The increased understanding of raising, transporting, and maintaining feeder fishes like goldfish and rosy red minnows has made them safer to use today than ever before.
However, such a problem is less likely to occur these days compared to years past.
Since many feeder fishes, especially goldfish, are raised in huge numbers by fish farmers, the risk of disease transmission is high. One of the biggest issues regarding the feeding of live fishes to any fish, oscars included, is the potential for disease transmission. While live feeder fishes certainly do have their place on the menu for predatory fishes, they should never be the sole food offered unless such a diet is part of a larger goal (i.e., breeding, etc). Many folks offer their oscars a diet made up almost exclusively of live feeder fishes.
It’s been my experience that oscars do best when offered a variety of foods, and while a diet that reflects that of a “natural” one is somewhat difficult for many hobbyists, it is extremely rewarding and surprisingly affordable to offer a diet that is at least close to that of a wild oscar. Generally the two major foods being offered to aquarium-housed oscars are live feeder fishes and pellets formulated for large aquarium fishes. What I mean by this is that it’s rather uncommon for hobbyists maintaining oscars to feed them a variety of foods so as to replicate food selection in nature. The diet of oscars maintained in aquariums is often drastically different compared to that of their wild counterparts. I would say the latter theory is more widely accepted. It is uncertain, however, if these fish were feasting on the actual dead animal or on the small fishes that such carrion attracts. Additionally, some authors have reported oscars being sighted around dead animals lying in the water. Fruits, nuts, shrimps, and snails are noted fare, with the fruits and nuts being consumed somewhat on a seasonal basis. It’s hard to break down the actual percentages of food types consumed, but it’s probably safe to say that live fishes and insects constitute approximately 90 percent of the overall diet of wild oscars.Įven though live fishes and insects make up the bulk of a wild oscar’s diet, there are other items that are taken as well. Throughout their range wild oscars primarily consume meaty foods (mostly small whole fishes), while much of the remainder of their diet consists of live insects and insect larvae. Oscars are native to tropical and subtropical South America. This month I’d like to focus on passing along snippets of information that I have gathered on the proper diet and feeding of oscars in aquariums. Oscars are amazing fish and exhibit some of the most unique and fascinating behavioral and husbandry traits of any commonly available freshwater aquarium species. After all, who can resist those big bug eyes and that incredible dog-like personality? Well, not many, and rightfully so. Most hobbyists have at least heard of oscars at some point in their fishkeeping careers, and many have kept them in home aquariums. In this installment of “Top of the Food Chain” I will rediscover my roots, so to speak, and pass along some useful information that I have gathered on successfully maintaining oscars in home aquaria. are some of the most popular and commonly kept fish in the aquarium hobby.
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