• 8.0% crude protein as fed - roughly 60% more than plain frozen bloodworm, which is what a growing carnivorous cichlid actually needs.
• Five named ingredients - mysis, fish meat, bloodworms, krill superba and artemia, with no unnamed fillers or derivatives in the declaration.
• Krill superba in the mix - Antarctic krill is the trade's standard carotenoid source for reds and oranges.
• Mixed particle sizes - mysis and krill give bulk for a large cichlid, artemia and bloodworm give something for smaller tankmates.
• Whole-prey base - closer to what a predatory cichlid hunts than a pressed pellet.
• Blister cubes - portions to a single fish, which matters when one Oscar eats and three tankmates do not.
• 88% moisture - a wet food, so compare the protein figure against other frozen foods and never against a dry pellet.

All three are as-fed figures on Ocean Nutrition's own published analyses, so they are directly comparable with each other. None of them is comparable with the percentage on a dry pellet tub.

Full ingredient declaration

Reproduced exactly as Ocean Nutrition publishes it: Mysis, fish meat, bloodworms, krill superba, artemia.

Every component is a named whole organism or whole fish meat - there are no derivatives, binders, colours or preservatives in the declaration, and no ethoxyquin, BHA or BHT. Krill superba is Euphausia superba, the Antarctic krill; artemia is brine shrimp; mysis is a small shrimp-like crustacean; bloodworms are midge larvae.

The declaration contains fish, crustacean and insect material. Ocean Nutrition does not add vitamins or minerals to this blend, which is why it belongs in a rotation rather than on its own.

Guaranteed analysis

Ocean Nutrition does not publish a crude fibre figure for Cichlid Mix, so none is shown here rather than estimated. The absence is consistent with an all-animal blend - there is very little plant matter in it to produce fibre.

Push out the cubes you need into a small container and let them defrost without water, at room temperature, for at least 10 to 15 minutes.

Feed two to five times a day, offering only the amount the fish clear within five minutes. Large cichlids will happily eat well past that point, which is how most of them end up overweight.

Return the blister to the freezer straight away and never refreeze a thawed cube.

Straining the thawed cube through a fine net before feeding keeps the pack liquid out of the water. Cichlid tanks are usually heavily stocked already, so there is little reason to add dissolved nutrients on top.

Suitable for

• Central and South American cichlids - Oscars, severums, firemouths, convicts, Jack Dempseys and green terrors
• Angelfish, discus and Apistogramma and other dwarf cichlids
• Tanganyikan carnivores and micropredators - Neolamprologus, Julidochromis, Altolamprologus and Lamprologus
• Peacocks (Aulonocara) and other Malawi haps, which hunt invertebrates rather than graze algae
• Conditioning breeding pairs of carnivorous cichlids
• Large predatory community fish sharing the tank, such as datnoids and larger catfish

Not suitable for

• Mbuna and other Malawi algae grazers - Pseudotropheus, Labidochromis, Metriaclima and similar have a long gut adapted to aufwuchs, the algae film on rock. Keepers of these fish generally avoid animal-protein-heavy foods, and digestive problems in mbuna are commonly attributed to exactly this kind of diet
• Tropheus - the same reasoning applies more strictly again; these are specialist grazers and a spirulina-based diet is the standard approach
• Other strict herbivores - plecos, silver dollars and marine tangs
• Marine aquariums - this is a freshwater blend; Ocean Nutrition's marine formulas are the right fit there
• Use as a sole diet - no vitamins or minerals are added, so rotate it with a fortified staple
• Fry, which cannot handle the mysis and krill particle sizes

If you keep a mixed Malawi tank with both haps and mbuna, feed to the mbuna's requirements rather than the haps'. The grazers are the ones a rich diet causes problems for, and they will not politely decline it.

• Frozen Whole Krill Superba 100g - whole krill for larger cichlids that want something to bite into.
• Frozen Mysis Flat 454g - bulk mysis if the cichlid tank is the main tank in the house.
• Frozen Bloodworm Spirulina Garlic 100g - a lighter frozen feed for the days between protein meals.
• Ocean Nutrition Formula Two Flakes 34g - a herbivore flake, and the food to lead with if the tank holds mbuna.
• Frozen Spinach 100g - plant matter for a mixed African tank.

Aquarium foods carry no manufacturer warranty period. Your rights under the Australian Consumer Law apply in full and sit in addition to anything a manufacturer offers, including the right to a remedy where a product is not of acceptable quality on arrival.

This is a frozen product and must stay frozen until it is fed, so it is handled as a cold-chain item rather than a standard ambient parcel. Frozen stock cannot travel by ordinary parcel post; check the delivery options available for frozen goods at checkout before ordering.

What is in Ocean Nutrition Frozen Cichlid Mix?

The declared composition is mysis, fish meat, bloodworms, krill superba and artemia - five named whole ingredients with no derivatives, binders or preservatives. The published analysis is 8.0% crude protein, 1.0% crude fat, 1.5% ash and 88.0% moisture as fed.

Can I feed this to mbuna?

It is not the right food for them. Mbuna are algae grazers with a digestive tract built for aufwuchs, and an all-animal blend at 8% protein as fed runs against that. Digestive problems in mbuna are widely attributed to protein-rich diets, so a spirulina-based flake or pellet is the safer staple and this blend is better kept for haps, peacocks and American cichlids.

Is 8% protein high or low?

High, for a frozen food. It is the strongest of Ocean Nutrition's frozen singles - well above bloodworm at 4.9% and daphnia at 2.3% - because frozen foods are mostly water. It is not comparable with the 40%-plus figure on a dry cichlid pellet, which is measured without that water.

Will it colour up my cichlids?

Krill superba is the ingredient to look at. Antarctic krill carries astaxanthin, the carotenoid used across the trade to support reds and oranges, and it is a named component of this blend. How much difference it makes depends on the species and the rest of the diet.

Does it need to be thawed?

Yes. Ten to fifteen minutes without water at room temperature lets the cube separate so the different particle sizes spread through the tank. A frozen cube dropped in whole is usually claimed by the largest fish before anything else gets near it.

Can this be the only food I feed?

No. Ocean Nutrition adds no vitamins or minerals to this blend, so it is a component of a diet rather than a complete one. Feed it two or three times a week alongside a fortified flake or pellet appropriate to the species you keep.