African Butterfly Fish

[Gill]

When I Feed my ABF, I feed him Bloodworms with a Pippet or Maggots and sometimes Worms from the Garden that have been cleaned and squeezed, so all the earth and crap is removed.

Now the Thing is, His vision is not very good and i tend to feed him in the evening when it is dimmer.

Now when Feeding, My Female Bettas will snatch the worms out of his mouth while he is chomping them.

I have tried using a floating basket and feeding him that, but he goes mental and jumps out, It Is true about their fins aiding in gliding, He will cover the length of the tank in 1 go.

What do you guys Suggest as I haven't seen may people on here that keep ABF.

He is otherwise very active at night, and spends the day in the Surface plants or gliding next to the Betta Barracks.


Any tips much appreciated.

ABFish

 

[CFC]

Small insects that float on the surface are the best foods for ABF, try mealworms and crickets sold as food for reptiles and if you can get them wingless fruit flies.

 

[ryan]

They can be difficult fish to feed as I have just discovered. The food must float right past them before they will pay any attention to it and then it must be something they like, CFC suggestions are probably the best, mine have also taken a liking to freeze dried bloodworms.

 

[Gill]

Can't Have Any Live Bugs in the House.
Everyone apart from me in the family has a phobia about worms, maggots, flies, crickets.

I have resorted to catching Garden Spiders and Cutting of their heads and legs and using a toothpick to stick it just above his mouth, and gently prodding him, this seems to work.

But again the Females see the Food and Pounce.

Last Nights food was snatched by the Red Eye Tetras, so will have to wait when everyone is eating in Dining Room and get a small Worm from the Garden and feed him with tweezers.

 

[Perky]

Have you got a shed? If you have buy crickets (brown) and keep them in a shed or hide them under your tank in a cupboard. They float on top for about 15 mins and gives him chance to realise they are in the tank. Otherwise ask a neighbour or friend if he can keep them and take 3 every 3 days and put them in the tank for him.

 

[Gill]

I could Keep them in the Cats Consevatory, outside.
It is always warm due to it being made of triple upvc. so they would be ok outside.

Do I have to prepare them in any way. take their legs of and heads, as they have pincers i don't want him damaged.

As he has a few scratches from the meal worms.

 

[Perky]

As long as it is not too cold it will be fine. I just get the smallest ones I can and put them in. Whaty you can do is remove 3 from the packet and put them in another container (with holes so they can breathe) and put in some catffood, fish flakes and orange or grape and it will add nutrition to the crickets and pass it on to the fish. The reason I remove a few is because you have to change it ever 1-2 days and it is easier to change it when the crickets are floating in the tank whereas they are in their box.

 

[crazie.eddie]

I'm lucky, I never had trouble feeding mine. It eats flakes, freeze dried bloodworms, tetra bits, and I recently found out, small fish

Mine come out during the day when I put fish flakes for the fish. It just snatches up as much as it can. Then I it feed freeze dried bloodworms and make sure I drop it by it's mouth. I will alternate days, using the tetra bits.

It never cared for small crickets, becuase the few I dropped even by it's face, it got scare and swam away. I recently found out mine eat small fish, since I moved it to my 37 gallon tank with the cardinal tetras. I was trying to get a count of the tetras and noticed 2 were gone. I was wondering what happened. They couldn't have jumped out, since my tanks are tightly sealed. I then placed 2 young guppies in there. The next day, they were gone. I susected the AFB (about 2"), but since I never witnessed it, I didn't want to assume. Then one day, I put another young guppy. As it was swimming about an inch below the water line, I noticed my AFB at the water line seem to be checking it out. Then at a blink of an eye, my AFB snatched it. I didn't see what happened, but I saw the little young guppy sticking out of it's mouth. Then a couple of quick thrashes in the water and the guppy was gone.

I breed my own guppies to give away and some fry I feed to my angelfish. I am now starting to feed them to my AFB as the guppies get a little bigger.

 

[Gill]

What About Spiders???

As the cold is receiding Large swollen Female Spiders(Crab Spiders) Are emerging bulging with eggs. Can i Feed these to it.

 

[Gill]

Got BFG a Freind yesterday.

He is A Gold butterfly and 1inch bigger than he is. GFB

Rob @ R+S says he uses African in his Live Bearer breeding tanks to get rid of sickly fish.

He said they are very good at weeding out the weaker/sickly fish, and has been using them for ages.

 

[crazie.eddie]

What About Spiders???

I guess you can if it will eat it.

I spotted mine eating a mealworm that happened to be floating on the surface.

He said they are very good at weeding out the weaker/sickly fish, and has been using them for ages.

They're very quick for even the healthiest of fish. They don't chase fish. They wait for the fish to get close enough to them before they snatch it in their mouth. Weak or strong, it won't matter. It might turn out to be the opposite. The week, sickly fish will tend to hide, probably in a cave an such. The stronger fish are the ones swimming all over the tank and will be brave enough to get close enough to the african butterfly, not knowing the dangers.

 

[lucky62]

try mealworms .

psq , I have kept meal worms alive in my fridge for more than a month at a time , in styrofooam containers , put it in something marked as yours and hope no one else in the house opens it . It seems you are kind of limited here , and that's to bad .

 

[Gill]

Problem Solved.

I am using a Live Worm Basket.

They have both learned to use it to grab worms from.

Plop a Few Tabs in it.
Twirl it with a coctail stick and the worms going flying in all directions.

They grab them as they come out. and if they are too lazy, wil use the tweezers to gold them infront of them.

 

[lucky62]

Problem Solved.

I am using a Live Worm Basket.

They have both learned to use it to grab worms from.

Plop a Few Tabs in it.
Twirl it with a coctail stick and the worms going flying in all directions.

They grab them as they come out. and if they are too lazy, wil use the tweezers to gold them infront of them.

good for you , and good for your fish .

 

[Gill]

AAAARRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH

The New one just gobbled a poor Hockey down.

DID not think it would go after them.

Down to 3 now.

May Move them into the Java Basket to keep them safe.