feeding elephant noses and black ghost knife

Question
tank has been set up for 3 months
46 gal bow
ph 7    no ammonia or nitrite
fish:  
several diamond tetras, two large angels, 2 pictus, 2 cuckoos, 1 ocelitus, 2 small clown loaches, 1 small botia, 3 young red rainbows, 1 Tricolor shark, 3 Irridecent sharks, 5 young rams, 6 emporor tetras, 3 elephant nose(EN), and 1 black ghost knife(BG).

I am in the process of cycling another 40 gal tank and most of the tetras, both angels, and the 5 rams will eventually go in the new tank in a couple of weeks.  This tank will be primarily Angels.
I believe that the feeding frenzy is a bit too much for the EN's.  They really didn't seem to want to get into the action.  The fellow at the shop said that they were eating flakes.  I tried that and I tried pellets as well to no avail.  The BG didn't bother to come out at all.  He likes the dark upper part of coliseum ruin that have in there.  I just got them yesterday and they have not eaten.  The EN's were in a large tank with several species but they were larger fish and many ENs.  The BG was in there too,  the only one.
All 4 fish, particularly the ENs look quite content and happy in the tank.

I know that they are supposed to be nocturnal but you would never tell.  They are quite active and playful during the day, even my BG is somewhat visibile.  So they should be fed at night, but the problem is that I have quite a few bottom dwellers that are pretty active at night as well.  How can I ensure that these 4 fish will get any food?  
If I put a jar in there with food, I am pretty certain that the others will get to it before these 4 will.  I have a 20 gal (hospital tank) that I was thinking about setting up just for these 4 but ultimately this would only be a temporary fix, eventually they will have to go back into one of the main tanks.  
I am going ot try live food tomorrow night but I don't see how they are going to get to them before the others if they continue their shy ways. In efforts to try to get food to these 4, I actually overfed the tank tonight just trying to strategically place food in there but was met with disappointment.
I don't have much hair left on my head, and I don't want to lose the little I have left over these 4 great fish...What do you suggest?
I am willing to do anything that I can to keep and maintain these fine fish...they instantly became my favorites.  Anything short of starting a third tank, that is!
Can you help?  I would really appreciate it.
Thanks, Luis.

Answer
Hi Luis;

Wow. I am not sure where to start. Actually, the least of your problems here is what the ghost and elephant nose are going to eat. The tank is grossly overstocked. All these fish will grow and some will be getting big enough to eat some of the others. Even if you move some of them as you have planned they will still be overcrowded. Your tank can only handle 46 inches of adult sized fish. I know many hobbyists are told that 'fish only grow to the size of the tank' but this is a myth. It is a very cruel myth too. Your fish will hurt themselves and each other in their frustration to gain more space. I think this is why your ghost and elephant nose are not eating and are staying out during the day. They are overwhelmed by the population and are starving to death. They both also need to eat at night. The way to do this is by putting their favorite foods in after the lights go out. Use a glass bowl to feed tubifex, bloodworms and shrimp so they don't go into the gravel. I don't believe for a minute that the elephant ever ate flakes. He may have nosed them in desperation, but he can't live on a few tiny nibbles of a unsuitable food. I think the fish store person may be inexperienced and doesn't know how to tell if a fish is actually eating. If these two don't eat soon you may have to try baby guppies. Put a few in at night for them to find.

Here is a listing of the fish you have and what their adult sizes will eventually be for each fish according to Fishprofiles.com and Mongabay.com;

***several diamond tetras - 2" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/diamond.xml
***two large angels - 6" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/angelfish.xml
***2 pictus - 4" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/pictus.xml
***2 cuckoos - not sure what it is, could it be this fish; http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/Fishindx/syno-mul.htm
***1 ocelitus - not sure what it is, could it be this fish; http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/l_ocellatus.php
***2 small clown loaches - 11" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/clownloach.xml
***1 small botia - There are several, look here; http://www.fishprofiles.com/profiles/fw/category.asp?id=Catfish%20and%20Bottom%2...
***3 young red rainbows - 4.5" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/redrainbowfish.xml
***1 Tricolor shark - 13" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/silvershark.xml
***3 Irridecent sharks - http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/iridescentshark.xml
***5 young rams - 2" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/blueram.xml OR http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/bolivian.xml
***6 emporor tetras, 2" http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/emperor.xml
***3 elephant nose(EN) - 9" http://www.mongabay.com/fish/mormyridae.htm
***1 black ghost knife(BG) - 20" http://www.allthingsknife.net/index.php?showtopic=37

You really need to reconsider the irridescents and the tricolor. They will outgrow the tanks you have within a few months and begin eating your other smaller fish. In my opinion irridescents should not be sold at all due to their eventual size. They are farmed in their native country for food and just get too big for home aquariums.

The pictus and black ghost will eat your smaller fish as they grow too. They are both carnivores and their mouths are bigger than they seem.

To keep your fish alive until you can decide what to do, faithfully make 25% water changes every week. Vacuum the gravel every couple of weeks and don't overfeed.

I hope you can find homes for some of your fish before tragedy strikes.......

Followups Welcome

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins

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