What Do Neon Tetra Eat? 27 Foods for healthy Fish

What do neon tetra eat? Let’s have a look and find out. There are some differences between what these little fish eat in the wild and what we feed them in our tanks. Described as being a crown jewel of our aquariums the neon tetra has become the favorite amongst hobbyists.

Before cracking on with the main 27 foods to feed these amazing fish here’s a summary of what to feed them.

What Do Neon Tetra Eat

Neon tetras are omnivores hence eat anything they are not fussy 50 percent of their diet needs to be protein algae plant matter and brine shrimp are favorites.

Due to their outrageous colors, Neon Tetras will add personality to your fish tank. As well as incredible color providing you keep them healthy through proper nutrition.

Neon tetras are tiny, with prominent personalities that are very colorful. found in streams and rivers that run through Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. These bright-colored fish are only an inch and a half long and have a gorgeous blue stripe that runs from their body to the tail.

Not to be confused with the cardinal tetra who has a similar look and has a stripe that runs the whole body. This stripe helps them to be seen. As the streams and rivers where they are from in the wild are dark waters.

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What Neon Tetra Eat In The Wild 

In the wild neons are known to munch on a varied diet. The main part of the diet would be algae and worms. These are readily available in the wild also fly mosquitoes and other insects. They will yum up on maggots tubifex worms larvae as well as some vegetation.

This in the form of plants shrubs grass almond leaves and other leaf litter. As well as all these scrumptious foods our neon tetras will happily have a piece of fruit that often falls into the waters.

That’s all the vegetation taken care of what about meat don’t they need a lot of protein?

Meat That Neon Tetra Feed On In The Wild

So we’ve seen that these little fish like to munch on a pretty varied diet. We know they eat their veggies in the form of plant matter shrubs and even grass. They even get some fruit into the diet too.

What about the main meat if any or is their diet just bugs flies mosquitoes worms for protein purposes? Our mate the neon tetra loves shrimp and all crustaceans these consist of shrimp crab lobster crayfish and krill amongst others.

Then there are the invertebrates which would include clams muscles and snails as well as insects and other bugs.

Carrion is also consumed this is a Latin term for road kill. Basically, our fish will eat other dead fish and or other dead flesh.

What We Feed Neon Tetra 

Most hobbyists will feed a good mixed pellet or flakes here’s one from omega one color micro pellet this particular pellet also sinks so the fish has time to eat. The reason for these types of feed is they come ready and done. All the nutrients and some vitamins as well as protein are all taken care of.

The one I’ve linked above also comes with salmon cod halibut and whole herring so nutritious. Other than the pellets and flakes we have frozen blood worms and brine shrimp usually once or twice a week as a treat and to keep the fish’s color. 

Feeding Live Food 

Indeed you can feed your neon tetra live food via breeding brine shrimp. Brine shrimp are fairly easy to breed and take care of and your fish will definitely enjoy but it’s easier to stick with frozen.

The same can be said for other live foods also there is a chance of spreading diseases with live foods so I prefer to stay with frozen. 

Some diseases and other problems with feeding live foods and Carrion foods

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Neon Tetras Eating Each Other

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Feeding A Balanced Diet

It is incredibly important to feed our fish a good well-balanced diet. We need to make sure they get plenty of protein but also some plant material. Neon tetra as well as other fish do not get enough nutrients from plants. They like us are unable to get enough protein from plant matter. 

So make sure you feed a good pellet or flake and top this up with some blood worm and or brine shrimp for their protein needs. You can give some cucumber zucchini or broccoli for vegetation and they will suck down on some good old algae.

Remember neon tetra ideally needs 50 percent of their diet to be protein.

Other Foods For Neon Tetras 

So what other foods can we feed our fish? Well here’s a great list of foods that will help keep your fish super fit and healthy.

Some Fruits And Veg

1. Peas
2. Lettuce
3. Spinach
4. Cucumber
5. Peach
6. Orange
7. Apple
8. Grapes
9. Strawberries
10. Broccoli

Anyone For Bugs

1. Fruit Flies
2. Mosquitoes
3. Black Flies
4. Maggots
5. Larvae

Plant Material

1. Plants
2. Shrubs
3. Grass
4. Algae
5. Leaf Litter (especially Almond leaf)

Meat And Proteins

1. Brine shrimp
2. Earthworms
3. Blood worms
4. Snails
5. Daphnia
6. Tubifex worms
7. Egg yolk

There’s your definitive list of 27 foods to feed your neon tetra fish. Obviously, most of these are treats but you get the idea. If you keep varying the diet our fish will respond by looking amazing with vibrant colors. What’s more, they will be able to fight off infection have better immune systems and hopefully, live longer.

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Bonus Foods For Neon Fish

So we now have a pretty extensive list of foods to feed our fish. Would you like a few more bonus foods? Of course, you would. Here you go Chicken and Beef I know weird but these fish just love chicken and beef.

Foods For Neon Tetra Conclusion

Well, there you go a pretty nice list of foods to help our fish stay in great shape. Along with these great food choices, we can also feed them a pellet or flake. In fact, we should feed a good pellet or flake and top it up a few times a week with some extra goodies for the best results. 

Always make sure to feed them half their diet with protein. As neon need a 50 percent protein diet to be at their best and feed them what they can comfortably eat within a few minutes. Remember these fish eat around 2 percent body weight a day.

Hopefully, you enjoyed reading and have now come up with some great feeding ideas. Please feel free to look around the site and ill leave you with some more related articles.

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