The reedfish is largely an indiscriminate eater, consuming virtually every living thing placed before it. Newly arrived captives will eagerly dine on live freshwater shrimp, crickets, worms, insect larvae, and minced bits of fish. Feeder minnows and tiny guppies are also taken with relish. Older captive individuals may be weaned onto pellet foods and tablets, though these items should be soaked in a small dish of water for at least 5 to 10 minutes before offering them.
Reedfish have the tendency to swallow their prey items whole or in large chunks. Hard, rough-edged pellets and tablets can, and often do, induce choking when your fish eats them immediately after you drop them into the tank. Bear in mind also that multi-segmented prey items, such as worms, insects, and whole shrimp, will very likely leave behind body-bits (legs, antennae, body segments, etc.) to pollute the water. Feeding such prey items to your reedfish absolutely necessitates more frequent water changes on your part. Organisms that your reedfish can swallow whole (i.e., minnow, guppies, tiny snails) will leave behind far less biological debris when eaten, thus your aquarium maintenance schedule need not be accelerated. Feed young and growing reedfish small meals twice daily, but feed adult specimens one larger meal only once every two days, or a single smaller meal once per day.