Tigger pods
- Thread starter Capt56
- Start date
clownfreak
New member
Were they swimming around in the bottle? Also, you need to acclimate them, like anything you add. In a way they are really small shrimp. It is possible that they died from osmotic shock.
rssjsb
New member
Sometimes the bottle has been sitting at the LFS too long and they're all dead. They should be free-swimming when you swirl the bottle around.
That said, tiggerpods are a cool-water species that don't breed readily in tropical-temperature tanks, so adding them to your fuge in hopes that they'll breed and populate your tank is kind of futile. They're really better as a direct feed for fish like seahorses, pipes and (maybe) mandarins.
There are species of warm-water copepods that you can add to your refugium (tsibe, maybe?) with more success, but I've never tried it.
That said, tiggerpods are a cool-water species that don't breed readily in tropical-temperature tanks, so adding them to your fuge in hopes that they'll breed and populate your tank is kind of futile. They're really better as a direct feed for fish like seahorses, pipes and (maybe) mandarins.
There are species of warm-water copepods that you can add to your refugium (tsibe, maybe?) with more success, but I've never tried it.
Capt56
Member
That explains it. I should of thought about it before I bought it. That's why they were kept in the fridge. They were swimming, packaged on 3/28/11. Guess I won't be buying them any more.
clownfreak
New member
I disagree. Tigger pods tend to do well in a wide range of temperatures. I won't pretend like they explode in my tank and that I have more copepods than water, but the breed very readily in my culture. The culture is neglected, and room temperature (70-75*F) and I think they're doing great.
rssjsb
New member
Ok. I will say that most people keep their tanks in the 78-80 degree range, rather than room temperature, but you could be right. I still think that other types of pods are better suited to warm tanks.
clownfreak
New member
I have heard that other types of pods are better suited to our warmer water tanks. I can't consistently find pods in my tank so I'm just going off my room temperature culture. I guess it would be interesting to put a heater in the culture and see what happens. Do you know of any readily available, better suited copepods? I haven't seen any at my lfs but haven't really looked either.
BeanMachine
Active member
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1774739&highlight=tigger+pods
It seems they are bred at the Reef Nutrition facilities at 75-80 f...
I've seeded my tank a couple of times with them. I don't really see those types in my tank though but I do have lots others.
It seems they are bred at the Reef Nutrition facilities at 75-80 f...
I've seeded my tank a couple of times with them. I don't really see those types in my tank though but I do have lots others.
mscarpena
New member
http://www.reefnutrition.com/tigger_pods_care.html
Right from the horses mouth. They do just fine at normal reef tank temps. They can live in a wide range of conditions.
Right from the horses mouth. They do just fine at normal reef tank temps. They can live in a wide range of conditions.
seafarm
Premium Member
Tigger-Pods (Tigriopus californicus) will NOT grow well in your main display tank. They don't instinctively hide from fish, are very large easy to find, and they often starve in reef systems because there is not enough microalgae for them to feed on. They grow best in your refugium or simulated tide pool (a 9x13 cake pan works perfectly!).
Tigger-Pods commonly live in tide pools and range from Canada to Honduras, from very cold water to very warm water. They are definitely not just a "cold water species". Due to their wide temperature tolerance they can be stored in cold hibernation for up to 8 weeks, hence why they are kept in the refrigerator at your local fish store. Hibernation reduces their need for oxygen and food, and extends their lives.
Their optimal growing temperatures depends on where the broodstock were originally harvest. Our broodstock population was collected in California where tide pool temperatures can approach 100 F so they are acclimated to temperatures at or above reef system. We've been culturing them at 75-90 F for over 6 years.
.......................
Tigriopus californicus don't live in the ocean - they live in the warm splash zone pools up above the ocean. These pools are shallow and get quite warm during the day, some much warmer than reef systems. The following published scientific study shows that they live in temperatures ranging from 42 to 92 F:
http://journals.cambridge.org/actio...0713&fulltextType=RA&fileId=S0025315498000095
In these tide pools there are no predators so they don't have the instincts to hide in the rocks when fish come by. Since they don't hide they get eaten pretty quickly in display tanks. We recommend they be cultured in a sump or refugium where there are no predators. They can also be easily cultured in a separate system like a 9x13 cake pan.
The population of copepods in a reef system is often food limited by the amount of natural microalgae that the reef system produces each day. When additional pods are added the food requirements immediately goes up, especially when feeding very large copepods like Tigger-Pods. Unfortunately many people don't realize they need to supplement with microalgae so both the Tigger-Pods and the existing copepod population end up with a food shortage and quickly starve.
The analogy I use when I'm giving presentations is "If you have an acre of land that produces enough grass to support one cow but want to have lots of cows - what do you do? You add bales of hay and suddenly that 1 acre will support LOTS of cows".
Microalgae is like hay to your zooplankton. The more you add, the more zooplankton you will have. If you don't have enough, they starve and disappear.
Tigger-Pods commonly live in tide pools and range from Canada to Honduras, from very cold water to very warm water. They are definitely not just a "cold water species". Due to their wide temperature tolerance they can be stored in cold hibernation for up to 8 weeks, hence why they are kept in the refrigerator at your local fish store. Hibernation reduces their need for oxygen and food, and extends their lives.
Their optimal growing temperatures depends on where the broodstock were originally harvest. Our broodstock population was collected in California where tide pool temperatures can approach 100 F so they are acclimated to temperatures at or above reef system. We've been culturing them at 75-90 F for over 6 years.
.......................
Tigriopus californicus don't live in the ocean - they live in the warm splash zone pools up above the ocean. These pools are shallow and get quite warm during the day, some much warmer than reef systems. The following published scientific study shows that they live in temperatures ranging from 42 to 92 F:
http://journals.cambridge.org/actio...0713&fulltextType=RA&fileId=S0025315498000095
In these tide pools there are no predators so they don't have the instincts to hide in the rocks when fish come by. Since they don't hide they get eaten pretty quickly in display tanks. We recommend they be cultured in a sump or refugium where there are no predators. They can also be easily cultured in a separate system like a 9x13 cake pan.
The population of copepods in a reef system is often food limited by the amount of natural microalgae that the reef system produces each day. When additional pods are added the food requirements immediately goes up, especially when feeding very large copepods like Tigger-Pods. Unfortunately many people don't realize they need to supplement with microalgae so both the Tigger-Pods and the existing copepod population end up with a food shortage and quickly starve.
The analogy I use when I'm giving presentations is "If you have an acre of land that produces enough grass to support one cow but want to have lots of cows - what do you do? You add bales of hay and suddenly that 1 acre will support LOTS of cows".
Microalgae is like hay to your zooplankton. The more you add, the more zooplankton you will have. If you don't have enough, they starve and disappear.
rssjsb
New member
Ok, ok, I'm convinced, lol.
So it looks like the difference between culturing them in a separate tank and trying to get them to thrive in your refugium is that you can probably control their food source better in a separate system? You can probably also see better what's going on in there.
I've tried the "dump in the refugium and hope" method and never saw any of them again, but my method was hardly scientific. Since temp wasn't an issue, it sounds like it was a food issue (or maybe some non-fish something in the fuge was eating them).
Thanks for weighing in, Randy.
So it looks like the difference between culturing them in a separate tank and trying to get them to thrive in your refugium is that you can probably control their food source better in a separate system? You can probably also see better what's going on in there.
I've tried the "dump in the refugium and hope" method and never saw any of them again, but my method was hardly scientific. Since temp wasn't an issue, it sounds like it was a food issue (or maybe some non-fish something in the fuge was eating them).
Thanks for weighing in, Randy.
Alga Gen just released some warmer temperature pods. I've had the Tisbe for some time now culturing in a bucket with just a rigid airline tube pushing some bubbles in it. They like to eat dietrus (sp) so I toss in a little skimmate for a snack.
I've got a friend that cultures Tigger pods outdoors in 20 gallon plantainers the population explodes in the spring and fall when the weather is cooler.
I've got a friend that cultures Tigger pods outdoors in 20 gallon plantainers the population explodes in the spring and fall when the weather is cooler.
PoggiPJ
Premium Member
This is an interesting topic. I too, have tried putting them in my refugium. They survive well and reproduce in their original container at room temperature (71) adding just a drop or two of phyto every other day. I gently put them into my refugium, also at around 71 degrees (I have catalina gobies), with a turkey baster. I watch them swim around, up into the chaeto, and onto the rocks. Even though I squirt phytofeast directly into my sump, after a day they completely disappear.
I DO see lots of other, clear and white pods. Some that are hardly visible to the naked eye. Others approx 2-3mm long that look like micro-shrimp, crawling all over the rocks, and refugium sides.
Could it be that the larger pods are feeding on them? Other than the pods, the only other living creatures in the refugium are little brittlestars about 1-2" tentacle tip to tentacle tip.
I DO see lots of other, clear and white pods. Some that are hardly visible to the naked eye. Others approx 2-3mm long that look like micro-shrimp, crawling all over the rocks, and refugium sides.
Could it be that the larger pods are feeding on them? Other than the pods, the only other living creatures in the refugium are little brittlestars about 1-2" tentacle tip to tentacle tip.
I'm having the same issues... Lots of large white/ clear pods but the red tigger pods I am struggling to find. Put a couple chromis in my tank and they are vicious feeders. They dart around collecting all the food and scavenge the rocks. I'm thinking my tank population will struggle now. Got the refuge going tho- and the pods are down in there at least.
