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#1
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Tadpoles, what to feed?
I found this article as I have heard from another frog loving ponder that too
much protein in the diet of tadpoles causes deformities - note the comment regarding watching for backleg development. Taddies do get protein on their own in the pond (this article is about raising in containers) they will slurp up insect larvae, snail eggs, baby snails, fish eggs... they just hoover along and sweep up everything in their path. When in doubt always follow mother nature's set-up. Taddies will eat their dead siblings but that is a relatively rare event compared to constant algae and rotting plant consumption. The rare exception is with some tadpoles, when the water get crowded, some will turn carnivorous in order to speed up their development and get out of the pond before it dries up. This involves actual physical changes to allow them to consume and digest large amounts of protein. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Here is the article: Tadpoles have a long, coiled intestine which is designed for eating plant matter but they love protein when they can get it. Plant material can be any variety of lettuce or spinach which must be boiled or frozen before giving to the tadpoles. (Freezing uses less energy because your refrigerator is always on anyway.) Organically grown lettuce is better so you can be sure it hasn't been sprayed with harmful chemicals before you buy it. Old leaves with algae on them from creeks can also be used as a supplement but these leaves could be a source of disease so avoid urban drains. Do not use celery leaves! Whatever plants you decide to try, make sure that they are not toxic and always wash the leaves thoroughly, then boil or freeze them. There's a saying: "if in doubt, leave it out". Even better than risking chemicals on commercially grown crops is to use a compressed algae fish product called Algae Disks which might be sold by your local aquarium or pet shop. A combination of food types is good. Protein can be given to the tads once or twice a week and increased to several times a week after back legs have formed. Protein is very easy to provide because tadpoles will eat bottom feeder fish food tablets. Many types are available at your pet shop but a good one is Tetra Pleco-Min 5 Star formula which contains a high protein algae called Spirulina. Some people use other forms of protein such as cooked egg yolk or a chicken bone tied on a string and dangled in the water but these will foul the water immediately and should be avoided. Feeding tadpoles requires small amounts of food frequently. You should only throw in a small amount of food which will be gone in about 8 hours. It is better to have to throw in food a couple times a day than it is to only have to put more food in every other day. Don't put a couple days worth of food in to save time - this will instantly foul the water and you'll have to spend a lot more time doing a partial or full water change. A tadpole's whole life is to eat constantly so keep an eye on the tank and add more food as soon as the last lot is gone. Entire article is here http://www.fdrproject.org/pages/POtads.htm k30a |
#2
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Tadpoles, what to feed?
"Cybe R. Wizard" wrote in message
newsan.2003.05.02.22.36.10.834537.23296@WizardsT ower... On Fri, 02 May 2003 22:22:00 -0500, Michael Shaffer wrote: Is there anything I can put in the water to feed tadpoles, like fish food,etc ? Got algae? What a great t-shirt idea. BV. |
#3
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Tadpoles, what to feed?
Is there anything I can put in the water to feed tadpoles, like fish
food,etc ? When the algae supply runs out I have fed Pacific Tree Frog tadpoles flaked gold fish food. They love water cress. Also peeled sliced cucumbers. I through an apple core in one of my tadpole ponds the other day and they ate that too. Zeuspaul |
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