Problem with over feeding

[itiwhetu]

You have never kept Galaxias. They can stretch/ extend their stomach so it runs half the length of their body. And they can eat. It's an adaptation to living in isolated pockets of water where there isn't much food. They can stop eating for weeks or months and then gorge themselves when food becomes available. And their stomach is capable of digesting food straight away even if they haven't eaten for weeks.

We have 3 species of Galaxia in our creek. That is where they stay, I know that they are hardy and very adaptable as the creek floods regularly and then almost stops flowing in the middle of summer. I didn't know that about their stomachs

 

[Colin_T]

I remember long ago when I had cichlids I'd give them cubes of dried food as a treat. I can't remember if it was brine shrimp or worms but you just pressed the cube against the side of the tank and it would stay there and the fish would just nibble away.

freeze dried tubifex worms

 

[Colin_T]

We have 3 species of Galaxia in our creek. That is where they stay,

They are a really interesting group of fish. Some live their entire lives in freshwater, others have a marine or brackish larval stage before moving into freshwater.

Galaxias and rainbowfish produce a dorsal blaze when displaying and breeding. A dorsal blaze is simply a coloured patch/ stripe that runs along the forehead, usually between the start of the dorsal fin and the nose.

 

[jaylach]

freeze dried tubifex worms

Dried Tubifex worms were a staple food ages ago and I would feed the fish with those like that.

Yep, that's the stuff. Since my last tank was 25+ years ago I guess that fits in with the '...ages ago...'. Ages ago does bring up a question. Are they longer considered good to use or is that they have just fallen out of style?

 

[itiwhetu]

They are a really interesting group of fish. Some live their entire lives in freshwater, others have a marine or brackish larval stage before moving into freshwater.

Galaxias and rainbowfish produce a dorsal blaze when displaying and breeding. A dorsal blaze is simply a coloured patch/ stripe that runs along the forehead, usually between the start of the dorsal fin and the nose.

Our White bait in NZ is a Galaxia species migratory. The ones we have are 3 non migratory of about 14 species in NZ

 

[itiwhetu]

Yep, that's the stuff. Since my last tank was 25+ years ago I guess that fits in with the '...ages ago...'. Ages ago does bring up a question. Are they longer considered good to use or is that they have just fallen out of style?

I couldn't tell you, it can't be all bad.

 

[Colin_T]

Yep, that's the stuff. Since my last tank was 25+ years ago I guess that fits in with the '...ages ago...'. Ages ago does bring up a question. Are they longer considered good to use or is that they have just fallen out of style?

They fell out of style when blackworms were introduced here in Australia. Live Tubifex worms were notorious for making fish sick and causing internal bacterial infections, whereas live blackworms didn't cause the same problems. So people dropped live Tubifex and went with the blackworms. However, they also dropped freeze dried Tubifex because they thought it was the same as the live Tubifex. While they are both Tubifex worms, the freeze drying process kills off any bacteria, fungus, protozoa and other organisms on and in the food (worms), making them sterile and safe to eat. The drying process also removes moisture and this helps freeze dried products stay fresh for a very long time as long as they are in an airtight container.

The other issue with freeze dried foods is they float and take time to soak up moisture. This means fish that swallow large amounts of the dry food, can take in air and have problems swimming until they pass the air out (fish farts). And the freeze dried foods can swell up a bit after they have been in the fish for a bit. This is not a big issue if you push the worms against the glass under the water.

 

[jaylach]

They fell out of style when blackworms were introduced here in Australia. Live Tubifex worms were notorious for making fish sick and causing internal bacterial infections, whereas live blackworms didn't cause the same problems. So people dropped live Tubifex and went with the blackworms. However, they also dropped freeze dried Tubifex because they thought it was the same as the live Tubifex. While they are both Tubifex worms, the freeze drying process kills off any bacteria, fungus, protozoa and other organisms on and in the food (worms), making them sterile and safe to eat. The drying process also removes moisture and this helps freeze dried products stay fresh for a very long time as long as they are in an airtight container.

The other issue with freeze dried foods is they float and take time to soak up moisture. This means fish that swallow large amounts of the dry food, can take in air and have problems swimming until they pass the air out (fish farts). And the freeze dried foods can swell up a bit after they have been in the fish for a bit. This is not a big issue if you push the worms against the glass under the water.

Once again I give thanks for good information.

 

[itiwhetu]

I can remember collecting Live worms back in the 80's. There was a freezing works discharge pipe that went into a creek the worms lived on the waste from the works. We used to collect them, clean them, and then sell them all over the country. They were shipped as live food just as you would ship fish. Then the "Greens" decided to get the Freezing works to clean up their act and our business went bankrupt overnight, just about.

 

[Colin_T]

I can remember collecting Live worms back in the 80's. There was a freezing works discharge pipe that went into a creek the worms lived on the waste from the works.

We used to go fishing at Rob's jetty in Fremantle. It was near the abattoir and the fishing was great. But that was closed down too and the fish all left the area.

 

[itiwhetu]

We used to go fishing at Rob's jetty in Fremantle. It was near the abattoir and the fishing was great. But that was closed down too and the fish all left the area.

"Greens" blaa blaa, we will change the world and ruin businesses and then run away....