Sea Monkey Help

[GuppyGirl20]

So I bought a sea monkey kick some time ago at Walmart. I followed the instructions to a tee and aerated everyday but when I put the food in on the fifth day they al died .... Or so I thought! I hadn't messed with their little tank arty because I've been busy and partly due to laziness. I walked over to open my blinds (the little tank is in the windowsill) and I saw movement! I looked closer and there is one adult, one that's almost an adult, and two babies. I have no idea how they've been surviving. I aerated the tank and put just a tiny bit if food in there. Are there any tips on how I can get these four to repopulate the tank? My mind is kind of blown right now that these have survived with at least two weeks (probably more) of me completely ignoring them.
 
 
 
Also what do brine shrimp eat? I've got the packet of food my see monkeys came with but the site tries to tell people that sea monkeys can only eat the special sea monkey food they sell but I know that's not true since people rise brine shrimp (and that's all sea monkeys are are brine shrimp).    

 

[bluesword23516]

Are they in salt water? 

 

[GuppyGirl20]

It's the water I originally had them in. All I've put in it is the packets it came with.

 

[bluesword23516]

I believe they need salt water to survive, what are the packets?

 

[GuppyGirl20]

I'm not sure exactly. When you buy a sea monkey kit it comes with three packets labeled 1, 2, and 3. It says 1 is everything you need to sea monkeys to live. You put that in the tank and wait 24 hours before adding packet 2 (which is the eggs with a catalyst for hatching (so either packet 1 or 2 has salt in it) and then packet 3 is the food.   And the instructions say to never have to add anything else to the tank. It says just used purified water to fill tank back up to the fill line once some water has evaporated. Other than that you're only suppose to feed them once a week and let the just do what they do. Hopefully now that I've started aerating the tank again it'll encourage breeding.

 

[bluesword23516]

Hhhmmm, I am not sure. What kind of tank are they in? Any filtration? 

 

[GuppyGirl20]

http/www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=13375973&KPID=13755286&mr:trackingCode=1C238E66-7315-E311-A497-90E2BA285E75&mr:referralID=NA&mr:filter=38524442686&camp=PLAPPCPID13755286&mr:ad=35201235886&mr:device=c&mr:match=&mr:adType=pla&cagpspn=plat_13755286&mr:keyword= This is how they are sold. There's no filtration or anything so I use a pipette to get oxygen into the water.

 

[DrRob]

Breeding brine shrimp is a fairly complex affair, they essentially eat algae if I understand things correctly and I've known of a few people trying to do it to any scale, with some success but a lot of crashes. How well you'll do with a small set up, only trying to raise a few, I don't know, but most of these sets are designed really at hatcheries.

 

[nic1]

Hiya,
I used to have sea monkeys almost 20 years ago now. They were sold at the toy shop I worked in, and they did quite well although I don't quite understand how as I was an irresponsible 16 year old... I only had them as I was seduced by hatching my own underwater creatures!
Like you they sat on my window sill for their entire life, and I only topped up the water when it evaporated, I guess they say leave the little tank by the window so it can grow algae which they eat... They eventually were thrown down the sink by my mother when I was out.... She thought it was a just crusty water stained jug with dirt in it!