Why do fish eat plants? (Plants Like & Don’t Like To Eat)

Often, aquarium owners are faced with the fact that their fishes begin to eat up the leaves and stems of aquarium plants, which negatively affects the appearance of the underwater flora and often leads to growth arrest and even death of some plant species. In addition to being undoubtedly a great decoration for the underwater landscape, they play an important role in maintaining the biological balance in the aquarium. In the process of photosynthesis, plants not only saturate the water with oxygen, but also assimilate nitrogen compounds that are formed as a result of the vital activity of fish and, if oversupplied, can become toxic to the inhabitants of the domestic reservoir.

why do fish eat plants

Before you start decorating your aquarium, you need to think about what kind of fish it will inhabit. Get to know their way of life in their natural habitat, as well as their dietary preferences. To what size do these or those individuals grow and what niches of the reservoir they inhabit.

Why Do Fish Eat Plants?

Plants and fish in their natural habitat exist in a peaceful neighborhood, supporting each other’s development. However, in aquarium conditions, this connection can be broken.

Many people are faced with the problem of fish-eating aquatic plants, but scientists have not yet been able to come to a common conclusion for what reasons this happens. There are usually several reasons.

lack of vegetable protein in Fish diet

Lack of vitamins, mainly of groups B and E (tocopherols and tocotrienols). This manifests itself in the form of various defects. (For example, underdevelopment of operculums in juveniles.) This problem can be solved by adding complex vitamins such as AQUAYER to the feed. And also using professional feed for herbivorous fish in the diet, such as Tetra Phyll.

For chain-mail catfish (Ancistrus, loricaria, sturisomas, ototsinklus, etc.), scalded vegetables (cucumbers, zucchini, eggplants, broccoli, lettuce, spinach and nettle) should be fed.

Vegetables can be cut into slices and secured to a suction cup with holder to prevent them from floating up.

Uneaten leftovers must be removed in a timely manner. And also remember that they need fiber for proper digestion. The main substance from which the walls of wood cells are built. Therefore, natural driftwood in aquariums with these fish is essential.

kind of fishes eat plants

Fish species whose diet consists almost entirely of plant foods. (Paku, metinnis, African cichlids), as well as all varieties of goldfish, are not suitable for keeping in underwater gardens. However, even for these fish, it is possible to pick up plant species that will either not be to their liking or too tough for them. These are all types:

  • Anubiasov
  • Ferns
  • Bolbitis Gedelot
  • Bolbitis heteroslita
  • Thailand fern
  • Various krinums
  • Giant Vallisneria
  • Aponogetones
  • Rdest
  • Elodea
  • Hornwort

And you can also use the so-called upper melting. Limnobium, Salvinia, Pistia.

fish living in ground eat plants

Fish that dig deeply into the bottom of the aquarium (macrognathus, mastacembelus), large catfish or large species of American cichlids (acars, cichlazomas, astronotuses) also create a lot of problems in aquariums with plants, digging up the bottom and damaging the roots of plants. This is usually caused by the search for food, or preparation for spawning, when a pair of cichlids clears the area and prepares the substrate in order to lay eggs. In this case, everything that, from their point of view, is a hindrance, will be uprooted. Therefore, when keeping such fish, it is worth giving preference to plants with a very powerful root system, for example Lagenandram. You can also grow the anubias and ferns mentioned above by tying them with a thread to snags or stones.

Delicate, long-stemmed plants such as rotala, ambulia, pinnate, etc. are not suitable for keeping with these fish. Even if they are not eaten, then due to the constant suspension that forms during the tedding of the soil and settles on thin leaves, blocking the access of food, they will feel bad.

other aquarium residents cause plants

In addition to fish, molluscs and crustaceans can cause significant damage to plants. Crayfish and freshwater crabs are also not the best plant neighbors. When building burrows, they cut and dig out everything that gets in their way.

Expert opinion: It should be noted that, according to my observations, only yellow ampullae are not indifferent to plants, which can gnaw them to the ground. But the plants do not eat the colored forms of ampullia.

are you in search of a solution for Aquarium Plants Melting And Dissolving?

Plants The Fish Don’t Like To Eat

When creating an aquarium with plants, it is best to design it taking into account the preferences of the types of fish that you intend to keep. The best inhabitants of the grass aquarium are many characin and small carp fish:

  • Neons
  • Erythrozones
  • Rhodostomus
  • Hasemania
  • Palmeri
  • Parsing
  • Micro-fees, etc.,

As well as viviparous fishtooths, guppies, swordtails, mollies, petsilia, limia. Their mouthpieces are perfect for scraping algal growths off the delicate leaves of plants, and these fish are often indispensable in the care of an underwater garden.

Separately, it is necessary to highlight fish that feed on algae, which are sometimes a real disaster in plant aquariums. These are various types of labeo, ototsinklus and Siamese algae eater. These fish are able to cope even with the red algae of the purpulent kingdom, which greatly spoil the appearance of aquatic plants.

In the event that you cannot combine your favorite fish species with living plants at all, the problem can be solved by replacing them with artificial plants made of plastic or silk. However, the design of the aquarium will lose a lot. After all, even the highest quality artificial plants will never replace living, constantly changing plants.

Leave a Comment