What Do Newborn Fry Eat? Common First Foods and Feeding Tips
Newborn fish are usually called fry or larvae. Most fry have a yolk sac on their belly in the early stage after hatching and rely on the nutrients stored in the yolk to sustain growth, so there is generally no need to rush to feed them during this period. Once the yolk is fully absorbed, the fry begin to actively search for food, which is what is commonly called the first-feeding period; at this point the food offered must be tiny, soft and easy to digest.
There are quite a few foods suitable for fry that have just started to feed. The traditional egg yolk water is made by crushing a cooked egg yolk, mixing it with water and feeding it in small amounts; the ingredients are easy to obtain, but the residue easily fouls the water, so the amount used must be controlled with particular care. The tiny organisms in infusoria water, such as paramecium, are moderate in size and are an ideal first food for many small fry. In addition, commercially available powdered first-feed, cultivated green water and rotifers can also be chosen flexibly according to the species of fry.
When feeding, stick to the principle of small amounts given many times, and each feeding should be only as much as the fry can finish in a short time, so as to avoid leftover food settling and polluting the water. As the fry gradually grow, the food particles should be adjusted accordingly, and you can move from tiny live foods to crushed flakes or small pellet feed. At the same time, keeping the water temperature stable and the water clean is very important for improving the survival rate of the fry.
It should be noted that fry of different fish species have different food requirements. The young of live-bearing fish are relatively large at birth and can soon take tiny foods, while the newly hatched fry of some egg-laying fish are extremely small and often need even finer live food to start feeding successfully. If you find that the fry are not eating for a long time or are thin and weak, first check whether the food particles are too large, then gradually switch to a more suitable food.
