Guppies are ravenous eaters and eat every time you provide food, even if they are not hungry. They are omnivore fish and require meat and plant matter as their dietary requirement.
Guppy will almost feed on anything you provide to them. But, the doubt rises when it comes to algae. Many guppy keepers are confused and still finding the answers to whether guppy eats algae. So, Do guppy eat algae? Let us find out.
Guppies do eat algae in small quantities. However, algae don’t fulfill your guppies’ dietary needs as it contains less nutritional benefits. Also, excess algae destroy the live plants, depleting the tank’s oxygen level. Regular tank maintenance will prevent algae growth in your guppy tank.
This article will discuss the reasons and prevention of algae growth in our guppies aquarium. Also, we will know that can guppy fish eat algae wafers. So, let us get into it.
Contents
- 1 Do guppies feed on algae?
- 2 Guppy fish dietary requirements
- 3 What type of aquarium algaes can guppy eat?
- 4 Can I feed algae wafers to my guppies?
- 5 Can guppy survive by eating only algae?
- 6 Do guppy help in controlling the algae growth in an aquarium?
- 7 How to eliminate algae from my guppy tank?
- 8 Conclusion:
Do guppies feed on algae?
Guppies do feed on algae.
Guppies are omnivore fish and require plant and meat matter food in their diet.
Feeding on algae will only fill up the small part of your guppy’s daily diet.
You must know that you cannot rely on algae as your guppy food.
Guppies will feed on algae but not in a major amount.
Also, it depends on the type of algae present in your guppies aquarium.
Guppies will eat most types of algae, but there are some types that guppy will not eat.
Algaes like blanket weed is something your guppies will ignore.
Also read: Can Guppy Eat Bloodworms?
Guppy fish dietary requirements
Guppy fish are omnivore fish and require both plant and meat matter food in their daily diet.
Keeping guppies in only a plant or meat diet will not do great.
We should provide our guppies complex food which contains both plant and meat matter.
Guppy will usually live by feeding on pellets and flake food.
But, to ensure their faster growth and enhancing color, you should feed them a variety of food.
| Guppy Food | Serving Quantity | No of Times |
|---|---|---|
| Veggie pellets | One pinch at a time | 2-3 times a day |
| Brine shrimp | One pinch at a time | 1-2 times a week |
| Bloodworms | One pinch at a time | 1-2 times a week |
| Tubifex Worms | One pinch at a time | 1 time a week |
| Mosquito larvae | 10-15 pieces | 2-3 times a week |
| Zucchini (Blanched) | One small slice | 3-4 times a week |
Also read: Best Food For Guppy Fish.
What type of aquarium algaes can guppy eat?
These are the common algae that are found in a fish aquarium:
- Staghorn algae
- Black beard algae
- Brown algae
- Blanket weed algae
- Blue-green algae
- Fuzz algae (Hair algae)
- Green water algae
These are the algae on which guppy fish feed:
- Staghorn algae
- Black beard algae
- Brown algae
- Fuzz algae
- Green water algae
These are some algae on which your guppy will feed.
But, you must know that guppy fish will not eat any algae in a significant portion.
To eliminate algae from your guppies aquarium, you should consider introducing algae eaters like Amano shrimp, red cherry shrimp, and other algae eaters.
The main reasons for the development of algae in your guppies aquarium are:
- Overcrowding your guppies aquarium
- Overfeeding your guppies
- Improper tank maintenance of your guppies tank.
- Lack of live aquatic plants in your guppies aquarium.
Can I feed algae wafers to my guppies?
Guppies can feed on algae wafers.
Algae wafers are usually for bottom dwellers fish as per their diet requirements.
We don’t recommend feeding algae wafers to your guppies as they are not on the guppies’ required food list.
Also, algae wafers will not do great to your guppies.
Consider feeding your guppies high-quality pellets and flake food to ensure faster growth and enhanced color.
You can also prepare homemade food like blanched vegetables and cooked pea.
Also read: Best Homemade Food For Guppies.
Can guppy survive by eating only algae?
Guppy cannot survive by eating only algae in their daily diet.
As discussed above, guppies are omnivore fish and require meat and plant matter food in their daily diet.
You can rely on algae for 2-3 days if you are going out for a vacation or other work.
But, you must know that your guppy will not survive long feeding on algae only.
Guppies need complex food for their faster growth and healthy lifespan.
Do guppy help in controlling the algae growth in an aquarium?
Guppy will not help in controlling the algae growth in your aquarium.
It is because guppy doesn’t feed on a large portion of algae.
Also, guppies are slow eaters when it comes to algae.
So, you cannot rely on guppies to eliminate the algae from your aquarium.
Guppies will eat algae attached to the aquarium glass, plants, and other aquarium decors, but not in a large portion.
So consider adding algae eaters if you want to get rid of algae from your guppies aquarium.
How to eliminate algae from my guppy tank?
You can eliminate algae from your guppy tank by performing these things:
- Introduce algae eaters to your guppies aquarium.
- Avoid overfeeding your guppy fish.
- Consider adding live aquatic plants to your guppies aquarium.
- Perform regular maintenance of your guppies aquarium.
- Avoid adding artificial light to your guppies aquarium.
- Prevent your guppies aquarium from direct sunlight.
Introduce algae eaters
As discussed above, guppies feed on algae, but not in a significant quantity.
We cannot rely on guppies to eliminate all the algae from the aquarium.
So, introducing algae eater species will help you eliminate algae from your guppies aquarium.
These are some algae eaters which you can add to your guppies tank:
- Amano shrimp
- Red cherry shrimp
- Twig catfish shrimp
- Nerite snail
- Siamese algae eater
- Bristlenose pleco
- Apple snails
Avoid overfeeding your guppies.
Guppies are ravenous eaters and are always hungry.
Guppy will feed on food every time you serve, whether they are hungry or not.
Such guppy behavior can confuse you and end up overfeeding them.
Rotten food will play the role of food for various types of algae.
Guppies’ leftovers will also make the water polluted.
To ensure that you are not overfeeding your guppies, consider providing food to your guppies which they can complete eating in one minute.
Also, you should feed your guppies twice a day at max.
Introducing bottom feeders will help you with guppy leftovers.
Usually, guppy will also feed on the bottom, but adding bottom feeders will do great.
Also read: Can Guppy Die From Overfeeding?
Add live aquatic plants.
Adding live aquatic plants will help you prevent algae on your guppies aquarium.
Plants also need the same nutrition as algae to grow.
Adding live aquatic plants will result in plants absorbing all the nutrients.
Algae will not be able to grow because of a lack of nutrition.
Adding live aquatic plants will also help you in various ways:
- Live aquatic plants create great hiding spots for your guppies.
- Live aquatic plants help you keep the water clean of your guppies aquarium.
- Plants will also help you increase the oxygen level of your guppies aquarium.
Adding live aquatic plants will help you eliminate algae from your guppies aquarium and create an excellent environment for your guppies to live comfortably.
Also read: Do Guppy Eat Plants?
Perform regular tank maintenance
Performing regular tank maintenance is the primary way to prevent your guppy fish aquarium from algae.
Regular tank maintenance and water change will keep your guppy’s aquarium water clean and free from any harmful toxins.
Algae develop in dirty water.
We usually avoid regular maintenance, which results in algae development in our aquarium.
Avoid adding artificial light.
Enough light is also a source of algae development in your guppies aquarium.
Keeping a low-light environment will help you prevent algae on your guppies aquarium.
You don’t need artificial light if you have an aquarium where natural light comes.
Also, guppies don’t require artificial light. If the place where you have your guppies aquarium is darker than usual, then you can go for artificial light. Otherwise, there is no need.
Artificial light becomes the reason for algae development as most of them process their nutrients by photosynthesis.
Prevent your guppies aquarium from direct sunlight
So much direct sunlight will also promote algae growth in your guppies aquarium.
Consider keeping your guppies aquarium in a place where there is no access to direct sunlight if your guppies aquarium contains algae.
Conclusion:
Guppy fish do eat algae.
But, you must know that guppies will not feed on a large portion of algae.
Guppies will feed on algae to extract small plant nutrition requirements for them.
This means that feeding on algae will be a tiny portion of their daily diet requirement.
Guppy cannot rely on algae as their food. Guppies are omnivore fish and require both plant and meat matter food in their diet.
Provide your guppy with high-quality pellets, flake food, bloodworms, tubifex worms, and brine shrimp to ensure faster growth and enhanced color.
Homemade food like blanched vegetables will also do great for your guppies.