# Tilapia feeding, My question about duckweed answered



## garryc (Jan 21, 2006)

I went to the pond this late morning. I noticed that the duckweed seems to be reducing, but I'm seeing chara. I watched in one corner and saw tilapia coming up to it, then it looked as if they grabbed some and swam back to deeper water. Do tilapia feed like that typically? Or were they doing that because I was standing there?

The chara is growing along a band in the pond right now. As I walked along the bank I saw a good number of swirls, tilapia or something else I'd say. 

I've done a good bit of reading, looking at studies. Tilapia do in fact eat duckweed, but in the mono species tank. Tilapia were offered filamentous algae and had a growth rate of 1.8. They were fed chara and had a growth rate of 1.6. With duckweed it was all the way up to 1.3. When offered all three they ate the chara first, the filamentous algae second and the duckweed last. The thing is, they ate them almost completely in that order. They didn't move to a different plant until all of one was gone. 

I don't see it as an issue. If they eat one plant than it reduces the nutrient load in the pond and must effect the others. Who cares which form they eat, the idea is to reduce the nutrients and turn them into fish weight.


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## [email protected] (Dec 22, 2006)

Maybe they're building nests with the chara


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## garryc (Jan 21, 2006)

[email protected] said:


> Maybe they're building nests with the chara


LOL, yeah, right. What I found surprising is how fast these tilapia swim. No wonder they are so good at avoiding predation.


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## [email protected] (Dec 22, 2006)

They fight similar to bluegill


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## garryc (Jan 21, 2006)

I have confirmed that the Tilapia are in fact eating duckweed. I watched them last night grazing on it. Now it may be that because the duckweed is mixed with a little fine filamentous algae, but they are eating it. There is also a great deal of activity at the surface at night, more than I've ever seen before.


Also, the areas I was seeing chara growing is stripped clean.


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## keith_r (Jun 18, 2010)

i've got 10 blue tilapia in a pool with a bunch of yp... the tilapia definitely eat the duckweed (free food!)

i've got 50 nile tilapia, but they're a bit small to eat the dw in their tank (about 1")


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## LoweBoat (Apr 14, 2004)

garryc said:


> There is also a great deal of activity at the surface at night, more than I've ever seen before.


Maybe it is Nessie the Loch Nest Monster.


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