While fish out in the wild waters are free to find food on their own, same is not the case for fish in aquarium. That is why it is important for aquarium owners to know and understand fish food habits and requirements. While selecting the best fish food, you need to be aware about the different types of fish food available in the market.
Different types of fish food:
- Dried Food
Dried fish food is the most common form of fish food available. It caters to all kinds of fish whether they are carnivores, herbivores or omnivores. It is also easily available at any fish food store. The various types of dried fish food are –
- Flakes
these are great for surface feeding, but tend to lose their nutrients quickly as they quickly dissolve in water, making it dirty. Certain flakes are targeted at specific species of fish, helping them to enhance in color and look even more beautiful.
- Crisps
these are similar to flakes, only denser. These do not dissolve in water as quickly as flakes, retain their nutrients for a longer time, and are less wasteful. You can simply crush larger flakes before feeding.
- Pellets
these are also referred to as granules and are of 3 major types. Floating pellets are buoyant and can float on water for a long time. Such pellets are great for feeding top feeders like betta. Slow-sinking pellets gradually sink to the bottom of the aquarium, and are great for mid-feeders, who do not usually come up to the surface of the water to feed. Fast-sinking pellets are aimed at bottom feeders like plecos. You should be careful to not over-feed your bottom dwellers.
- Stick-on tablets
his kind of fish food can stick to the glass of the aquarium while the fish swim up to feed. However these are not easily available at stores.
- Wafers
these sink quickly at the bottom of the aquarium and dissolve slowly. They are not meant to be consumed at a go, rather break up slowly as they soften. These are packed with nutrients and great for bottom feeders.
- Freeze Dried Food
Freeze drying is a process which converts worms into shriveled form, perfect for consumption by your aquarium inhabitants. These have a long shelf-life and can be further crumbled down to feed smaller fish. Freeze dried fish food can include brine shrimp, daphnia, blackworms, bloodworms, tubifex and krill.
- Vacation Foods
These are perfect for the time when you will not be at home for days altogether. Vacation fish foods are also called slow release fish food. These are densely packed blocks of fish food which dissolve slowly to feed your fish for around 14 days. You can run a test with vacation food at first to monitor your fish’s response to it.
- Live Foods
Aquarium inhabitants need some time to get used to live foods. Be cautious that they recognize live foods as consumable and that they do not introduce diseases in the aquarium. Live fish foods include bloodworm, daphnia, mosquito larvae, tubifex and artemis.
- Fresh Foods
These include vegetables like peas and squash. You only need to crush or cut them so that your fish can eat them easily. However be mindful to remove uneaten vegetables from the tank to prevent them from turning the water foul.