Freeze Dried Brine Shrimp

[Kreature]

I'm currently feeding all my mbuna NLS, but I think I'd like to spice it up a bit for them. Can anyone recommend brine shrimp, black worms, etc.? I've seen both on Canadian Aqua Farms website.

[DevonCichlid]

I haven't used freeze dried but use frozen brine shrimp (thawed) frequently. I also use some sinking hikari pellets once a week that are veggie based too that they destroy too.

[DevonC]

Treat mbuna with peas , zucchini, cucumber , duckweed or leafy greens . NOT bring shrimp ,black worms or any other high protein diet.

Mbuna are vegetarian and although they will devour it the high protein foods are a quick road to bloat and deaths .

Edited December 6, 2014 by DevonC

[RD.]

Not all mbuna are vegetarian, but those that are can get gastrointestinal upset easily, which can lead to bloat, so I too would avoid feeding foods such as brine shrimp, black worms, etc. NLS has a relatively new food out called AlgaeMax that I would recommend using to change things up from their regular NLS pellets.

Ingredients:

Algae; Chlorella, Ulva Seaweed, Red Seaweed, Kelp, Spirulina, Wakame Seaweed, Whole Antarctic Krill, Whole Fish, Eucheuma cottonii, Spinosum Seaweed, Chondrus crispus, Whole Wheat Flour, Omega-3 Fish Oil, Alfalfa, Astaxanthin, Capsanthin, Zeaxanthin, Vitamins etc ....

Easily digestible aquatic plant matter that doesn't contain the antinutritional matter that is found in terrestrial based plant matter, such as peas etc.

[DevonC]

I stand corrected ! Not all but the majority are Herbivores .

+1 to algae based or aquatic plants being an excellent diet.

Edited December 8, 2014 by DevonC

[RD.]

There are a number of mbuna within the Labidochromis genus that are classified as omnivores, including L. caeruleus , L. perlmutt, L. freibergi, L. gigas, L. joanjohnsonae, L. textilis, L. vellicans, etc.

There are also those within the Melanochromis genus that are also classified as omnivores, such as M. auratus , M. chipokae, M. vermivorus, M. parallelus etc.

Metriaclima genus, same thing, such as M. sp. daktari, M. sp. dolphin, etc.

Same within the Pseudotropheus genus, such P. cyaneorhabdos, P. crabro, etc.

Some mbuna are even classified as carnivores, such as Cynotilapia sp. "Lion" (Lion's Cove).

The list goes on & on, but yes, certainly most mbuna are in fact classified as herbivores.

A sudden change in a fishes diet is never a good thing, which is why when changing diets I always recommend to feed sparingly for several days which allows the fishes gastrointestinal system to adjust to the new food. Also, most authorities on the subject of bloat now agree that it's intestinal flagellates (Spironucleus vortens) that typically cause "bloat" conditions in fish, and certainly not excess protein. While stress is always the trigger with bloat, IMO dietary stress is seldom the cause.

More info can be found in the following link, a little something that I threw together a few yrs back.

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?456034-Bloat-Causes-Cures-and-BIG-Myths

HTH

Edited December 8, 2014 by RD.

[Kreature]

Haven't had any problems with bloat, but also not willing to stress their digestive systems either. Only fed them the shrimp once so, does anyone want some freeze dried brine shrimp?

Edited December 8, 2014 by Kreature