Tilapia feed naturally on phytoplankton and detritus. In aquaculture, tilapia are regarded as opportunistic omnivores and herbivores, just like the world’s principal farmed livestock. See: Beveridge, Malcolm, and D. Baird. 2000. Diet, Feeding and Physiology. In Tilapias: Biology and Exploitation, edited by Malcolm Beveridge and Brendan McAndrew. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. p. 59–87