DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
Anyone feeding blackworms to their clowns? Seems like a cheaper alternative to brine shrimp and mysis. Just wondered the nutritional value versus other choices.
Blackworms?
- Thread starter DeathWish302
- Start date
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
Ok, just wondered if anyone else was feeding these. I've seen these in the LFS in a cooler with live foods and have always wondered. When I found they were cheaper than mysis & brine shrimp I figured live would be better than frozen foods.
Do you just keep them in the fridge and do a daily rinse? I don't think I can use the qty. the LFS sells fast enough, so how long do I have before they die? Do you feed them anything?
Thanks!
Do you just keep them in the fridge and do a daily rinse? I don't think I can use the qty. the LFS sells fast enough, so how long do I have before they die? Do you feed them anything?
Thanks!
iFisch
New member
Yep, BW here too. I have ordered live before (once) - they are much more nutritional, from what I've read (the live ones).
Expensive, yes. The only good thing, is they aren't consumed upon introduction, which rarely happens, they fish can hunt and find the worms hiding during the day, so they're constantly fed.
http://blackworms-direct.com/
Try and do a group order with your local fish club, or ask any LFS's if they'd like in to cut costs.
I know feed BW's 1-2x a week, in frozen cube form.
ILLiDaN
Clownfish Fanatic
Tbh i wouldn't recommend it you would be risking feeding parasites as well to your clowns. They take amazingly well to fish roe. As well if you really like to feed a great diet i would strongly suggest rods food. Has selcon, garlic,cyclopeeze offering amazing color and nutrition. Or if you need good pellet food with variety pm kerruso. I would like to say though that frozen food would offer a better variety for the fish
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
I never thought about parasites introduced with the live blackworms... I'm always looking for new foods and this spark my interest.
Currently I feed a HUGE variety - Shrimp, cod/grouper/halibut, mussels, scallops, blue crab, cyclopeeze, fish roe, SF Bay Brand plankton, mysis, homegrown brine shrimp, daphnia, tubifex worms, Hikari/Spectrum/ORA Glo pellet, Ocean Nutrition/Omega 1/Cyclopeeze flake, broccoli and nori. I supplement the fresh fish by soaking it a few days in lime juice (J. Wilkerson suggestion in her book) and occassionally use BA AminOmega.
I've never been a huge fan of paying $20 (now ~$16 @ MD) +S/H for Rod's food. For $20, I can have 3-4bs of food versus 6oz. I'm not discrediting his food's quality, but there is money to be made in that sector. I just prefer my own methods.
I'll have to drop Mitch a PM/call about his pellet food. Any idea if it's a special blend or which manufacturer? I'm interested in trying any new pellet/flake food, as I've found there are definitely superior products out there.
Thanks for your experience though!
iFisch
New member
It may take 3-4lbs to equal the nutritional value in Rod's. I buy the smaller bags for $6 locally. Takes me about 3-4 months to consume the whole bag. Feeding 1-2x a week.
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
I've seen and used it and was not impressed... Sorry, I don't see how his food is more nutritious than most homemade fresh foods. He does use a few ingredients that I do not. I will bet my seafood is fresher than that flown to IL = less nutritonal value lost. Enough said, use his food if you prefer.
Sounds like the blackworms may be a bit more troublesome than the average live culture from some articles I've read....
iFisch
New member
DW as for culturing black works, I dont think its worth it. If you have a nearby LFS that sells them, then it is. mine sells them 1$ a small coffee cup about 1/3 full it lasts me all week. I dont think pathogens or disease will be carried from fresh to salt water.
If you PM PaulB I bet he will send you a pic / explanation of his live worm keeper thingy.
They used to cause problems and freshwater breeders hated them because they would stay alive and reproduce in the gravel and before you know it the pretty blue gravel is gross and wriggling. In salt they die fast so I only spot feed them of they just rott. The clowns freak out abit but always eat them. Gobys and Wrasse are in fish heaven ,If a fish could smile they would.
If you PM PaulB I bet he will send you a pic / explanation of his live worm keeper thingy.
They used to cause problems and freshwater breeders hated them because they would stay alive and reproduce in the gravel and before you know it the pretty blue gravel is gross and wriggling. In salt they die fast so I only spot feed them of they just rott. The clowns freak out abit but always eat them. Gobys and Wrasse are in fish heaven ,If a fish could smile they would.
iFisch
New member
I consistently hear this, which is why I tried them (the most recommend live BW's, unless you can get locally), and I can attest to that. I just stick to Rods, PE Mysis, and Elos pellet (which includes some marine algae, color enhancer, crucial vitamins, etc). My fish still go nuts for Rod's. I chop up the mysis cubes, since my fish can't eat mysis because they're too big. I feed 1, 1 day, the other, the next day, and 1 day off. Repeat, but take 2 days off, and back to first routine.
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
I'll find out where my LFS buys their BW supply and research a little for safety sake of parasites. If they are as cheap at my LFS as yours, culturing would be a waste.
Paul B
Premium Member
I will agree with that, I said they were nutritious, not easy
I have been feeding them almost every day for over 30 years. That is how I get, and keep my fish into breeding condition. They also basically die of old age, which for some was almost 20 years.
I have never tried Rods food but I hear only good things about it.
Here is my worm keeper
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
Here is my worm keeper
PaulB - I'm kind of lost with your setup. Is there anywhere that details the methodology behind your design or was designed for your system requirements? Most culturing setups I have viewed are 10gal aquariums with an air supply and either oak leaves, paper towels or burlap as a medium/food source (or so they say). The water was usually 1-3" deep depending on the amount of air supplied. Just wondered about your setup if you have the time to explain.
Thanks!
Paul B
Premium Member
DeathWish, I am not trying to bred worms, just jeep them alive. I have found that they live forever in shallow, moving water. The water here is less than an inch deep and it moves from left to right. The warter is pumped from a small powerhead in the tank below into that trough which is a PVC 2X4 sliced in half. The trough has a series of barriers where the worms sta y behind, for the most part. The water enters the tank on the right. If any worms go into the tank, there is a container inthere where they fall.
I can suck them out of there. There are some plastic screens in the trough where the worms hang on to. I swirl the screens in fresh water to collect the worms. I feed flake foods which they eat the decomposition products of. You can use paper towels but it is hard to seperate the worms from the rotting paper.
I can suck them out of there. There are some plastic screens in the trough where the worms hang on to. I swirl the screens in fresh water to collect the worms. I feed flake foods which they eat the decomposition products of. You can use paper towels but it is hard to seperate the worms from the rotting paper.
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
Thanks Paul!!! It's clear how your system operates now. I appreciate the explanation.
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
I will agree with that, I said they were nutritious, not easy
I have been feeding them almost every day for over 30 years. That is how I get, and keep my fish into breeding condition. They also basically die of old age, which for some was almost 20 years.
I have never tried Rods food but I hear only good things about it.
Well Paul, I'll give you credit for finding a food that provokes an explosive feeding frenzy. My female tomato went 18" in a mad dash to snag the second worm after tasting the first. She then continued to hit the worms at the surface as I dropped them in the water with a toothpick. I have never seen this behavior with any of the Tomato complex clowns. I then tried it in the juvie growout stock tank. The water boiled as I dropped worms in. You would think this is candy to a 5 year old the way they act! I'm amazed, as I have never seen a food that can top Cyclopeeze for a feeding response with clowns. From now on, my clowns will have BW at least 3-4 times a week.
The best part was, I bought a 3oz souffle cup fulls of worms with no water for $4. I couldn't get the same quantity of any live food for the same coin.
Thanks for your help, next is building my own 'constant-flow' contraption!:fun2:
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