# That was a waste



## Aqua sobriquet (25 May 2020)

I bought a few  Corydoras Sterbai last week and in anticipation of this bought some Fish Science Corydoras Tablets. The shrimp in the tank seem to eat virtually anything but even they won’t touch it. Watching the Corys reaction on approaching this food I think they’d be saying “Yuk” if they could talk!  Admittedly they aren’t too keen on Tabimin but at least they’re eating it. I’ve got some more stuff coming by post, hopefully they’ll like it a bit more.


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## Siege (25 May 2020)

NT Labs is a good food and alway went down well with my cories. 👍

https://www.aquariumgardens.co.uk/nt-labs-catfish-pellet-150g-3452-p.asp


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## milla (25 May 2020)

Mine go into a feeding frenzy for bug bites sinking pellets.


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## Aqua sobriquet (25 May 2020)

milla said:


> Mine go into a feeding frenzy for bug bites sinking pellets.



I have some of those on the way!


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## jaypeecee (25 May 2020)

Hi @Aqua sobriquet

Thanks for letting us know. According to _Fish Science_, the food you bought "Recreates the natural, insect based diet that most Corydoras and bottom feeding fish would eat in the wild".  It's interesting, isn't it, that they obviously enjoy _Bug Bites_, which are also, as the name suggests, based on insects!

JPC


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## Conort2 (26 May 2020)

Hi @Aqua sobriquet 

I find that they love any small granular food or pellets more than tablets. Mine love north fin and tetra prima. One tablet they do go mad for however is sera o nip.

cheers

Conor


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## Aqua sobriquet (26 May 2020)

When I first kept fish in the 1980’s Tetra used to sell a dark brown coloured concave section tablet you could press on the glass. All the fish in my tank used to go mad for them. Tetra do sell “stick on the glass” tablets but they’re not that keen on them.


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## dw1305 (26 May 2020)

Hi all, 





milla said:


> Mine go into a feeding frenzy.......


For me Grindal or Black-worms always have that effect with _Corydoras_. 





milla said:


> bug bites sinking pellets.





jaypeecee said:


> According to _Fish Science_, the food you bought "Recreates the natural, insect based diet that most Corydoras and bottom feeding fish would eat in the wild". It's interesting, isn't it, that they obviously enjoy _Bug Bites_, which are also, as the name suggests, based on insects!


I think there are a few of these foods based on <"Black Soldier Fly"> (_Hermetia illucen_ ) larvae.  

cheers Darrel


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## mort (26 May 2020)

Apart from live foods and absolutey irresistible stuff I think some fish turn can their nose up at food they aren't used to. I used to have to get imports feeding again after they arrived and while most tropicals would eat pretty much anything, a few would just ignore the food if they didn't like it but happily munch on something they did.
We used to get given trade buckets of flake and one particular brand new era was hated by pretty much every fish apart from the ravenous ones whereas tetra or ocean nutrition was universally liked.

I think some manufacturers also change the recipe from time to time and I heard o nip tabs have recently moved to something which at least one large shop won't sell anymore, after championing it before, because their fish hate it.


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## nayr88 (26 May 2020)

milla said:


> Mine go into a feeding frenzy for bug bites sinking pellets.



All fish love the bug bits! im very happy to feed this as a stable with other treats, great food for them.


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## jaypeecee (26 May 2020)

mort said:


> I think some manufacturers also change the recipe from time to time...



Hi @mort 

Indeed, they do. At one time, I used Ocean Nutrition _Spirulina Flakes_. Additional to the Spirulina, this product used to contain fillet salmon but this was replaced by fish meal. And we all know what that means!

JPC


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## milla (26 May 2020)

Yes sera have just reformulated all of there foods.  Including onip


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## rubadudbdub (7 Jun 2020)

I've noticed a big difference in all my fish since feeding regular live brine shrimp and microworms.  I have to switch off the filter to stop them being swept away.  Tetras, endlers, Corys all feed on them and seem a lot more interested in food.  Although the tetras have started being fussy and spitting out the fish science micro granule food they used to like.   I suppose that once you've become accustomed to steak, why would you want to go back to pot noodle? 

The soft pellets from TA aquaculture (artemia and the general pellet) are going down a treat too. 



dw1305 said:


> For me Grindal worms



Do you culture these yourself?   I was considering getting some instead of microworms.   Do you find the cultures smell?  Some of the recipes I've found suggested mixing activated carbon with the medium to minimise smell. My partner is already complaining about the faint yeasty occasional vinegar smell from the microworm culture.  She's banished the worms to the loft room because of this.


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## dw1305 (9 Jun 2020)

Hi all, 





rubadudbdub said:


> Do you culture these yourself?


Yes, I use potting compost in old ice -cream cartons, and feed them with rolled oats. I grind the oats up in a pestle and mortar, but you can buy "Instant Oat Cereal" in Lidl etc. 

You need to watch out for <"mites and culture crash">. 





rubadudbdub said:


> I was considering getting some instead of microworms.


They are a lot bigger so it is really a both, rather than an either/or.


rubadudbdub said:


> Do you find the cultures smell? Some of the recipes I've found suggested mixing activated carbon with the medium to minimise smell. My partner is already complaining about the faint yeasty occasional vinegar smell from the microworm culture. She's banished the worms to the loft room because of this.


The Grindal worm cultures don't smell, I usually re-culture the micro-worms if they small at all alcoholic. I use rolled oats for these as well.

cheers Darrel


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## dw1305 (9 Jun 2020)

Hi all, 





rubadudbdub said:


> I suppose that once you've become accustomed to steak, why would you want to go back to pot noodle?  The soft pellets from TA aquaculture (artemia and the general pellet) are going down a treat too.


Towards the end of the summer I start to wean mine off the live food diet. They aren't very happy initially but in the winter they just get a few Grindal worms, Micro worms and Daphnia topped up with some pellets. I'm a long term <"TA Aquaculture shopper"> as well, although I have been contemplating getting some "Bug-bites" as well. 

If I had more fish I would definitely go back to hatching BBS.

cheers Darrel


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## jaypeecee (9 Jun 2020)

dw1305 said:


> If I had more fish I would definitely go back to hatching BBS.



Hi @dw1305 

When I was raising GBR fry, I used brine shrimp (Artemia) as you note above. But, it was pretty labour-intensive as I was using them within 8 hours of hatching for maximum nutritional value (whilst the egg sacs were still in place). So, I needed a fresh batch every day. But, I've decided to simplify things by buying one of these:

https://www.dohse-aquaristik.com/en/p/21700/Artemia-Hatchery

They can be fairly expensive when bought from UK outlets but I ordered one from a supplier based in Germany. I've got plenty of cysts left over from previously so I'm looking forward to giving it a whirl.

JPC


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## mort (9 Jun 2020)

I've got one of those Jay, my advice would be don't put to many eggs in at once as it really fowls the water and don't expect a hatch rate anywhere near as high as with a bubbling hatcher. It's good for supplimental feeding but they take longer to hatch for me (probably bease i only really use it in the winter when the outdoor live foods stop). I tend to just sit it on top of my tank for the extra warmth.


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## jaypeecee (9 Jun 2020)

Hi @mort 

Thanks for the feedback. All points duly noted.

JPC


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## rubadudbdub (12 Jun 2020)

This was my rough copy of that system. 
 Yoghurt pot rim is trimmed to allow a little shallow slots that sits below the water line.  The pot sits upside down on the feet created by the untrimmed rim.   Cysts go into the yoghurt pot, covered by a Tommy tippie lid that has finally found a use.  The shrimp swim out the slots when they've hatched.  I only use it for small amounts of BBS, more cysts don't translate into more shrimp.   It separates the eggs pretty well.  So long as I don't knock it (hence the debris in the photo!) or suck out enough water that the level drops below the  top of the slots.  I find it easier than the bubble hatcher I bought.   Plus if I stop hatching bbs the tuppaware can go back in the cupboard and I don't have another piece of fish tank kit sitting around. 

I did an erasmus study year at Berlin Humboldt uni and took their ornamental fish breeding course.  The fish house had a shallow square perspex box baffled to flow under and over like a sump.  Water and cysts on one side, cover on top.  Then you syringed the BBS out of the uncovered side.   It worked very well, but have never seen one since.  The hobby one is the same principle.


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## rubadudbdub (12 Jun 2020)

dw1305 said:


> I usually re-culture the micro-worms if they small at all alcoholic.



I wonder what I'm doing differently then. Mine seem to commonly have a waft of alcohol smell.  Initially probably from the culture seeding the fresh one.  Then it gets less after a couple of days, then picks up again.  The low odour period in the middle is only a few days. If I don't harvest them for a day, then the next time I open the container there's another waft of alcoholic smell.  I wondered if the air flow through my 8mm drill but holes in the lid might not be enough. 

I'll try grinding the oats and not leaving it so long to reculture.


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