Artemia spp. are a common live feed in aquaculture. While feeding Artemia cysts can be convenient due to the long shelf life and the short time necessary for hatching and preparation, other issues remain. Cost and availability can vary significantly based on supply or lack thereof; this variability cause s fluctuations in production expenses. In recent years, microparticulate feeds have gained popularity due to availability, cost, enhanced nutritional profiles, and incremental size ranges appropriate for a variety of mouth gape sizes. However, concern s persist regarding larval feeding rate s in delicate nursery systems. Aside from degrading water quality, uneaten feeds represent wasted money. M icroparticulate feeds need to be recognized by larvae and effectively ingested to provide a cost advantage over Artemia nauplii . Poor feeding performance with microparticulate feeds may be due to the absence of visual or olfactory cues inherent to live prey organisms. To better characterize larval feeding incidence of microparticulate diets , a series of trials were conducted with the freshwater ornamental species Betta splendens , evaluating three feed attractants (alanine, betaine, and tryptophan) . Feed attract ants were top-dressed onto commercially available microparticulate diets at three concentrations (0.25%, 0.5%, 1.0% ) and fed over the course of a 14-day experiment. At the end of the experimental period s urvival, standard length, and weight were recorded. Samples were also preserved for analysis of digestive enzymes and RNA /DNA ratios as a proxy for larval quality. Results from these experiments will provide insights into the efficacy of amino acid use as feed attractants in larviculture scenarios. Subsequent economic analyse s will be performed to determine cost effectiveness at current price points of Artemia, microparticulate feeds, and amino acids given realized gains in survival and growth. This information will ultimately be used to revise and optimize larval production protocols for B. splendens .