Bug Bites

[mrrobxc]

I would personally not feed as a staple, pros and cons to this food posted in the past discussion.

https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/bug-bites-anyone-new-fish-food.687253/

Pros

1. all species of fish readily eat it, except one, my adult midas. He prefers anything but, the bugs. I would expect most polys to eat it without too much issue. I suspect the high fat level adds to the taste/smell.

2. A sustainable & novel form of protein is used.

Cons

1. Protein is not just from fly larvae, they also include some form of salmon, fish protein concentrate, and peas. I would have preferred to not see terrestrial plant matter (peas) being utilized as protein (might as well be soybeans), or fish protein concentrate, and would have preferred to see a LOT more fly larvae meal.

2. It's a high energy food with a minimum of 12.5% crude fat, which means the average fat level, or typical analysis, would be closer to 15%. IMO that's far too high for most tropical fish to consume as a daily staple. Especially species of fish that don't expend a lot of energy in an aquarium.

2. No aquatic plant matter. None. No spirulina, no kelp, no form of algae or seaweed. Even fish classified as strict carnivores in nature typically consume some aquatic plant matter via the guts of their prey. I personally like to see aquatic plant matter in all formulas of fish food. The lack of this is a big negative in my book.

3. Potato - why? If the company was more specific one would know, but without further details it could be used as another terrestrial based protein (potato protein concentrate) or as a binding agent (potato starch). Who knows? Either way, no thanks to feeding potatoes to carnivores - the wheat in this formula should suffice as a binding agent.

If combined (peas/potato/wheat) the inclusion rate of terrestrial based plant matter in this formula might be alarming.



Due to the higher protein, and high fat levels, this formula would probably work well as a conditioning food for fish getting ready to spawn, but due to the reasons listed above I would not feed as a daily staple, to polys, or anything else.

I agree things will inevitably change at some point due to sustainability, cost, and other issues. As far as that goes, ornamental fish food is just one car on a longer train. I'm okay with the prospect of insects, algae (or some other possibilities I've read about, if they prove to make nutritional sense) replacing or partially replacing ingredients that may have become less sustainable, I've been prepared for that for years, but it's a matter of what turns out to be good replacements-- and, soy industry and marketing notwithstanding, soy ain't one of them imo, at least from the literature I've read. Nor feather meal, brewing industry waste, mystery starch, etc.

Personally, looking at Bug Bites ingredients and guaranteed analysis, don't know how excited I am with green peas and potato as ingredients or "high protein" as a description with a stated minimum 40% protein and minimum 12.5% crude fat for the species I keep, at least as a staple compared to what I currently feed. "High protein" might sound good, but aquaculture science is that too high actually retards growth while producing more waste.

That said I'd be interested to see some long term results before forming a strong opinion one way or the other... growth, health, including liver health, longevity, etc.

You guys are amazing. Always learn so much from both of you.

 

[Audaxcity]

I don't use it as a staple for reasons stated above, but its handy for transitioning new fish from frozen to pellet. The stuff is so greasy you can smell it, which as RD said, probably is what makes my fish go for it like a pack of piranhas.