Dipar Anthias - what to feed?

[Vayder1]

I got 8, what should I feed these guys? I've heard Mysis is good, and flakes, but I don't know what flake food to get.

[SDguy]

IME, they need to get used to larger food size items, like mysis. I've had good luck with VERY finely chopped mysis, or even better, raw shrimp from the grocery store (mine don't like the prickly antennae/heads of the mysis). Also, I had really good luck with crushed up flake foods like Prime Reef, of all things.

[Vayder1]

Thanks for the tip!

Is it a bad idea to give them some live brine to entice them to start eating?

[SDguy]

No, just as long as they don't get too used to it.

[MarkD40]

I use cyclopeez flake and they LOVE it!

[TWallace]

I have 2 P. truncatus and 1 P. bartlettorum and all 3 eat everything I've offered. Cyclopeeze wafers, formula 1 pellets, angel fish formula frozen, chopped krill, mysis shrimp, blood worms, brine shrimp all have been eaten. I don't know if the dispar is a pickier eater, though.

Is the dispar a notoriously picky eater? I've never kept one.

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8594412#post8594412 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TWallace
Is the dispar a notoriously picky eater? I've never kept one.

More so than the ones you have.

[derekman]

I have almost never failed with daphnia, you have to feed maybe 2x a day min but after they get over being shy it is the only thing i've tried that they don't spit out. i'm 6 for 7 with the daphnia if you feed the rest of your fish flakes, eventually they take them, I use brine shrimp plus

[Vayder1]

Well, I've tried Mysis, (all foods frozen) and I chopped em up real fine, they didn't eat it. then I put some cyclops in, and again they didn't eat it. I went out and bought live bring, and put some entice stuff with them, still they won't eat. So will they eventually get over this shy thing or are they going to slowly starve to death :( btw what is daphnia?

[SDguy]

Daphnia is sometimes called sweetwater plankton.

Give them a little time to settle in. Did you get these from Jess? If so, they are very new, and fresh from the wholesaler...they need time.

Not to be the wet blanket, but I got some from Harold the week before, they didn't last 3 days....some kind of bacterial infection. Next time QT :D Anthias fresh from the wholesaler are not in top form...

[Vayder1]

I did get them from Jess. Unfortunately I don't have a QT tank set up. She was supposed to get me Lyretails, but picked up Dispars instead. I felt bad so I took them anyway. Still a beautiful fish, but I've read and heard that Lyretails are easy to keep, and feed.

[SDguy]

Mine, though they didn't make it, starting eating prime reef flake. I can give you some if you don't want to go hunting for it, let me know.

[antonsemrad]

You may wan't to try small feeder guppys. Long term is not good because of copper. But fish can't resist, and you may need to add a live source of food to get them started. Good luck.

[derekman]

daphnia are called water fleas and the best i've used are frozen by Hikari, most LFS carry them in their freezers. Don't worry, if you bought them healthy they will not starve for some time. don't overfeed just use some of that entice with a daphnia block. when they come out from hiding you may have to -i know this sounds ridiculous- sneak up on the tank (because they will hide at any sign of unknown movement) and drop in the daphnia. the dahnia are very very tiny and so one cube will fill every corner of the tank and eventually no matter where they are hiding they will be tempted to take a bite. daphnia are similar to what anthias eat in the wild picking micro plankton out of the water. Give it a shot and be patient, and don't stress. if they die, it is probably because they are already not doing well in the first place. I've had anthias go 2 weeks before eating anything and they are still alive! my anthias now associate me with food and get very excited when I'm near!
<-------- check em out in my avatar!

[Vayder1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8601661#post8601661 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by derekman
daphnia are called water fleas and the best i've used are frozen by Hikari, most LFS carry them in their freezers. Don't worry, if you bought them healthy they will not starve for some time. don't overfeed just use some of that entice with a daphnia block. when they come out from hiding you may have to -i know this sounds ridiculous- sneak up on the tank (because they will hide at any sign of unknown movement) and drop in the daphnia. the dahnia are very very tiny and so one cube will fill every corner of the tank and eventually no matter where they are hiding they will be tempted to take a bite. daphnia are similar to what anthias eat in the wild picking micro plankton out of the water. Give it a shot and be patient, and don't stress. if they die, it is probably because they are already not doing well in the first place. I've had anthias go 2 weeks before eating anything and they are still alive! my anthias now associate me with food and get very excited when I'm near!
<-------- check em out in my avatar!

They are eating a little here and there, the flakes Peter gave me are working. I also have some orange coral food that they are eating, and they don't seem to be interested in the mysis yet. I need to get some of the daphnia and try that out. Thanks for everyones help.
I think 1 of them died BTW so I have only been seeing 7 of them.