biologists et al(phytoplankton)

[badgers]

I am going to start from the very begining so bare with me.
Corals/anemonies do not directly consume photoplankton.(?)the photoplankton fules the growth of zoo plankton.(?)
There have been discussions as to the most nutritious photo resulting in a mixture to provide balanced nutrition.
So what zooplankton is most consumable/nutritious to feed to the corals? I am considering setting up a culture tank for this zooplankton. I would then feed a mixture of the cryopastes to this select zooplankton.
If there are a few zooplankton spiecies then I could set up several culture tanks.
Where would someone find cultures of zooplankton?
I am rambling because I don't know what I am talking about can you help me?
thank you for your time and have a good day


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what did the fish say when it hit a concrete wall?
DAM!

 

[DougL]

badgers;
I am going to try the rotifer "thing". If you are interested, I'll share my pain.
At least I can use the cryopaste rather than keep a stable green water culture too.

Wish me luck.

DougL

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http://sites.netscape.net/douglxyzzy

 

[Biosystems]

Badgers:
I think as always Mr. Shimek said it best. But if I may add you can always go out to the coast in an unpolluted area at changing tides and use a plankton net to harvest fresh cultures (at the very high risk of harvesting many a parasite as well). These cultures are not very stable (over a couple of days) however so you would have to continuously harvest them.
Rotifer cultures are not very difficult to maintain, especially if you use the cryopastes to maintain them instead of algae cultures. But in my opinion the sand bed is the easiest of them all to maintain.


Tim

 

[badgers]

I am doing a deep sand bed in my tank, refugium, and sump.
where do you get rotifer cultures?
thank you for your replies and have a good day
DougL I feel your pain

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what did the fish say when it hit a concrete wall?
DAM!

 

[DougL]

There are several places to get rotifer culture. http://www.InlandAquatics.com/

Also Florida Aqua Farms. Sorry, couldn't find the URL

The culture is $10 for 1000 rotifer cysts.
The "S" strain is $20 per 1000 cysts.

HTH;

DougL

 

[Biosystems]

Badgers:
Florida Aqua farms will sell anything you could imagine that you would need including a good manual for plankton culture:
http://www.aquaculture-supply.com/

You can get some other supplies through companies that support (you will find them listed here) this URL:
http://www.seafarm.com./

Tim

 

[rshimek]

Well,

Some corals do consume phytoplankton, this is particularly evident in some of the most difficult of soft corals, the Dendronephtiids. Most corals with small polyps, - Acropora, Montipora, etc - appear to eat microplankton of any type. In nature this likely includes such things bacterial aggregates, some living zooplankton, and some phytoplankton.

In our tanks probably the best source of living microplankton is a well-set up and thriving sand bed. The animals in such a bed produce larvae and gametes which are continuously released into the water. Additionally, they produce bacteria aggregates which are liberated into the water as part of their feces.

About the only small zooplankton animala we can easily culture are baby brine shrimp, and they are MUCH larger than many of the micro animals fed on by reefs. Rotifers are also cultured, but their culturing is more difficutlt than that of brine shrimp. Nonetheless, rotifer cultures may be used.

Reef animals are adapted to a signficant flux of food blowing past them. In one island on the Great Barrier Reef the amount of food items flowing through a volume roughly equivalent to a 100 gallon aquarium was about 900,000 items per day - with a total weight of about 10 ounces. This means the average particle was tiny, weighing about 0.000011 ounces - far smaller than a baby brine shrimp, and smaller even than many rotifers.

So...

Nothing in this range is except rotifers is available for our culturing, and that may be your culture of choice.

To my mind, it is easier to maintain a sand bed.

Cheers, Ron

 

[badgers]

thanks for the links.
what is so special about the "S" strain of rotifers?

 

[DougL]

badgers;
I beleive the S strain is smaller, so that certain larval fish can eat them that can't eat regular rotifers.
I'm sure its mentioned in Hoff and Snell if you need me to look it up.

HTH;

DougL

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http://sites.netscape.net/douglxyzzy