feeding scarlet badis

fishybert

hi everyone,

i've recently become interested in keeping Badis/Scarlet Badis in my tank; i'm sure i've encountered them at my LFS in the past, but thought from the way they looked that were cichlids, since i seldom see such color patterns on any other fish type.


i hear they're fussy eaters and will only partake of live foods. That's a problem for me since my LFS only has tubifex worms, and since we get regular dengue outbreaks, i'm not inclined to raise mosquito larvae either. i can get daphnias, but i suspect they're catching them in very polluted creeks here in the city.

Just wondering if they'll take something like poached fish or chicken. tia

Olympia

I wouldn't feed them meats.. They are insectivores.
You can usually buy cultures online, grindal worms, white worms, springtails, daphnia, it's good to have a variety, as this will promote good colouration. These can be kept in a bucket of green water and fed to the tank.. A well planted tank is a must as these help lot's of small microorganisms thrive.

Byron

I have had this species for a couple years now, and it is true they are fussy eaters. I don't have live foods, but I found they will eat frozen bloodworms readily. Probably would frozen daphnia too, I can't get that here to try.

The suggestion about well planted is bang on. If the tank has lots of plants, and you leave the substrate alone, there will be a lot of microscopic plankton and such. I know my Scarlet Badis are living primarily on this, since I don't feed bloodworms often.

Putting in a couple of dried leaves, such as oak or beech, or almond leaves that you can buy in some fish stores, will promote infusoria.

Byron.

fishybert

Thanks for the replies. So Badis can eat infusoria eh? i got the impression only really small fry can see/eat them.

i'm looking into raising daphnia as well...just need to get a good culture. Who knew these guys don't like chlorinated water? :D

Byron

The infusoria is mainly adding to the food chain, by increasing it you will increase other live critters. But I would expect these fish which are tiny to find infusoria too, they browse plant leaf surfaces and roots for food continually. Picking at biofilms is bound to find them live food.