What Do Fish Eat? Carnivores, Herbivores, Omnivores

Why Feeding the Fish Properly Is Important?

Feeding the fish in the aquarium properly is very important to keep the fish healthy Fish that eat well are more likely to grow, present better colors, and even reproduce. Strong fish can better resist disease.

How to Feed Fish Properly?

To feed fish properly, we must first look at their needs. How do they eat in the wild? What do they eat? Are they meat-eating carnivorous fish or grass-eating herbivorous fish? How often do they eat? Does their bait change with the seasons? If you want your fish to get the best food, these problems must be solved.

Carnivores

The body structure of carnivorous fish is different from that of herbivorous fish, from the structure of the mouth and teeth to the length of the digestive tract and small intestine. Carnivorous fish are opportunistic eaters. They either lie in ambush, waiting for the prey to come, or actively prey. Either way, they never know where is their next meal. So when they are not going to prey, they will preserve their physical strength as much as possible, and when the opportunity arises, they will release an explosive force as much as possible to catch the prey. The stomach of carnivorous fish can expand and can cope with a few full meals. Fish cannot always be picky about the size of the prey they catch. Many predators can almost catch prey as large as themselves. Once they eat too much, they will calm down and can last for days or even weeks without having to eat a big meal. Think of a carnivorous fish as a lion on the African savannah. They are either too full or too hungry.

Carnivorous fish

• Spindle Hap Cichlid
• Piranha
• Arowana
• Leopard catfish

Herbivores

Herbivorous fish have become accustomed to eating a lot of low-protein, high-fiber foods. They typically eat debris, algae, and plants. Their bait lacks the necessary nutrients. Therefore, plant-eating fish need to eat continuously to obtain sufficient nutrients. Herbivorous fish have a long intestine to digest all the plant-based substances they eat. They eat food all day long, constantly looking for food, and when they find it, they stop to eat as much food as possible and then continue to look for food. Imagine the herbivorous fishes as wildebeests on the African savannah, gathering in large numbers to avoid being preyed on after being left alone, and constantly looking for fresh bait.

Herbivorous fish

• Pleco
• Mary fish
• Butterfly Cichlid
• Anchovy

Omnivores

Omnivorous fish are not special and can eat most of the food resources. Compared with other fishes, it has an evolutionary advantage. It can eat meat as well as a plant as food. They are not as good at eating meat as carnivorous fish, nor are they as good at eating plants as herbivorous fish, but they can eat two kinds of bait at the same time and bait in between. You can imagine that the bait of omnivorous fish is similar to that of our humans. By ingesting a variety of foods, human beings can successfully survive in a variety of environments.

Omnivorous fish

• Tiger Fish
• goldfish
• American cichlid
• African Cichlid
• Guppy