My Copepod Culture Plan... and Questions

679x

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 3, 2017
Messages
159
Reaction score
126
Location
Ontario, Canada
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
After doing some research, thinking, and planning, I have decided I am going to attempt to culture Tisbe copepods to feed a mandarin dragonet in my upcoming Red Sea Reefer 250.

Since this tank does not have a refugium, my plan is to get a small pump to place somewhere in the Reefer's sump. This pump will put some, but not all water into a tube that leads to a refugium.

The refugium will just be a bucket or small bin with some pieces of rock rubble or sand in it. This is where the copepods will live. The water entering will provide a small amount of aeration. To leave the bucket, water flows out through a drilled hole with a tube inserted inside to act as an overflow, which leads back into the sump past the skimmer.

In addition to this, a second bucket that is not attached to the tank system contains more copepods to act as a backup in case the refugium population declines or crashes, or to provide extra pods to put into the main tank.

With all that being said, I still have a few questions:

1. Do I need to feed the pods phytoplankton, or are they fine with regular fish food? Will they be just as healthy to the fish either way?

2. It is my understanding that mandarins are slow eaters. What other fish should I avoid so that my mandarin can eat without too much competition?

3. And lastly, does my plan sound good from the info I've given?

Thanks in advance.
 

eatbreakfast

Fish Nerd
View Badges
Joined
Oct 21, 2013
Messages
14,837
Reaction score
16,233
Location
CT
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
After doing some research, thinking, and planning, I have decided I am going to attempt to culture Tisbe copepods to feed a mandarin dragonet in my upcoming Red Sea Reefer 250.

Since this tank does not have a refugium, my plan is to get a small pump to place somewhere in the Reefer's sump. This pump will put some, but not all water into a tube that leads to a refugium.

The refugium will just be a bucket or small bin with some pieces of rock rubble or sand in it. This is where the copepods will live. The water entering will provide a small amount of aeration. To leave the bucket, water flows out through a drilled hole with a tube inserted inside to act as an overflow, which leads back into the sump past the skimmer.

In addition to this, a second bucket that is not attached to the tank system contains more copepods to act as a backup in case the refugium population declines or crashes, or to provide extra pods to put into the main tank.

With all that being said, I still have a few questions:

1. Do I need to feed the pods phytoplankton, or are they fine with regular fish food? Will they be just as healthy to the fish either way?

2. It is my understanding that mandarins are slow eaters. What other fish should I avoid so that my mandarin can eat without too much competition?

3. And lastly, does my plan sound good from the info I've given?

Thanks in advance.
Taking them by the numbers;

1. Regular fish food is fine for copepods. They aren't picky eaters and don't need much food, probably what is added to the system is fine already.

2. Avoid the sand burying species of wrasses, as well as the genus Pseudocheilinus of wrasses. Pipefish will also be competition, as will any other dragonet species.

3. I think your plan sounds good and should work.
 

ThunderGoose

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 25, 2016
Messages
938
Reaction score
1,173
Location
Beverly, Mass
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
From experience... If you run a tube from a bucket back into the sump and just use gravity you will need an "air break" to keep the water flowing smoothly. These are so hard to make. I ran a piece of airline tubing into the larger tube and left the other end in the air (I laid it over the edge of the bucket).

I ran a similar setup for a while (also Red Sea Reefer 250) but I've since switch to ATS instead of protein skimmer and now I have room for the "refugium" in the sump itself.
 
OP
OP
6

679x

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 3, 2017
Messages
159
Reaction score
126
Location
Ontario, Canada
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I just got permission to actually get the next Reefer size up, the 350. My family decided that they'd be fine with its size in the room (I had room for it but my family thought the 250 was the biggest they'd go... after we took a long look at it at the LFS, they decided they'd be fine with the larger size.) Another factor was that getting the next size up would be slightly more expensive, but not much. So it was almost better to go with the bigger size in order to get more 'bang for our buck'.

So what does that mean for my copepod culturing? Well, the 350 has a dividing wall in the cabinet, meaning I can't easily make a refuge modification since there simply isn't enough space for a refugium and an ATO reservoir at the same time due to the wall, unless I do something clever. And I know I don't want to drill any holes or anything.

The space on the other side of the wall will not be empty, because I will be putting a large jug full of RO water with a valve on it, and a tube attached to that valve. To fill the ATO reservoir when it needs it, I will open both cabinet doors and run the tube out the front of the cabinet over to the other side of the cabinet where the sump/reservoir are, and open the valve to let RO water flow through in order to fill the reservoir, and when I'm done, I just move the tube back into the jug section of the cabinet.

IT IS POSSIBLE that I could do the same thing for a copepod culture. Maybe every day or maybe multiple times a day, when I feed the fish, I can just turn a valve to empty some copepod water through a tube into the sump. However, I don't think I can make it automatic like I wanted to.

I don't know if I want to do the copepod thing INSIDE the tank cabinet because I really want this tank to be dead silent, since it's in the same room as the TV, and copepod culturing requires an air pump with a few bubbles for aeration from what I've read? Is this necessary? If I don't need to have an air pump, which would make constant noise, then I'd prefer to not get one and then I can culture copepods in the cabinet, making it incredibly easy to harvest them.

If you didn't read this whole thing, I really just want to know whether I need an air pump for a type of copepod like the Tisbe ones.
 

saltyfilmfolks

Lights! Camera! Reef!
View Badges
Joined
Feb 25, 2014
Messages
28,739
Reaction score
40,932
Location
California
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
IMO, you'll be happier and have greater success culturing in a second tank.
Here's a tutorial from a Phd. http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2003/2/breeder

I personally would take advantage of the larger space to house a larger refugium. If you ever have the chance to look at a mature fuge, its like its like a bug super highway, with copepods as only one inhabitant.

I do hope its understood that mandy's and pipes eat far more than just tisbe copepods.
 

sde1500

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
May 6, 2016
Messages
1,361
Reaction score
2,156
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
IMO, you'll be happier and have greater success culturing in a second tank.
Here's a tutorial from a Phd. http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2003/2/breeder

I personally would take advantage of the larger space to house a larger refugium. If you ever have the chance to look at a mature fuge, its like its like a bug super highway, with copepods as only one inhabitant.

I do hope its understood that mandy's and pipes eat far more than just tisbe copepods.


I agree, separate tank(s) as well. Wouldn't hurt to do 2-3 just incase one crashes. I run 3, one is exploding, the other two haven't done well so using one to restock the others.

I'm curious salty, what do you mean by the last line. Just a "variety is better" sort of comment? Seems the most common pod to culture for them is tisbe and apocalypse in preparation for a mandy.
 

saltyfilmfolks

Lights! Camera! Reef!
View Badges
Joined
Feb 25, 2014
Messages
28,739
Reaction score
40,932
Location
California
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
. Just a "variety is better" sort of comment? Seems the most common pod to culture for them is tisbe and apocalypse in preparation for a mandy.
Yes. Pretty much. My current mandy eats everything. And when folks say thet eat "pods", few define or know, theres cope Pods, Iso Pods, & Amphi pods.
So much so at times I've seen debates on the subject that they ONLY eat tisbe.
Fwiw while they debated My mandy crunched down a juvenile amphipod and pulled a spaghetti worm out of the sand, tore it to shreds and ate it.
 

beaslbob

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
4,086
Reaction score
960
Location
huntsville, al
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Have you thought about partitioning the tank so macros and pods can grow in a protected area?

just a thought.
 

Lovemycj7

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 25, 2016
Messages
499
Reaction score
189
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Turn the ato into a fuge that's what I did. Working great growing macro and pods

image.png
 
OP
OP
6

679x

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 3, 2017
Messages
159
Reaction score
126
Location
Ontario, Canada
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Have you thought about partitioning the tank so macros and pods can grow in a protected area?

just a thought.
I haven't thought about it, actually. Thanks for the idea but I'd rather grow pods outside the main tank. I just think it'll look better that way. Of course, that means I won't be able to benefit from macro algae.
 
Back
Top