLS wafers. These aren't your typical wafers, so feed accordingly. Edited June 28, 2009 by RD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skynoch Posted June 28, 2009 Report Share Posted June 28, 2009 You can also achieve this growth rate without any pellets in your rays diet. I have rays that eat exclusively pellets and some are almost exclusively shrimp and some that are both. As far as growth rates they are all fairy consistant. The major factor with rays is the ray itself. Not all motoros are going to get to the same size no matter what you feed. I have 4 female motoros all the same age my smallest is 11" my biggest is over 20". My biggest and smallest prefer shrimp and one of the ones in the middle likes pellets the other likes anything They're both aound 14-16". I don't notice a color difference between my rays that eat pellets. I do notice a color difference in my motoros as they get bigger they tend to fade somewhat. I do believe pellets are a great addition to a rays diet and should be included, but do not use pellets on young rays (4 months and younger) or sick and newly aquired wildcaught rays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 28, 2009 Report Share Posted June 28, 2009 (edited) You can also achieve this growth rate without any pellets in your rays diet. I have rays that eat exclusively pellets and some are almost exclusively shrimp and some that are both. No argument there, my point was simply that you don't have to supplement with fresh/frozen in order to achieve good solid growth, especially if the fish is already taking pellets, which these apparently are. I'm also not so naive as to think that feeding nothing but pellets is the definitive answer to the best way to keep every fish thriving in captivity, but I do believe that whenever possible pellets should be an integral part of every fishes diet. (whatever brand one chooses) I would also caution against feeding any fish a diet that mostly consists of shrimp. By feeding large amounts of shrimp you restrict the overall amino acid (protein) content of your fishes diet, along with various essential vitamins & minerals. Shrimp/market prawns are also known to contain thiaminase and when ingested in large quantities can destroy the natural thiamin (vitamin B1) which in turn can cause vitamin deficiency. You can read more about that in the following link. http://albertaaquatica.com/index.php?showtopic=23186 Edited June 28, 2009 by RD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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