Seed Shrimp

[skipjacktunafish]

Not sure where to put this really apologies if it it is in the wrong section

About two months ago we bought a triop kit and grew a couple of Triops and fairy shrimps as well as daphnia and seed shrimps. The triops are now dead (well one is the other is on his last legs) and the shrimps died a while back but we have hundreds of obviously breeding seed shrimps & Daphnia left in one of the tanks. I considered drying them out as in nature but felt so guilty i refilled it before it got too low. I wondered if it would be possible to put them in the fish tank instead and hope, perhaps, the fish eat them? I don't think it is quite as cruel as intentionally killing them off. I am worried that either they may be poisonous or that the fish won't eat them and they will end up breeding to uncontrollable amounts in that tank

Cheers, Clare

 

[Invader Xan]

You've inadvertantly got lucky, I think. If I were you, I'd try and keep them alive and feed them to your fish from time to time.

Both daphnia and ostracods (seed shrimp) will happily form a stable colony in any fresh water, and can make a good supplement to your fish's diet. A pinch of java moss or something similar will ensure they stay healthy and full of nutrients.

Alternatively, if you're going to let the tank go dry, first put it somewhere cool and dark. This effectively simulates autumn and will cause the daphnia to form egg cases (epiphia) instead of giving birth to baby daphnia. I assume ostracods do something similar. Then, after it's dry, collect the substrate together, and you'll have an instant daphnia colony whenever you want!

Or, if you genuinely don't have the space or time, you can just put them in your fish tank. Even if they don't get fitered, they won't last long.

 

[skipjacktunafish]

Oh i forgot about the filter,lol.

I didn't think of giving them a few at a time. The shrimp/daphnia are breeding like crazy in their tank, i add algae water every now and again to feed them (shrimps/daphnia) and they have a plant, stones & sand in there too. Where can i get java moss from? I already have a spare tank full of dried eggs that i am not really wanting to hatch out in the near future so will keep their tank going until they either stop breeding or get scoffed.

Cheers for your advice
Clare

 

[Invader Xan]

I got my java moss from the Buy Sell & Swap section of this forum!

If you want to avoid them being filtered, a piece of sponge or some cheese cloth over the filter intake should do the trick. And I wouldn't worry about them breeding too much. Eventually, the population will start to drop due to overcrowding. Actually, some people keep a daphnia culture solely to provide some food for their fish. These people often recommend that you cull the population regularly (by giving them to your fish) to keep them breeding at a good rate.

In case you're interested, daphnia breed so quickly, because just like aphids, they can produce asexually. In fact, in the summertime, daphnia are born with eggs already inside them. Males aren't even produced until it gets colder and the animals need to lay eggs. In short, don't expect them to stop breeding. Keep them warm, and give them enough food and a daphnia colony can carry on pretty much indefinitely.

 

[Liam]

I have loads of seed shrimp in a shrimp tank, I feed them to my fish, just float a bit of cucumber they swarm all over it and then I net them out, the fish love them the population recovers fast with all the veg fed to the dwarf shrimp. They seem to be a sign of good water quality if their population goes down fast the water needs checking. Daphnia I culture outside in tubs, I put in the odd banana skin and that seems to keep the population going, they filter feed so they need micro food in the water.

 

[skipjacktunafish]

Unfortunately i accidently knocked the poor devils out of the kitchen window yesterday, I lost most of them, however i put some water in and there was about 60 swimming about this morning including a couple of adults who were probably hiding in the sand, and a couple of Daphnia survived. Hopefully they will build up again - those ones started from a just a scoopful. I'll add a scoop from the dried out tank i have to boost them up a bit.

I didn't know that it was a sign of good water that they populate. I was going to go and collect some lake or river water to stagnate for them as they seem to like the greener water. I do feed them algae water now and again but thats all, but i guess if i am going to feed them to the fish i should consider their diets a bit more. Will go and find that java moss ad

Thanks for the tips on keeping the Daphnia too

 

[Mikaila31]

For some strange reason I always get a good sized colony of seed shrimp in my 15gal quarintine tank if I let it sit for a couple of months with no fish in it. I always found this weird .

cheers,
Mikaila31

 

[showjyr]

I ordered some daphnia a couple of days ago but i would also like to get some seed shrimp. I can't seem to find them anywhere on the net and was hoping to get enough to start a population. Any help would be appreciated