Infusoria for Betta Fry – How to Make Infusoria?

Are you confused about what to give your Betta to eat? Does their diet seem incomplete to you? Are you unsure if your betta can have infusoria? Are you wondering about how to add infusoria to the betta’s diet? If the answer to these questions is yes, then you are at the right place. In this article, we will talk about all you need to know about Infusoria. By the end of this article, you will be in a much better position to add Infusoria to the Betta and betta fry diet.

Taking care of Betta’s food requirements and maintaining a balanced diet is one of the biggest challenges for any Betta owner. But doing the research proves to be beneficial in the long run.

What is Infusoria?

So the question is, what exactly is Infusoria? Infusoria is actually a group of microorganisms that live in natural and manmade water bodies. These microorganisms are said to be the perfect food option or supplement for Betta fry especially because of the microorganism’s tiny size and other benefits. Older Betta can also eat Infusoria but it cannot be considered as their entire diet.

Related Post: How Long Can Betta Fish Go Without Food?

How to Make Infusoria?

The best thing about infusoria is that it can easily be made at home. Shops do not sell infusoria very often but that is not a problem because it can easily be made at home. Culturing Infusoria has absolutely no rocket science involved and anyone can make it easier. Now we will talk about the steps one needs to follow to make infusoria.

Step 1

Fill a clean jar 1/4 of the way with whatever greens or veggies you would like to use. Green beans, lettuce, cabbage, and spinach are all healthy options.

Step 2

Bring a pot of water to a boil and pour over the greens until the jar is 1/3 full. This will speed up the breakdown of the greens and save you a lot of time.

Step 3

Fill the jar with water from an existing aquarium to the top. This water acts as a healthy bacteria infusion to help your infusoria grow faster.

Step 4

Put the container in a bright window. The water in your infusoria jar will get hazy or cloudy during the next few days as the greens inside decay. This is the bacteria that the infusoria will feed on as it grows. Monitor the temperature of the jar frequently, if the temperature exceeds 85 degrees Fahrenheit then you must remove the jar from direct sunlight and place it in indirect sunlight. Even though infusoria is like warmth but excessive heat can kill them. Put an air pump or aeration stone in the jar so that the anaerobic bacteria are kept at bay. Unwanted bacteria can make the jar toxic and smelly.

Step 5

Keep an eye on the Jar of water. When the water clears and is no longer cloudy, this means that the infusoria have consumed all of the germs and bacteria present in the jar. The infusoria is now ready for feeding to your betta fish.

How Long Does the Infusoria Remain Edible?

Unfortunately, Infusoria does not have a very large shelf life. It goes bad quite quickly. Generally, Infusoria is good to feed for about 2 days. After two days the water in the jar starts becoming cloudy, which indicates that your infusoria is no longer edible. Once the jar becomes cloudy, you have to empty it as it is of no use. So you should have another jar ready when your previous batch goes bad.

Can Betta Survive only on Infusoria?

The answer to this question is No. Please have some mercy on your Betta! The betta fry can eat infusoria for the first week of their lives but after that, their diet needs to be supplemented with other things. The diet should consist of brine shrimp, live worms, and the usual fish pellets. Infusoria is an excellent supplement but it cannot be substituted for the main diet of the Betta. If betta is fed only with infusoria then their growth can slow down and they can even die before time.

How to Feed Infusoria to the Betta Fries?

Now that you have your jar of Infusoria ready, now is the time to feed it to your betta fries. Now naturally you would be thinking about dumping the entire infusoria water in the tank but please don’t do that. I know the urge is irresistible but please don’t. No, I will tell you the right way to feed infusoria to your betta fry. This method will ensure that the infusoria does not get wasted and is easily identified by the betta fries.

• Buy a water dropper from any local store. If you do not have a dropper then any clean bottle cap can also be used.
• Fill the dropper or clean bottle cap with the jar of water when you are about to feed the betta fry.
• Drop the water into the betta tank right where the betta fries are so that they can find it and consume it without any difficulty.
• Infusoria are very tiny so they will be consumed very easily by the Betta fry.

Related Post: A Beginners Guide to Brine Shrimp?

Advantages of Using Infusoria?

Is Infusoria good for Betta? Yes, Infusoria is in fact extremely good for Betta, Betta fry specifically. We will now discuss in detail the benefits of feeding you betta with Infusoria. The advantages are listed below.

Satisfies the Hunting Instinct

Betta has a natural hunting instinct and they enjoy looking for their own food. Since Infusoria is live food so the Betta fry and Betta get the thrill of hunting the food and hence their hunting instinct is satisfied properly.

Extremely Small in Size

Infusoria are extremely small in size, same is the case of betta fries, they are also very tiny. So Infusoria and betta fry are indeed a match made in heaven. Due to the small size of Infusoria, betta fries have no problem eating them.

Full of Nutrients

Even though infusoria is not a complete diet but it can still be used as a healthy nutrient source for the betta. Betta fry under 1 week can survive totally on infusoria but later on, their diet must be supplemented with other essentials. Infusoria is indeed a good snack for the betta.

Easily made at Home

Another advantage of using Infusoria is that it is readily available. As discussed above, culturing infusoria at home is no big deal and anyone can do it. So there is never the threat of running out of food if you know the trick of infusoria.

Not very Expensive to Make

You might have got the idea already but I will make it clear, Infusoria made at home is one of the most inexpensive fish food ever. Who does not want to save a few bucks?

Naturally Existing in Plants

Another amazing thing about infusoria is that if you put plants in your tank then infusoria will automatically be present on the leaves. So the betta is able to eat the infusoria directly from the leaves, you might have observed that fish suck the leaves in the tank, they are actually eating Infusoria. So apart from adding beauty to the tank, plants can also be a source of food.

The Bottom Line On Infusoria for Betta Fry

So Infusoria is a form of bacteria that can be used as the feed of newly born Betta fry. I hope through this article most of your queries would be resolved. Now you have a clear idea of how to culture infusoria at home, what is the procedure to feed the Betta with it, and also the benefits of feeding infusoria to your betta fry. Another thing that is of prime importance is that after 1 week of age, Infusoria can be used as a snack or a supplement but it cannot be considered the complete diet of the betta. This was all you needed to know about Infusoria, I would suggest that you do a test run before your betta fry hatch so that there is no problem on the big day. Betta fry is a tiny creature and a food option like infusoria is indeed a blessing. So this was all for today, may you make the best infusoria jars, and may your betta fries enjoy them thoroughly. Till next time, happy fishkeeping folks!