Dry Food for Anthias

[FishDad2]

I typically feed frozen food...brine, mysis, etc....but I'll be going on vacation at the end of March and will need to use an automatic feeder for 8 days.

Sooooo, since my Anthias are the finikiest eaters in the tank, I'm looking for recommendations as to dry foods they might be willing to eat so I can setup a feeder while I'm away. Hopefully, I can get them used to it before I go away so it's not a total shock.

The other fish in the tank...clown, tang, firefish, etc...will pretty much eat anything I throw in there, so I'm really only worried about the Anthias.

Thanks,
Chris

[SDguy]

I've had best success with Prime Reef flakes by Ocean Nutrition. Even dispars ate it.

hth

[CarlC]

My dispar will eat just about anything. I even have them on Vita Chem small pellets for the late day feeding. Their flake of choice is the same as Peter's.

You don't know a picky anthia until you've tried working with P. tuka! In the 3 weeks I've had them I can only get them to eat BS nauplii.

Carl

[jpsk8man]

yeah ill chime in, have lyretails and they eat anything...but i use a combo of formula 1 & 2

[Scottkelly911]

a good way to ween them into accepting flake food would be to mix in small amounts of it into the mysis/brine that you currently feed, then they'll start grabbing it from the water column since it smells just like the rest of the food. It's worked for me for years and I have been able to get even my most finicky eaters to accept flake food in this manner

[Goodwood]

Prime reef, I have yet to find a fish that wont eat it eventually

[FishDad2]

Thanks for the suggestions...I'll get started on introducing them to the wonderful world of flake food a.s.a.p.

[rekn]

my adult lyretails eat anything. my baby will only eat small shredded stuff =(


my male eats me too. bit me yesterday. little ****er has fangs

[zuzecawi]

I feed my bartletts cyclopeeze wafers/flake. Stuff is miraculous, even my picky only eat mysis soaked in selcon for exactly five minutes bangaii cardinal will eat the cyclopeeze stuff. Less action in the skimmer too.

[sunfish11]

I use formula I and II flakes occasional but two of my anthias don't like the flake. The others love it. Make sure they will all eat the dry food of choice before you leave...

[Bret61081]

I have some wierd anthias from Sri Lanka and they LOVE spectrum. I started mixing it with the mysis everyday and eventually they took to it...thats all I will be feeding my tank once my watanabe angel and glas cardinals starts to eat the pellets! All the fish eat it as fast if noty faster then the mysis

[tpdpercula]

Mine go crazy for either Cyclop-ezze flakes or Brine Shrimp Plus. Seperate or together, I feed them dry a few times a week and frozen the other days.

[FishDad2]

I went with teh Cyclop-eze flakes and the Anthias are taking to it pretty well. The Bartlett's eat it up and the Lyretails, while less enthusiastic, are also eating it.

None of the Cardinals in the tank will eat any of it. Then again, they're managed to survive my vacations in the past. So, perhaps they'll eat it when I'm not around...don't want to give me the satisfaction. Won' eat the pellets either.

We'll see how things go. If the Longspine Cardinals don't make it, they'll get replaced with some additional Anthias. But as I said, they've managed to survive in the past, I'm not too worried.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.

[plummike]

Maybe catch a bunch of fuge critters and put in your tank to help. I have Lyretails they will nibble on Formula 2 flakes. Mine also chase the Cyclo. Maybe you could make a Cyclo/ Formula 2 mix.

[-jjla-]

My Lyretail's eat Omega One Kelp Flakes every other day, they love them.

Joe

[FishDad2]

The vacation is complete and everyone survived my absence, so I'm guessing hunger led the Anthias to endulge on the flake food and the Cardinals survived on whatever it is they survive on whenever I go away...I never see them eating any dry food.

My thanks to everyone for their suggestions...it worked out well.

Chris