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Re: Flagfish



Dorian wrote:

> After months of lurking, I thought I'd send an inquiry.  After reading rave
> reviews of American Flagfish in the archives, I got a pair (male and
> female) for my ca. 170 L tank.  I've discovered that rather than eat just
> algae, they are actually eating the leaves!  They've made a real mess of
> the hygro.  I cannot find any other Cyprinodontid that looks like
> *Jordanella floridae*, so presumably I have the right beastie--anybody else
> had this experience?  Do you need to bribe them with some other food when
> algae is low?  They won't touch flake.

They are great veggie eaters, but *will* turn on your plants if not fed
enough of *all* kinds of food. Their gut is very long, indicating their
adaptation to eating vegetable matter. They eat anything edible, tho.

As a very active species (pupfish have really earned that name) they
consume a *lot* of food. Mine learn to eat flakes or anything else I
throw in their tank, but you do need a feeding frenzy the first time or
two so they get a taste. Starving for 2 days usually will do it (if your
plants can take it :-)). 

Sinking wafers and other dry veggie foods are too expensive. I microwave
blanche the ends of zucchini and feed those when I think of it.
Nevertheless, I just noticed that the six I have in a 20 with some wild
mollies have done in every speck of dwarf Java fern, and really stripped
my fast-growing *Najas guadalupensis* in major areas. They are ignoring
the *Rotala* and *bolbitis* for some reason. Better buy some spinach and
throw in some duckweed.

Wright

-- 
Wright Huntley, Fremont CA, USA, 510 494-8679  huntley1 at home dot com
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