My fat copperband butterfly

[Lance]

I've had mine for nearly two years. I got him from a fellow Canreefer. At the time he was only eating fresh shellfish. Eventually he took to Mysis. Now he will eat any meaty foods, but no pellets or flakes. I soak his food in Selcon 3x per week. I still give him a fresh clam now and then for a treat. I put the clam meat in a container with very small holes in it so that he can get his snout in to get the food but the other fish can't.

[daniella3d]

Are you only feeding it 3 times per week?

I started the Prazipro treatment on mine. He's fat now but I surely hope that treatment will not compromise the fish appetite.

Interesting, I treated in my frag tank and the prazipro did not kill any of the flatworm in my tank. Is that normal? I was hoping it would kill them but not sure if the product is active or not.

Originally Posted by Lance

I soak his food in Selcon 3x per week. I still give him a fresh clam now and then for a treat. I put the clam meat in a container with very small holes in it so that he can get his snout in to get the food but the other fish can't.

[Lance]

No, I meant I soak the food in Selcon 3x per week. I feed twice per day, every day. I feed my CBB: fresh clams, muscles, squid, mysis, enriched brine shrimp, Emerald Feast, Plankton from SF Bay. As I stated earlier he will only eat meaty foods; won't touch pellets or flakes.

[daniella3d]

Ok thanks, I will look into some of this food, especialy fresh clam.

I think it's not overdone to feed a copperband twice per day. Yours seem happy and fat.

Originally Posted by Lance

No, I meant I soak the food in Selcon 3x per week. I feed twice per day, every day. I feed my CBB: fresh clams, muscles, squid, mysis, enriched brine shrimp, Emerald Feast, Plankton from SF Bay. As I stated earlier he will only eat meaty foods; won't touch pellets or flakes.

[daniella3d]

My copperband loves the fresh oyster and mussles. He and the niger trigger finish it off in no time and the copperband gets a huge belly then. So with a diet of live white worms daily, PE mysis (which he only eats a few) and fresh shelfish every 2 days, he's fat and happy.

Interesting to see how the copperband push away the trigger when he comes near the oyster at first, then leave the place for the trigger. Good thing my niger trigger is a big pussy and not aggressive at all and wait until the copperband leave. In fact it is the niger trigger that showed the copperband that the thing in the shell was food! it is only after seing the trigger eating it that the copperband went for it.

[Jackie]

I notice my CBB stays active at night and seems never sleep.
It that why they don't live long?

[daniella3d]

no they don't live long sometimes because they are cought with cyanide and this slowly attack their liver and kidney and eventualy one of both organs fail. Copperband butterfly prefer lower light and they usualy hunt after the lights are out, especialy if there are moonlights. This is why I bought mine actualy, to eat the nasty amphipods that come out after dark and eat all my zoanthids.

If the copperband has not be poisoned by cyanide and its liver and kidney are good, it is well fed and eating well and fat, then it should live many years. I know someone how had one for nearly 7 years.

Many people think that their copperband is healthy but they are skinny with no fat pad at the top of the head and top of the body. They should be thick there. They should not be pinched at all but rather the opposite.

The guy where I bought my copperband from said the fish was eating like a pig. It was eating 3 to 4 PE mysis per day and that's what he called eating like a pig. The fish was very skinny and emanciated. Juging from my experience with mine, copperband butterfly eat A LOT! wow...almost as much as a trigger.

Originally Posted by Jackie

I notice my CBB stays active at night and seems never sleep.
It that why they don't live long?