Apistomaster
12-06-2008, 05:04 PM
I have mentioned a few times how I feed my Heckels frozen blood worms and frozen beef heart by using what I call a feed bag. It is the plastic net type bags AquaClear HOB filter 's BioMax media is packaged. I remove all the media except one piece to weigh down the bottom of the bag. I have been using them for years to feed my Heckels frozen foods.
The advantages are that the food stays fairly well contained until it has been completely eaten. Far less loose particles are lost to inaccessible corners. It is also a fun way to feed them. The dominant fish do tend to monopolize the access but in their greed, they literally bite off more than they can swallow and spit some out. The lower ranks quickly grab the expelled piece of food. Very little ever reaches the bottom and what little food does tend to accumulate in the lower front level of my terraced substrate. Only enough sand to conceal the bottom glass is covering the loer level. Overall, this greatly minimizes my maintenance of thieir tank. Every small piece they miss is eaten by either the Green Neons, the Bushy Nose and a few L134 Leopard Frog Plecos. Here are a couple of photos taken near the end of a feeding session. They are so used to this method of feeding that whenever they become hungry, they will gather around the bag, awaiting the food to appear. Yes, they have me well trained. I think those who try this method will like the way it works.
#1. In this photo the 2 Heckels in the center back are the alpha pair.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/apistomaster/Heckelsfeedbag0003.jpg
#2. Just another shot of them eating.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/apistomaster/Heckelsfeedbag0001.jpg
The advantages are that the food stays fairly well contained until it has been completely eaten. Far less loose particles are lost to inaccessible corners. It is also a fun way to feed them. The dominant fish do tend to monopolize the access but in their greed, they literally bite off more than they can swallow and spit some out. The lower ranks quickly grab the expelled piece of food. Very little ever reaches the bottom and what little food does tend to accumulate in the lower front level of my terraced substrate. Only enough sand to conceal the bottom glass is covering the loer level. Overall, this greatly minimizes my maintenance of thieir tank. Every small piece they miss is eaten by either the Green Neons, the Bushy Nose and a few L134 Leopard Frog Plecos. Here are a couple of photos taken near the end of a feeding session. They are so used to this method of feeding that whenever they become hungry, they will gather around the bag, awaiting the food to appear. Yes, they have me well trained. I think those who try this method will like the way it works.
#1. In this photo the 2 Heckels in the center back are the alpha pair.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/apistomaster/Heckelsfeedbag0003.jpg
#2. Just another shot of them eating.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t41/apistomaster/Heckelsfeedbag0001.jpg