:tropicalfish:Has anyone had any success growing brine shrimp from one of those little kits that they sell for $10 in the big petstores? I followed it as written, and after a couple of days got enough for one feeding, and that was it! The packet of eggs and salt said to keep the water warm,the instructions on t:goldfish::goldfish::goldfish:he container thing did not, but I don't see how. I would love to treat my fish to some live food, but I don't want a big,smelly operation going on in my living room, as I only have a 20 gallon tank. Advice anyone?
brine shrimp
- Thread starter spottea
- Start date
I've been feeding mine Instant baby brine shrimp. It comes in a bottle, made by Ocean Nutrition, costs about $10 for a small bottle. Needs to be refrigerated after you open it. Good luck.
gmh-
Scuds, aka sideswimmers, are freshwater amphipods. They look kind of like small shrimp, but without any pincers or fin-like uropods. Most species are less than an inch in length. They are found in all kinds of aquatic ecosystems, but I find them most abundant in vegetated swamps, and in woodland pools with leaf-pack bottoms. There are a number of genera, but Gammarus is the best known; many people use "gammarus" as a catch-all name for all scuds.
Breeding scuds is incredibly easy. It may take a few months for them to really get started, but they will soon begin cranking out young like there's no tomorrow.
The very easiest way to raise them is in a large tub or tank; I have a colony going in a concrete basin in an unheated greenhouse with about 60 gallons of water and a little gravel and driftwood in it. There is no aeration, no filtration, and I never perform water changes; I just toss in a bit of fish food or dead vegetation now and again (be sparing so as not to foul the water). This colony produces scuds and Ceriodaphnia dubia in absurd quantities, especially in the warmer months; production drops a bit in the winter. I like keeping cladocerans (e.g. Ceriodaphnia or Daphnia species) with them, because a) it kills two birds with one stone, and b) the cladocerans keep the water column cleaner and clear up the inevitable attacks of green water.
If you don't have a big container you can use, you can also raise them in smaller containers, such as 5-gallon buckets, smaller rubbermaid tubs, or aquaria if you happen to have a couple spare ones. Small colonies are more prone to crashing, so it's best to keep more than one going at any time. Water quality also requires a bit more attention; an air stone or sponge filter is helpful. Avoid power filtration. Occasional water changes are also needed; just put a brine shrimp net over the siphon to prevent unneccesary losses.
Scuds are generalized scavengers and biofilm grazers. They will happily feed on dead vegetation, rotten wood, algae, unbleached paper towels, etc. The more structure you can give them, the better; they do swim, but they spend most of their time walking or just clinging. The structure also gives the biofilms more places to grow.
I add a healthy handful of scuds to every new tank when I set it up. Almost any predatory fish or amphibian will eat appropriately-sized scuds, and they often persist in the tank a long time by hiding in the interstices of the gravel. Besides providing fish treats, they also help keep the tank clean by gobbling uneaten fish food, mulm, etc.
Good luck!
Scuds, aka sideswimmers, are freshwater amphipods. They look kind of like small shrimp, but without any pincers or fin-like uropods. Most species are less than an inch in length. They are found in all kinds of aquatic ecosystems, but I find them most abundant in vegetated swamps, and in woodland pools with leaf-pack bottoms. There are a number of genera, but Gammarus is the best known; many people use "gammarus" as a catch-all name for all scuds.
Breeding scuds is incredibly easy. It may take a few months for them to really get started, but they will soon begin cranking out young like there's no tomorrow.
The very easiest way to raise them is in a large tub or tank; I have a colony going in a concrete basin in an unheated greenhouse with about 60 gallons of water and a little gravel and driftwood in it. There is no aeration, no filtration, and I never perform water changes; I just toss in a bit of fish food or dead vegetation now and again (be sparing so as not to foul the water). This colony produces scuds and Ceriodaphnia dubia in absurd quantities, especially in the warmer months; production drops a bit in the winter. I like keeping cladocerans (e.g. Ceriodaphnia or Daphnia species) with them, because a) it kills two birds with one stone, and b) the cladocerans keep the water column cleaner and clear up the inevitable attacks of green water.
If you don't have a big container you can use, you can also raise them in smaller containers, such as 5-gallon buckets, smaller rubbermaid tubs, or aquaria if you happen to have a couple spare ones. Small colonies are more prone to crashing, so it's best to keep more than one going at any time. Water quality also requires a bit more attention; an air stone or sponge filter is helpful. Avoid power filtration. Occasional water changes are also needed; just put a brine shrimp net over the siphon to prevent unneccesary losses.
Scuds are generalized scavengers and biofilm grazers. They will happily feed on dead vegetation, rotten wood, algae, unbleached paper towels, etc. The more structure you can give them, the better; they do swim, but they spend most of their time walking or just clinging. The structure also gives the biofilms more places to grow.
I add a healthy handful of scuds to every new tank when I set it up. Almost any predatory fish or amphibian will eat appropriately-sized scuds, and they often persist in the tank a long time by hiding in the interstices of the gravel. Besides providing fish treats, they also help keep the tank clean by gobbling uneaten fish food, mulm, etc.
Good luck!
brine shrimp are only good right after you hatch them when they have the yoke sack still. scuds drive me crazy in my shrimp tanks nothing in there to eat them. lol
spottea:
I would not do that one in my living room.
Frozen BBS or BS are way to inexpensive compared to dealing with your wife/husband/significant other due the overwhelming odor although it occurs very rarely when one slobbers up.
Folks: I have not heard of skuds until this thread.
I hope that someone has some experience here which can save me a bunch of grief.
In June PetCo will have a $1/G sale and I anticipate purchasing a 50G.
I will set this tank up on the back porch such that it will receive the morning sunlight and be shaded from the evening sunlight.
The minimum nighttime temperatures in West Texas during the summer vary yearly but are typically like 68F.
I am already producing green water in gallon milk jugs on the back porch.
As yall can tell what I am after is generating and sustaining a brine shrimp tank.
Please note that I have several tins of various harvesters of brine shrimp eggs in the garage.
I am aware of the salinity and temperature requirements for hatching brine shrimp.
1) What else should I be doing to hatch the shrimp in this environment and grow the shrimp into production adults?
2) How do I harvest the juvis. Where I am struggling here is that a fine net will harvest all sizes of shrimp and a coarse net will harvest the breeders.
Another question:
I raise red wiggler worms and my fishies very much enjoy them (I also enjoy the vericompost).
Instead of messing with the brine shrimp should I get into growing Micro Worms?
TR
I would not do that one in my living room.
Frozen BBS or BS are way to inexpensive compared to dealing with your wife/husband/significant other due the overwhelming odor although it occurs very rarely when one slobbers up.
Folks: I have not heard of skuds until this thread.
I hope that someone has some experience here which can save me a bunch of grief.
In June PetCo will have a $1/G sale and I anticipate purchasing a 50G.
I will set this tank up on the back porch such that it will receive the morning sunlight and be shaded from the evening sunlight.
The minimum nighttime temperatures in West Texas during the summer vary yearly but are typically like 68F.
I am already producing green water in gallon milk jugs on the back porch.
As yall can tell what I am after is generating and sustaining a brine shrimp tank.
Please note that I have several tins of various harvesters of brine shrimp eggs in the garage.
I am aware of the salinity and temperature requirements for hatching brine shrimp.
1) What else should I be doing to hatch the shrimp in this environment and grow the shrimp into production adults?
2) How do I harvest the juvis. Where I am struggling here is that a fine net will harvest all sizes of shrimp and a coarse net will harvest the breeders.
Another question:
I raise red wiggler worms and my fishies very much enjoy them (I also enjoy the vericompost).
Instead of messing with the brine shrimp should I get into growing Micro Worms?
TR
