What Do Fire Eel Fish Eat?

What Do Fire Eel Fish Eat?

First things first…the fire eel isn’t actually an eel at all. In fact, it is a type of freshwater fish but goes by the name of eel owing to its long slender, eel-like appearance. In any case, these wonderful creatures make a unique addition to your home aquarium but as with any other species, it is essential to provide your fire eel fish with the best diet.

These are omnivorous fish so feeding them can be quite exciting as you have the chance to offer a variety of foods. Plus, these trusting fish won’t think twice about getting close to their owners and with a little patience, you can get them literally eating out of your hand.

In this guide, we will be looking at what you should feed your fire eel fish and some of the best products to offer.

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Introduction To The Fire Eel

The fire eel can be found around areas of south Asia in countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and Pakistan. It normally inhabits slow mowing waters and prefers slightly muddier water like lakes and rivers. The fish is a bottom dweller and absolutely loves to bury itself in the sand at the bottom of the water.

These fish are not actually eels but because of their similar appearance, they have been given this honorary title. These are among some of the largest spiny eels that you will find in the aquarium trade with some of them reaching a whopping 80cm in length. However, there have been some reports of fire eels growing up to a meter although this is disputed.

It is highly unlikely that captive fire eels would reach this length and you’ll typically find that they only reach around 50cm when they’re kept in a home aquarium. However, this is still a sizable creature so you will need to have a larger tank if you want to keep one.

These are nocturnal fish that spend most the daytime hiding in the substrate so if you’re going to keep one then you’ll need to make sure that you have a low light tank with lots of places to hide. But we will look more at this a little later on.

What Is The Best Food For The Fire Eel Fish?

When they are in the wild, fire eel fish have a very varied diet. They are omnivores so may pick at plant life but they certainly have a preference for meat-based meals. This can include but is certainly not limited to things like crabs, snails, worms, and insect larvae. However, when they are kept in a home aquarium, the fire eel will eat flake food quite happily as well as things like dried blood worms and small fish.

What’s really interesting about the fire eel is that it is a very sociable fish when it comes to its owners and it is more than possible to train your fire eel to eat out of your hand. Who said fish weren’t interactive pets?

When fire eels are younger, they may do much better with things like brine shrimp and bloodworms as well as small inverts. However, as they get older you can offer a much more varied diet that might include things like live shrimp, worms, and mussels.

Whatever food you choose to feed your fire eel, you must keep in mind that these fish are naturally going to need more food than some smaller aquarium fish, owing to their large size. When they are properly nourished, the fire eel will become much more active and its colors will be brighter and more intense.

Best Fire Eel Foods

While it is a great idea to offer your fire eel the most natural diet possible, it is sometimes easier to include prepared foods in its diet. These are a great substitute and complement to their natural diet and the good news is that there are a lot of viable options on the market.

Omega One Freeze-Dried Blood Worms

If you are looking for a prepared food for your fire eel fish that is packed with all the essential nutrients that it needs to thrive and also offers great convenience, then look no further than these freeze-dried blood worms from Omega One.

They are bursting with important vitamins and minerals that will boost the colors of your fish as well as keeping its digestive and immune systems happy. The food is safely packed so there is no risk of any parasites or harmful bacteria; feed your fish in confidence.

Haquoss Brine Shrimp Freeze Dried

What’s great about these freeze-dried brine shrimp is that they come in cube form meaning they will more easily sink to the bottom. Since fire eels are bottom-dwelling fish, they prefer it when the food sinks.

The brine shrimp are packed with protein making them a staple part of the fire eel’s diet and thanks to the ingredients, the food is great for encouraging growth and boosting the metabolism. They are perfect for daily feeding and make a great complement to any fresh foods that you might include in your fire eel’s diet.

Is A Fire Eel Suitable For My Tank?

One of the great things about the fire eel fish is that it is relatively undemanding. That said, you must keep in mind that it is a natural predator and so you must be careful what you pair it with. These fish are likely to attack one another so if you’re interested in keeping more than one, you’re going to want separate tanks.

But this could be problematic as you will need a very large tank to comfortably keep even one fire eel and you should never have anything that is less than 80 gallons. Moreover, you should think about the other members of the tank, all of whom should be big enough that the fire eel doesn’t try to eat them.

Generally speaking, the fire eel will ignore any other fish in the tank unless they are seen as prey. Not only should its tank mates be large enough to avoid this but they should also be peaceful and non-aggressive.

At the bottom of the tank, you will need a soft, sandy substrate that the fire eel can burrow into and you’ll also need a good number of hiding places such as driftwood and dense plants. It’s also a good idea to have a lot of floating plants as these will create the shade that these fish so desperately need.

Conclusion

The fire eel is a beautiful yet very large aquarium fish that needs a lot of room when kept in captivity. While they are omnivorous fish, they do have a preference for protein and this makes feeding them interesting and varied since they will happily eat everything from brine shrimp to bloodworms, and earthworms to small fish.

But what really sets these gentle giants apart from the rest is that they will quickly develop a bond with their caregivers and will quite happily eat from your hand which can make feeding them an even more exciting experience.