Food for Peacocks/haps ?????

[tampa]

I have some of the following described food. Would you feed this food to peacocks/haps that are from 1 inch to 1 1/12 inches ? I don't want to give something that will hurt them. Thanks guys/gals for your help. I wouldn't feed this to my mbuna, right?

INGREDIENTS: FISH MEAL, BREWERS DRIED YEAST, SOY FLOUR. OAT FLOUR, CORN GLUTEN MEAL, SHRIMP MEAL, DRIED PLANKTON, DRIED SPIRULINA ALGAE, DRIED KELP, LECITHIN, VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS A, D3, B12, BIOTIN, THIAMINE (SOURCE OF VITAMIN B1), NATURAL COLLORING, ASCOROBIC ACID ( SOURCE OF VITAMIN C).

GUARANTEED ANALYSIS: CRUDE PROTEIN 44.0% MIN., CRUDE FAT 9.0%MIN., CRUDE FIBER 1.2% MAX., MOISTURE 9.0% MAX. ALL NATURAL INGREDIENTS

 

[DeFeKt]

I wouldn't feed this to my mbuna, right?

why not? sounds like the "Orca" pellets I use.

 

[Thebluyak]

I feed cichlid pellets and bloodworms to mine on a constant basis, the protein is good for them and will help them grow, but some cichlids cant have a meaty diet because of their intestine tract is long and it does something to it. Something like that if I recall correctly

 

[DeFeKt]

the protein is good for them and will help them grow

some africans (mbuna) do NOT do well with excessive amounts of protein.

 

[Thebluyak]

yeah I know, thats why i said some cichlids dont do well with a meaty diet, I just dont know which ones have the problem with it. Do you know which genus dont get along with protein?

 

[DeFeKt]

some africans (mbuna) do NOT

hopefully someone else can add to that as my knowledge only expands to mbuna and very few haps.

 

[JeffreyL]

cichlid

Well, my experience is simply from resaerch for a future malawi tank, but from what I have read, all mbina are algae eating vegetarians. All non mbuna malawis (haps & peacocks) eat fish, crustaceans, etc. Which is why you will hear not to mix them, as both types will eat anything thrown in the tank

But many do mix them, even get them to breed. So obviously they can mix. I seem to recall New Life Spectrum, and likely others, make cichlid pellets that provide good nutrition for all african cichlids. Try cichlid forum if this is just adding to the confusion. Or hopefully someone else will give you better info.

 

[DeFeKt]

all mbina are algae eating vegetarians.

What is your source for this? I think they are a bit mis-informed.
They are omnivorous, they eat primarily algae and vegetation but also scavange amongst the algae covered rocks for smaller crustaceans and fry. As stated, to much protein can be a bad thing.
Peacocks, also are omnivorous. With pretty much the same dietry characteristics, although a little extra shrimp, or the likes of, would be good for them.
Haps, well my haps are predators, so my comments are limited. They live well and thrive off the pellets I give them (almost identical to the ingredients in the first post of this thread)
They also have the extra treat of hunting fry around the rocks.

I have had good results from using the all-rounder pellet as a staple, feeding fresh veggies once a week, and small doses of brine shrimp maybe once a month if they are lucky.

hope this helps

Matt

 

[JeffreyL]

mbuna

Agreed, my comment was lacking in detail. lol But that is why I referenced cichlid forum, or any of a handful of other good sites. It can be confusing, reading "Mbuna are exclusively Herbivores (with the exception of Labidochromis)." And then 2 sentences later, "This algae is their primary staple, which is supplemented with the insects and crustaceans that live in the algae." I believe they are considered herbivore because they target algae, and eat the critters along with the greens, and more importantly, because of their very long gut. This means they cannot digest much animal protein.

Fortunately several companies not make cichlid food which seems to work well for all the africans. New Life Spectrum is the only one I know of, but I think there are others.

Anyway, I hope this clarifies what I said too briefly before. And DeFeKt, after reading your post again, what you said pretty much agrees with what I have read and been told. Your recipe for feeding, minus the shrimp, was what I was thinking for a tank of mbunas.