The main diet of black tetras consists of algae. They eat the algae by sucking them into their mouths. Black tetras also feed on insect larvae, bloodworms, blackworms, brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, flakes, granules, pellets, daphnia, tubifex worms, frozen krill, and even some types of vegetation.
It’s essential to ensure black tetras get a well-balanced meal to meet their dietary requirements. So let’s explore this in detail.
What Do Black Tetras Eat In The Wild?
Black tetras live in freshwater habitats where they feed on plant matter from the submerged vegetation.
In addition to eating plants, these fish consume detritus floating near the surface of the water.
It includes decaying wood, insect carcasses, and pieces of leaf litter.
These foods provide them with the nutrients needed to grow and reproduce.
Black Tetras aren’t choosy when it comes to eating. However, they prefer certain types of foods over others.
When choosing between living prey and dead prey, most black tetras choose to avoid dead prey.
The reason behind this behavior isn’t apparent but may involve avoiding parasites found in the dead organisms.
To survive, black tetras need access to oxygen-rich environments.
Therefore, they prefer areas closer to large bodies of freshwater with abundant food supplies.
What Do Black Tetras Eat In An Aquarium?
Black tetras are easy to take care of, and therefore aquarium lovers can keep them at home easily.
In a home aquarium, black tetras prefer to eat the following:
- Bloodworms: Black tetras love to eat bloodworms which helps improve their immune system. Bloodworms are very nutritious and contain high levels of protein. You can feed them alive or frozen once or twice a week.
- Blackworms: This is the favorite food item of black tetras. Frozen blackworms are a better choice than dried ones. This is because frozen worms have more moisture content, making them easier to digest and avoid infection. Feeding blackworms once or twice every week to black tetras is enough.
- Brine Shrimp: Another favorite of black tetras is brine shrimp. You can feed live or frozen brine shrimp once or twice every week. Brine shrimp are an energy-rich source of food and will help accelerate the growth of your fish.
- Tropical Flakes / Granules: You can feed your black tetras tropical flakes or granules. These flakes and granules contain added vitamins, minerals, and trace nutrients. You can make them part of black tetras’ daily diet, and they will enjoy consuming these flakes and granules since they taste great.
- Pellets: It’s ideally the best diet for black tetras. Pellets contain all essential ingredients. In addition, black tetras have small mouths. So you can give them smaller-sized pellets that are easy for them to bite.
- Fish Food: Fish food is another good option for black tetras. Make sure that the type of fish food you use doesn’t contain any additives or preservatives. If possible, try to get natural fish food instead of artificial ones. Natural fish food usually consists of protein-rich ingredients like meat, vegetables, grains, etc.
- Algae Wafers: As black tetras are omnivores, you can give them algae wafers as well. Algae wafers contain pure-cultured spirulina and chlorella algae that provide your aquatic pets with high-quality nutrition.
- Daphnia: Daphnia is a microscopic animal that looks similar to a mosquito larva. They are known to produce vitamins, minerals, and proteins. Feeding daphnia twice a week ensures good health and growth rate.
- Tubifex Worms: They are also known as sludge worms or sewage worms. They are tiny freshwater invertebrates that resemble earthworms. They contain lots of calcium carbonate and other vital elements needed by marine life. Tubifex worms are very nutritious and act as an excellent dietary supplement for black tetras.
- Mysis Shrimp: They are shrimp-like creatures found in lakes and ponds. Mysis shrimp are an excellent source of protein and fat. They are small in size and can be given to tetras at any stage of their life cycle.
- Frozen Krill: Krill are crustaceans that resemble prawns but are much larger. They are considered to be the most nutrient-dense food available on this planet. They are highly beneficial for both freshwater and saltwater fish.
- Vegetables: Black tetras can eat veggies like cucumber, lettuce, spinach, and carrots. They bite off small pieces from plants and eat them slowly. Vegetable scraps are an option but not recommended for black tetras as your aquatic pet may not relish them.
How Often Do Black Tetras Eat?
Black tetras eat about three times a day.
The amount of time spent on eating varies depending on whether they are active or inactive.
When they are active, black tetras spend more time at the surface.
However, they tend to stay deep down below the waterline while resting.
When black tetras are hungry, they come out of their hiding places and search for food.
During this period, they consume most of their meals.
After they finish eating, they go back into their hiding spots until the next mealtime arrives.
How Much Do Black Tetras Eat?
Black tetras should be fed only the amount of food they can finish in 3 to 4 minutes.
The food that you feed them can be either high-quality commercial food or homemade diets.
Commercial foods are explicitly designed for fish.
These include live foods such as brine shrimp, bloodworms, tubifex worms, mysis shrimp, and others.
Another way to check how much black tetras eat is by adding food in the aquarium in small quantities until they stop eating.
You can repeat this activity every day in the morning and night to feed your black tetras.
Do Black Tetras Overeat?
Overeating causes stress to fish, which can even lead to death.
Therefore, it’s best to keep track of what your fish consume so that you know exactly how much to feed them.
If you notice that your fish has overeaten too many times, you must reduce their feeding schedule.
How To Feed Black Tetras?
You can feed commercially prepared pellets or flakes to black tetras.
Pellets are made up of vegetable ingredients and raw materials like fishmeal and fish oil.
Flakes are usually made up of vegetables and fruits. Both these types of foods are easy to prepare and offer great variety.
Commercial pellets are generally safe for fish. You can put them directly in water without adding anything else.
However, some people prefer to give flakes because they need less preparation than pellets.
In addition, there are different brands of flakes that contain varying amounts of ingredients.
Some flakes even contain additives that make them taste better.
If you want to mix their diet, you can start with one part fresh vegetables and two parts dry food.
Mix these well before adding them to your tank.
Do Black Tetras Eat Other Fish?
Black tetras are unlikely to eat other fish, but they might get stressed when kept alongside other types of fish in a small aquarium.
So, you should select the correct size aquarium.
Black tetras can live alongside each other in an aquarium, provided there’s plenty of space.
They also don’t mind sharing their tanks with other fish species like Kuhli Loaches, Horsehead Loaches, Giant Danios, Corydoras Catfish, and Harlequin Rasboras.
If you have limited space in your aquarium, consider keeping just one kind of fish instead of mixing several kinds.
It will help avoid overcrowding and ensure a proper supply of oxygen.
