brianjfinn Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 I've heard some say that lettuce can be used in place of algae or nori sheets to feed an urchin. Is this true? I've seen it done with some freshwater fish, but only in s##t holes like Petsmart, so I don't think that counts.
newowner Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 I am not sure about urchins, but I put different types of lettuce in my tank daily for my tang and foxface. They absolutely love it and peck at it all day long! I get home and all that is left is the veins of the leaf. They will even eat the veins if I do not put a couple pieces in the tank. I have a 75 gallon, so I get the big romaine lettuce hearts and put 2 pieces in. However, these fish are also fed a variety of meaty foods, alternating between mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, microcrabs and flake food. The owner of my LFS told me to put lettuce in the tank versus buying the seaweed packages that he sells. Now that I have my big tank with the sump, I do supplement everyonce in a while with hunks of cheato that I got from the sump and they do like that. However, I can not do that to much as I do not have an overgrowth of that yet.
Urchinhead Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 I've heard some say that lettuce can be used in place of algae or nori sheets to feed an urchin. Is this true? I've seen it done with some freshwater fish, but only in s##t holes like Petsmart, so I don't think that counts. Lettuce will work to feed an urchin. So will spinach. But seaweed aka nori is closest to what they get in the wild. The other thing you have to worry about with spinach and lettuce is that they may be dosed with fertilizers that contain phosphates and nitrites which could leach into your tank. Same with some kinds of nori you buy. Best bet is to hope that the nutritional information on the back of the nori package is accurate or buy the stuff they sell for 10 times the price at your lfs for feeding tangs and triggers(?). Nuts! I think Spanko is right and I am going to have to request a name change from Fishhead2 to Urchinhead! FH2
shiveley Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 lettuce has virtually no nutrient value...it's basically just roughage. So, while the urchin may eat it, he won't be getting much out of it.
Urchinhead Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 lettuce has virtually no nutrient value...it's basically just roughage. So, while the urchin may eat it, he won't be getting much out of it. Um... No. Not true. http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/recipes/spina...enutrition.html Nori is higher in protean, calories, iron, iodine, etc but there is caloric, nutritional, and mineral value in lettuce. FH2
justaguy2 Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 lettuce has virtually no nutrient value...it's basically just roughage. So, while the urchin may eat it, he won't be getting much out of it. I believe you may be thinking of Iceberg lettuce. That's the common, cheap lettuce at salad bars. Other greens tend to have more nutritional value.
shiveley Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 so, basically, you'd have to get them to each around 4X's as much lettuce in order to achieve the same results as feeding nori...doesn't sound like a very realistic alternative.
mavl666 Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 so, basically, you'd have to get them to each around 4X's as much lettuce in order to achieve the same results as feeding nori...doesn't sound like a very realistic alternative. You can get Nori at grocery stores. I paid $3.89 and it has lested almost 2 months and I still have a lot left.
justinl Posted December 13, 2007 Posted December 13, 2007 You can get Nori at grocery stores. I paid $3.89 and it has lested almost 2 months and I still have a lot left. i agree with mavl666. nori can be bought for so cheap that i dont see the point in feeding lettuce. people do it, but lettuce isnt a marine plant... so i really dont think its comparable to algae. if you got he grocery store route (which is advisable... it's the same stuff youd find at the lfs) make sure it's unseasoned.
CarmieJo Posted December 14, 2007 Posted December 14, 2007 Even if you feed romaine or spinach, both of which are a gazillion times more nutritious (for people too) than iceberg lettuce, you may not be providing the proper nutrition for your urchin. There could be trace elements in seaweed that sea critters need that are just not available in terrestrial food.
brianjfinn Posted December 16, 2007 Author Posted December 16, 2007 Sounds good. I think I'll go with the nori sheets. Thanks all!
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