What will eat fish poop

As far as we are aware, there are no freshwater fish that have poop as a necessary part of their diet. Some fish such as Corydoras and Plecostomus catfish are said to eat poop — but even if they did, they still require feeding just as any other fish would.

Magalie Plichko Professional. What kind of fish will clean my tank? Bristlenose Plecostomus Bristlenose plecos Bristlenose plecos are a great addition to most aquariums. Siamese Algae Eater. Chinese Algae Eater. Otocinclus Catfish. Twig Catfish. Nerite Snail.

Cherry Shrimp. Amano Shrimp. Clara Morariu Professional. How long do water snails live for? Ideal water temperatures for snails range from 65 to 82 degrees, but aquarium snails will live longer -- between 3 and 10 years -- at the lower end of the scale as their metabolism slows down.

Just don't allow the water temperature to drop below 50 degrees, or your snail will die within a few days. Argider Dana Professional. Is snail poop bad for aquarium? The ones that smuggle themselves into your aquarium uninvited are general nuisances.

One snail by himself isn't harmful ; they do eat dead vegetation, debris, and algae. The problem is that one freshwater snail is never content to be alone; he wants to surround himself with many more, just like him.

Stephania Schopp Explainer. How do I know if my snail is alive? If the shell smells rotten or foul, the snail has died. Examine the water snail shell carefully. If the body of the snail is no longer inside the shell or if the snail hangs out of the shell and does not move, then the snail may have died. Locate the trapdoor on the snail's body. Olegaria Iturrao Explainer. Do snails help clean fish tanks?

Most snails are scavengers that dine on algae, dead plant material, dead fish and other detritus, which makes them an excellent option to help you keep your tank clean. Celi Brezin Explainer. What breaks down fish waste? The breakdown of nitrogenous waste is a four-part process: First, the waste from fish , plants, and food breaks down and releases ammonia. Nitrite is also toxic to fish , and is converted to nitrate once again by beneficial nitrifying bacteria.

Silviana Naphtali Pundit. How often should you vacuum your fish tank? As with all best maintenance routines, regular vacuuming, either once a week or once every other week is best for your aquarium. Be sure to remove all your decor prior to vacuuming. You'll be amazed how much waste settles under those pretty plants and castles. There is no fish that will eat poop in an aquarium. Occasionally fish are seen chewing on fish poop, but that is because they mistake it for food.

Even catfish, plecos, or shrimp do not eat fish poop. The only way to remove fish poop is to use a gravel vacuum and remove it manually. But do not get disappointed. There are definitely ways to reduce maintenance on your aquarium.

In the rest of the article, I will explain some things that you need to know about cleaning the fish poop from your tank, so keep reading. I hope you find it helpful. If you prefer me explaining the answer over reading it, go ahead and give it a watch! Although adding the right fish can definitely reduce the necessary maintenance, they will not eat fish poop. Even worse, they will produce more fish poop! Snails, shrimp, plecos, and corydoras are all part of the clean-up crew to a lot of people myself included.

These are the fish that you add to your aquarium that will scout around for uneaten food, plant rest, and sadly sometimes even deceased fish. I highly encourage you to add a clean-up crew if your other tank members allow doing so. They will be able to get to nooks and crannies we are simply not able to reach.

It is useful to have a clean-up crew in your tank to find all kinds of organic leftovers. If these critters would not find all the organic leftovers, it would turn into a major source of ammonia. If your tank is unable to handle the ammonia spikes, it would become a major threat to your fish.

This could start to rot, creating toxic ammonia. However, some people add a clean-up crew because they would like them to do the work for them. The mindset that you can add other fish to your tank so you never have to do maintenance again is fundamentally wrong. First of all, these fish do not eat poop, and second of all: they produce poop themselves.

And the only one who is going to clean that poop is us as fish keepers. You really do need to think twice before deciding on adding more fish to solve a fish-related problem. But there are some major benefits! If your aquarium has a couple of fish that you love feeding, but you notice that they do not eat all the food you feed them, even if you reduce the amount you feed, it might be a good idea to add a cleanup crew.

The uneaten food can be because your fish are messy eaters, or that they do not pick up the food as soon as it hits the bottom of the tank.

But the absolute best reason to add a cleanup crew is that they are awesome fish to keep! Bristlenose-catfish are fascinating fish and also rather easy to breed. A school of corydoras catfish is beautiful to watch and I also love my snails and shrimp. All great fish to add to any aquarium as long as the size and tank-mates allow it.

This in my opinion is the absolute best reason to add anything that you can call a clean-up crew to your tank. Instead, ghost shrimps eat their food bit by bit throughout the day and do not have any particular schedule that you need to follow. If you have any algae on your aquarium, you can save on food expenses since that will be enough.

However, if your aquarium has little to no algae, you can give them the same fish food you give to your other fish breeds. Depending on their living conditions, a typical ghost shrimp could grow up to one and a half inches and live up to a few days to a year. So if you find them very cute and want to have them as pets, be prepared for the sense of loss that you might experience once they suddenly kick the bucket and leave this mortal world.

Well, some species do eat poop, such as corydoras and pleco. However, even if they eat fish poop, they are not enough to serve as their primary source of food since poop has little to no nutritional value left in it, which is why it was excreted in the first place.

Cleaning your pre-filter sponges is a much better idea than relying on poop eaters to do the job for you. Although there is nothing wrong with trying out new and innovative methods, you could be endangering the lives of all those tiny aquatic inhabitants that much depend on you.

The best way is still to do proper research before attempting to try anything new. A healthy aquarium is one with healthy shrimp. Unfortunately, shrimp often have a difficult time getting the calcium they need from their food.