Hatching Baby Brine Shrimp Straight into the Tank for Anthias

[CStrickland]

Hi!
I've got some anthias, and they have settled in pretty well. I have an auto-feeder with a ring on it that gives 2 small portions of pellets a day, my other fish don't seem to see the small nls pellets so the anthias get that snack to themselves. I feed blender mush or shaved clams 2x a day with the return shut off. A couple times a week I also dip into my white worm culture for a treat.

The anthias go bonkers for the white worms! I think they aren't very nutritious, but certainly contribute to the fish's joie de vivre. Have you guys used the brine shrimp hatchers that stick on the wall of the tank? I thought baby brine shrimp might swim around like the worms do, but be more nutritious.

I don't mean like paulb does his down on the sand. This style they would swim themselves right into the water column as they hatch. And hopefully be eaten before they reach the overflow. The ones I've seen are like 2 compartments where the eggs get tossed around in the first, and then when they hatch they swim into the other and through a fish-proof screen into the tank - toward the lights. Like this https://www.amazon.com/KollerCraft-Feeder-Shrimp-Hatchery-Aquariums/dp/B002DVREP8

I'm probs not the first person to wonder about this. But I didn't get much from Google.

 

[dweber618]

tagging along...I might want to start up a BBS hatch station in the near future.

 

[Rybren]

PaulB also has a BBS breeder/feeder that he uses when he goes on vacation. It adds eggs on a regular basis and they hatch in tank. You may want to hit him up for details.

 

[CStrickland]

PaulB also has a BBS breeder/feeder that he uses when he goes on vacation. It adds eggs on a regular basis and they hatch in tank. You may want to hit him up for details.

Good call! I found this http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f...-2.html#/forumsite/21363/topics/221782?page=1 and got some good ideas.

 

[ca1ore]

Unless you're dealing with the almost impossible feeders like Tuka, not sure the effort is really warranted. Of course, maybe you really just want to try it. The problem with the harder anthias species, but short of the impossible ones, is getting them enough food. They generally aren't all that picky with things like brine or mysis, but they often don't compete well with the other fish.

 

[shifty51008]

I have used that BBS hatchery in the past and it does work very well IMO. but I do agree with ca1ore your best bet would be to get a auto feeder than can feed 4 or more times a day and fill it with a good mix of foods and then throw in a feeding of frozen everyday. I have used this method with all my anthsis and I haven't had one that wouldn't eat.

 

[davocean]

I agree also w/ Ca1ore, sometimes you actually end up just making them more finicky

 

[CStrickland]

I think they are getting plenty of food. I'd say each gets about 4 small nls pellets twice a day and as much as they want of the finer pieces of blendermush twice a day. I was just considering it because of how wild they go for the white worms. They look like such serious little predators wiggling all over the place and attacking ferociously.

So while they might "enjoy" the hatcher, I'll probably put it on the back burner for now. I've got plenty of other projects to tinker with and I definitely don't want to make them more picky. I would like to add more live, nutrient dense food to the tank eventually. But there's no way I'm doing black worms in a one-bedroom apartment, and even the bbs hatcher where you add them everyday seems like more trouble than I need right now.

 

[C.Eymann]

Definitely agree with it can make them more finicky, plus fresh hatched brine shrimp aren't terribly nutritious, they are getting much more nutrition from those ULS pellets, I especially like soaking them in selcon as pellets are the ideal delivery method for vitamin supplements.

Took a while to get my anthias to take to pellets, they kept spitting them out, would only eat grated PE for the first few months.

 

[davocean]

It really does depend on type of anthias, lyretails are usually pretty quick to adapt to NLS pellets which are great for nutritional value, and also because you can load those into an auto feeder which makes multiple daily feedings so easy, and I've seen other species of anthia that would normally be picky adapt as well seeing lyre's eating them.

 

[C.Eymann]

My lyertails are on the pellets successfully, I fattened them up a bit as the were pretty lean when I got them, then once out of quarantine and in the tank I slowly got them to start accepting both, just can take time in some cases.

 

[photoblepharon]

Don't hatch naups in your tank. Really gross. There is a reason the water is discarded and they get a 100% "water change" before being fed out.