Frozen brine shrimp as main diet?

[ToadstoolCoral155]

I'm wondering about the main diet of two clownfish (one occelaris, one snowflake) using nothing but the occasional veggie pellet and the frozen brine shrimp.

The clownfish were the first thing I added in my 14g, and i've had them since May. As of now, the tank is very healthy, full to the brim with plankton, and the clownfish are healthy. But, I have heard some people say brine shrimp is bad as a main diet. Keep in mind my clownfish are perfectly healthy and are addicted to the brine shrimp. The reason I don't feed them mysis which I have is because I can't- both clownfish refuse to eat them, not sure if it's down to size or coincidence.
https://www.liveaquaria.com/product...b5kNHQza2ntWQuNsvV0w9d-sVnc_pN8xoC8zMQAvD_BwE

This is I think what I use, coloring of packaging might just be different. Should I really go through the hassle of trying to get them to eat mysis when they are healthy and growing just off the frozen stuff?

Tank information-
Livestock: Flame Scallop, Two Clownfish, Green star polyps, Toadstool, radioactive green & vietnam zoanthids, 8-10 hermit crabs, one sea cucumber, one peppermint shrimp, four nassarius snails, macro algae, copepods, lots of plankton, sea slug, four astrea snails.

PH 8.3, Nitrates 3-5 PPM, Nitrates/Phosphates 0, Salinity 1.023-1.024
Mix: Reef Crystals.

 

[albano]

Interested to hear opinions... I've heard many times that there is almost no nutritional value in brine shrimp.

 

[Retro Reefer]

If you soak them in selcon or something similar they would probably ok but it’s best to mix it up, I feed my clowns frozen brine, mysis shrimp, Marine cuisine and a couple different flake foods multiple times a day

 

[Justfebreezeit]

In my opinion its fine as a daily food especially if enriched with selcon once and awhile. Though I would mix it up with pellets, flake, and LRS also.

 

[Gareth elliott]

I like to mix up my food. In the wild fish will eat a variety we cant even begin to replicate, but can try our best. I haven’t found a bad frozen food. Some have cubes a little large for my liking. But usually lfs will have one on sale every few weeks. If at the lfs and ones on sale i buy it lol.

My favorites are hikari coral gumbo and lrs both of which will feed both fish and corals and contain a wide variety of food.

 

[ToadstoolCoral155]

I don't have selcon, but my main question right now is should I go through the hassle of trying to get them to eat mysis if they are happy, healthy and growing on mysis? I can also supplement it with veggie pellets and garlic flakes.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Happy is unquantifiable with clowns.

Absence of disease does not fully define healthy. Are developing properly? Spawning regularly? Vibrancy of color?

Plain, adult brine shrimp is not very nutritious. However there are spirulina enriched and hufa enriched brime shrimp that are available. It is also possible to add your own enrichments, like selcon, to up the nutritional benefits.

What mysis are you using? Not all brands and sizes are created equal.

 

[40B Knasty]

The only San Francisco Bay I would use in the mini blood worms. All their other lines of food my fish have never taken to.
LRS foods being the best. Yes you have to cut them up, but it is worth its weight in gold compared to other foods for nutritional value.
Hikari is a good product. My fish will eat just about any of them. Brine w/ spirulina, mysis, mega marine to supplement the sponge part of an angel's diet a little.
Soak your foods with either Selcon or VitaChem marine. Let the food thaw out in the vitamins. When the ice crystals start to thaw. This will draw the vitamins into the food better. You do this when medicating food also.

 

[Paul B]

That is a terrible diet for any fish and Selcon will do nothing but wash off as soon as it hits the water. Selcon will only absorb on dry food which IMO should also never be used. Clownfish are not a good indicator of a food value because you can't hardly kill them unless you lay them in a street and have a school bus filled with college lineman drive over them, twice. Clownfish will live on cardboard or paint chips as long as it is a neutral color.

 

[eatbreakfast]

While some selcon does come off, some still stays on frozen food. Think about if you have cookingoil on your hands and give a quick rinse just under the water. An oil film still remains.

 

[Captain Quint]

Frozen Brine with no added vitamins is our equivalent to eating potato chips to us.

It might taste good but no nutrition.

 

[Paul B]

While some selcon does come off, some still stays on frozen food. Think about if you have cookingoil on your hands and give a quick rinse just under the water. An oil film still remains.

That is true, but if your hands are wet and you put cooking oil on your hands, then rinsed them, all the oil will come off because it floats on the water on your hands just like it will float off frozen food. He is wasting his money, but what do I know.

 

[Lasse]

Wise or not - I have feed my tank for nearly 2 years with only Frozen Brine Shrimp. Only some times with mysis. Last months I have add some fresh water copepods to the diet. IMO - that frozen adult brine shrimps should be a poor nutrient source is somewhat a myth. If you let newly hatched brine shrimps grow up - it is true - but if you use wild catch frozen brine shrimps - it is not true - they are algae grazers in the wild and are as nutrient rich as all other types of wild invertebrates you can feed with. I do not know but I do not think that the frozen adult brine shrimps I buy is farmed brine shrimps - IMO - they are wild brine shrimps and has the same nutrient value as all other invertebrates.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[nickeg79]

use a mix of frzn food and thawed food is OK soaking in vitamins in the refrigerator for a day or two. The longer it’s soaks the better. This also makes feeding more convenient as you don’t need to thaw food out each time. There are also some good mix is available such as Larry’s food. Pellet food can also be soaked in liquid vitamins and will absorb it very quickly and can be fed immediately.

 

[vetteguy53081]

You can liquid vitamins to them but they are a treat or filler....not nutritious in any manner

Crude Protein-Min 5.0%
Crude Fat-Min 0.8%
Crude Fiber-Max 0.3%
Moisture-Max 92.0% PRETTY MUCH LIKE EATING JELLO 3X A DAY

 

[Lasse]

You can liquid vitamins to them but they are a treat or filler....not nutritious in any manner

Crude Protein-Min 5.0%
Crude Fat-Min 0.8%
Crude Fiber-Max 0.3%
Moisture-Max 92.0% PRETTY MUCH LIKE EATING JELLO 3X A DAY

Yes - just like all wild fishes eating invertebrates does every day, but they are feeding in a constant manner. The nutrient content is rather alike for most invertebrates - the nature does not give them protein pills every day. Very important - if you use fresh food - feed up to 5-6 times more in weight compared with dry food in order to get the same growth rate. I want my fish to have a rather slow growth rate, hence I feed more sparingly. The reason why I start with copepods (content like artemia but also rich in carotenoids - as Artemia is too) is that the eating behavior is different.

There is also a myth that fishes need a diversity of food - the opportunists is trained to eat what there is and the specialists - what do you think the name indicate ?

The recommendations to soak artemia in selco starts in the 80:ties based on research from the Dutch company Artemia systems. It was directed to the new science of trying to have marine fish larvae to eat and grow. It was difficult (at that time) to farm rotifers in enough amount in order to constant feeding and newly hatched artemia (important in later stages) quickly lose their nutrient (they use them by them self - the content in newly hatched is like a egg sac for them before they start to eat algae). Selco contain Omega 3 fatty acids - a very important factor for marine fish larvae.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[vetteguy53081]

The one thing i can add regarding brine is that it has been for me even when i owned my pet store, the best enticer to get fish to eat.

 

[alton]

I like Spiralina Brine mixed with either mysis shrimp or LRS. Brine shrimp is only as good as what they where fed and their belly's are full of?

 

[ReefTeacher]

I don't know where the idea the adult brine shrimp have no nutrition got started. Florida Aqua Farms has a detailed analysis of adult brine shrimp; far more nutritious than any potato chip I eat! Of course a varied diet is best, and worms are far more nutritionally dense, but the nutritional information is listed on Hikari and SanFransici Bay brand package. I think you will find far less difference in nutrition than some state.

That being said, my staple is LRS. But I add either mysis or spirulina brine every day to the mix. The fish love them...and hey, I like potato chips with my sandwich too!

 

[vetteguy53081]

Brine shrimp:

Crude Protein-Min 5.0%
Crude Fat-Min 0.8%
Crude Fiber-Max 0.3%
Moisture-Max 92.0%

Baby brine shrimp with egg-sac has higher value. If gut loaded or soaked in vita-chem or selcon boost the value but still only 5%