Freshwater Live Food Started Cultures

[BigTom]

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone cultured live foods that would be suitable for seeding a (semi) self-sustaining setup. Things that will be able to survive and reproduce within a planted freshwater aquarium. I'm thinking Daphnia moina (I can get pulex from work), mexican gammarus, California blackworm, cyclops, rotifers, planaria, that kind of thing. They'll be a food source for either a Parosphomenus or Badis species tank.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[frothhelmet]

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone cultured live foods that would be suitable for seeding a (semi) self-sustaining setup. Things that will be able to survive and reproduce within a planted freshwater aquarium. I'm thinking Daphnia moina (I can get pulex from work), mexican gammarus, California blackworm, cyclops, rotifers, planaria, that kind of thing. They'll be a food source for either a Parosphomenus or Badis species tank.

Cheers,
Tom

I successfully kept gammarus, copepods, ostracods (seed shrimp) as a live food source in the aquarium before. You can't keep daphnia if you have any sort of water flow as they just die/disappear - though a lightly bubbling sponge filter might work. Blackworms will also work, I have read about people growing them successfully in their gravel and the fish love them. I am trying tubfiex right now in a shrimp only tank. Planaria are ugly and most fish dont eat them, so I just flubendazole them. Same for hydra. Dont forget that fish love shrimp babies, so a cheap fast breeding shrimp species can make a nice addition as well.