The Moorish Idol Thread
- Thread starter zfunk007
- Start date
Moorish_Idol
New member
Moorish idols just don't stop eating randomly, which is what a lot of people say happens and say just stopped eating without cause and suddenly died. The thing is, moorish idols usually stop eating when water quality declines and other stress factors. I don't think they just 'stop' eating to boycott. There is always a reason why. People say "oh! my idol stopped eating! I better start giving him some different foods! Cause he must not be liking this food now!" you have to look deeper into the problem. Start keeping up on your maintenance more often and check all your water parameters and look into other possible causes of stress. :strooper:
djkms
Fish Freak
3-4 times a day. 3 Times NLS pellets through a auto feeder and once with PE Mysis and Rods. The tank is also fed a half sheet of nori a day which the Idol eats.
IMO nipping and coral eating is not because fish are hungry. Its because they are curious and/or instinct.
I had my Idol for at least 3 months with no issues before it suddenly decided it liked zoas. It wiped all my zoas out within a week. Now my tank is fish only, so I don't worry about it anymore.
djkms
Fish Freak
Divers Den sells them all the time for around $90, gotta be quick buying one though!! 500 gallon is plenty big.
Moorish_Idol
New member
I thought they were cheaper than $90? isn't divers den just a branch of liveaquaria?
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slate55
New member
Yes, I got mine from live aquaria for $70 appx 5"
elegance coral
They call me EC
Just curious. Do you have an idea of what could be the cause of death? I don't know squat about MI's, but I'm thinking about getting one for my 200. Could there be some nutritional deficiency that's causing the premature death????
ROBONE20
Member
I took a shot at it. Owned him for 3 months. Healthy as can be and survived through QT. Acclimated him into my DT and isolated between egg crates on one side. Let him go and my French Angel went after him, ate most of it's fins. He wasn't the same after that. I isolated him again to try to get him healthy. He lived for another month, but didn't want to eat after that and never had the same appetite he once had. Ate everything from NLS pellets, Formula 2, brine, mysis, krill. I won't try again with my current live stock. If I had a tank for it by itself, or with other peaceful tankmates maybe. But it would be one big tank (bigger then my 240).
Paul B
Premium Member
It could be the sponge, it could be lack of a mate, or it could be lack of swimming room, I really don't know, but don't be fooled because they eat everything. As I said, they all eat everything and they eat like pigs. After a period of time they just seem to die. Not one or two, but all of them, every single one. Hopefully we will someday figure out why.
Oddly enough they were one of the first fish imported for salt tanks, I had them in the 70s. They do better now but inless we can keep them for at least something like 15 years, we failed.
Moorish_Idol
New member
Hey Paul, ho did you train yours to eat out of that dish? And how did you keep other fish from getting into it?
elegance coral
They call me EC
They have diets for angels that are said to contain sponge. Has anyone tried feeding these foods, or picking up the occasional sponge from the LFS?
What's the average life span in an aquarium? Provided it lives past the first couple of months.
Paul B
Premium Member
Most people who kep Idols feed that. It does have a little sponge in it but it looks like very little. Idols in the sea eat mostly sponge but I would imagine that food would help.
I think the majority live a few months to a year.
Does anyone on here have one for 5 or 10 years? Anybody?
Almost all other fish live way longer than that.
I didn't have to train him, he loved pellets so he figured it out himself. They are constantly looking for food and it is hard to kep them supplied with it.
Texas
New member
I ordered one last week from Pacific Island Aquatics. They did not show them on their site but I ask and they had them at the supplier there in Hawaii. I got one for $40 along with some other fish I ordered from them. He got here Friday last week and was eating pellets shortly after his arrival and now eats beef heart, PE mysis, nori and Formula flakes. I am ordering some of the Mega-Marine frozen, it has sponge as the first ingredient I have not found it locally.
Allmost
New member
I soak all his food in angelix, from brightwell, which is said to contain Amino acids from sponges .... [for angels and Idols]
at least mine doesnt eat the blue or orange sponges from LFS ... ! some one once told me those are toxic for him ... but I am not sure.
djkms
Fish Freak
Allmost,
I talked to the brightwell representative at Reefstock last year and he told me that the Angelixer has no nutritional value. Its only purpose is to invoke a feeding response with Angels. I had just gotten my Idol a month before the event and was really curious about the product and almost bought some until he told me this.
Dr Colliebreath
New member
Do they live 15 years in public aquarium? Perhaps most of them just live 5-8 years and getting 5 in a home aquarium is all that can be expected.
Maybe if they eat mostly sponge in the wild a diet of mostly meat ruins their liver or produces digestive tract cancer.
Maybe if they eat mostly sponge in the wild a diet of mostly meat ruins their liver or produces digestive tract cancer.
