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What food to feed Piranhas, especially if they won't eat!
Only the bones remain!
INTRODUCTION
Whatfoods should you feed your piranha? That is a question often asked by novicesand even some people who have kept piranhas for awhile. It is difficult tosimply categorize one type of food that will benefit your piranha since fishesin the wild eat a variety of foods. From worms, bugs, spiders, birds, mammalsand the list goes on are all part of the daily menu that a piranha will beoffered by nature. The home aquarium in contrast the daily menu changes to amore restrictive diet. What I intend to do here is give a suggestedlist of foods piranhas would eat. This list is not a golden rule for success norto be taken as gospel. It is a method of feeding that I have used successfullyon my piranhas for over 40 years. Much of it is based on trial and error. Eventhe piranha that refuses to eat can still be enticed to eat if one tries some ofthese foods.
PIRANHABEHAVIOR IN FEEDING
Oneof the common problems reported from piranha keepers is their new fish refusesto eat. This problem is not uncommon as one would think. Piranhas by nature arevery shy and resistant to new changes in the aquarium home. They usually fastfor a few days until they become accustomed to their new surroundings.Experiments conducted at OPEFE (unpublished 1994-96) demonstrate that piranhascan survive up to three to four months without eating. They live on thefat storage which is stored in the dorsum area (= before the dorsal fin). Naturehas given them this ability because South America has periods of dry season andfood is scarce. Wild caught examples of piranhas show the dorsum area emaciatedas if shrunken or wasted by some illness. This is the fat storage area thatpiranhas have been living on to get them through the dry season. Some speciesimported for the aquarium trade such as Pygopristisdenticulata are so emaciated in the dorsum area they do not livelong (click on link to read report). Other fish like Catoprion mentomust be fed a variety of foods other than scales to keep them alive.
Eachof my OPEFE web pages carries some discussion on what these predators eat in thewild. In some areas I mention the type of foods that they could be fed. Here onthis page I will write down the suggested foods that have worked for me. Keep inmind, piranhas will initially refuse to eat this food. There are many reasonsfor this but the most predominate reason is the fish are in an unnaturalenvironment-- the home aquarium. With this in mind, lets proceed todiscover what foods you can feed your piranha. Live fishes can be fed topiranhas, but the problems with diseases and parasites must play into thisfactor. OPEFE does not discourage or encourage the feeding of live fish. That isa matter of choice that is up to the person who keeps his predator. One thing Ishould mention. Feeding of goldfish (Carassius species) does haveinherent problems with fungus and are a known thiamine inhibitor (Thiamin [B-1]is an essential vitamin needed to regulate growth). If you intend to feed thesetype of fish or even frozen fish include liquid vitamin B complex to theaquarium water. Some aquarium pharmaceutical companies offer this vitaminsupplement.
Freshlyfrozen food is better - Depending on your piranhas size they can be encouragedto eat flake and pellet foods.
Genera:
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Pygocentrus can be fed; beef heart (remove all fat and can be fed in chunks dependent on the size of your fish), frozen fish, frozen shrimp, frozen crab, frozen trout, frozen bluegill, cleaned earthworms, insects.
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Serrasalmus can be fed; beef heart (remove all fat and can be fed in chunks dependent on the size of your fish), frozen fish including fins if available, frozen shrimp, frozen crab, frozen trout, frozen bluegill, cleaned earthworms. Some species (S. rhombeus) will accept bird seed, insects.
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Pristobrycon can be fed; beef heart (remove all fat and can be fed in chunks dependent on the size of your fish), frozen fish (including fins), frozen shrimp, frozen crab, frozen trout, frozen bluegill, cleaned earthworms (some species of Pristobrycon will accept bird seed).
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Pygopristis can be fed; dried bananas, walnuts (sliced), brazil nuts (sliced), parakeet seeds, frozen fish, frozen shrimp, frozen crab, cleaned earthworms, small pieces of beef heart (fat removed).
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Catoprion mento can be fed; live fish with scales, precooked frozen shrimp, small bits of fish flesh, flies, crickets.
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Metynnis species can be fed; live fish (guppy), shrimp, insects, shredded beef heart without fat, and aquarium flake food.
Whilethe list above as previously stated is only a guideline, you must be the bestjudge on what condition your fish are in. Newly imported fish are difficult tofeed, sometimes you have to experiment on what might work. I have taken commoninsects from the garden, (including moths) to see if the "non-eating"piranha would take it. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. Just be carefulthat these flying critters are not subjected to pesticides in your garden.
Thekey to successfully feeding your piranha is not to panic and try out new foods.
Donot feed; hamburger, hotdogs, chicken, ham slices or any other food that haspreservatives. This type of food will foul the aquarium rapidly and possiblycause intestinal difficulties later in life.
REFERENCES:
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OPEFE research files 1994-2000.
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The OPEFE web site and its contents; is disclaimed for purposes ofZoological Nomenclature in accordance with the International Code of ZoologicalNomenclature, Fourth Edition, Article 8.3 and 8.4. No new names or nomenclaturechanges are available from statements at this web site.
Copyright© 1994-2012 Oregon Piranha Exotic Fish Exhibit (The OPEFEfish exhibit is permanently CLOSED as of 2000) Sutherlin, Oregon. Informationposted on this web site is archival data on fish scientific classifications andother information. DISCLAIMER: The copyrighted material may not be usedfor any purpose other than private study, scholarship or research. Citedinformation requires credit and this link www.opefe.com.All rights reserved. All images shown (unless otherwise noted) is propertyof OPEFE.
