Working on getting things spooled up to start a breeding program. I'm just about to the point where I am significantly scaling up my copepod production (currently Tigriopus, but Parvo or Tisbe next).
I was debating on using the @Reef Nutrition Compact Culture System (CCS) for the copepods and was curious if anybody was doing this. I would likely be running two black food grade three gallon buckets (shorter 5 gallon bucket) on a rotating basis and harvesting a couple times a week, keeping a portion reserved and fed to dose the larval tanks. This seems more managable with my morning schedule. I don't believe the life copepod cycle is fast enough that the copepod nauplii will be too big in three 2-3 days to feed, but I could be mistaken. Also, with the slower reproduction rate, I am not sure if the additional losses to the filter floss will be a hindrance.
Or would I be better off running a scaled down version of the IFAS harvester and Reed Mariculture Apocyclops protocol? [I like the product description for the culture vessel "...Bucket for Horse and Copepods, 70 Quart ..."]
I see the CCS potentially running cleaner, stronger, and more consistent. I don't have the space to run enough cultures (size and quantity) to harvest daily and deal with the batch rotations, even if it was shorter, more frequent harvests. I should have the space to ramp up a third batch once every 3-6 months to start a fresh culture if I am developing ciliates or detrimental cross contamination issues between the strains or feel the need to attempt to maintain the purity of a culture.
I was debating on using the @Reef Nutrition Compact Culture System (CCS) for the copepods and was curious if anybody was doing this. I would likely be running two black food grade three gallon buckets (shorter 5 gallon bucket) on a rotating basis and harvesting a couple times a week, keeping a portion reserved and fed to dose the larval tanks. This seems more managable with my morning schedule. I don't believe the life copepod cycle is fast enough that the copepod nauplii will be too big in three 2-3 days to feed, but I could be mistaken. Also, with the slower reproduction rate, I am not sure if the additional losses to the filter floss will be a hindrance.
Or would I be better off running a scaled down version of the IFAS harvester and Reed Mariculture Apocyclops protocol? [I like the product description for the culture vessel "...Bucket for Horse and Copepods, 70 Quart ..."]
I see the CCS potentially running cleaner, stronger, and more consistent. I don't have the space to run enough cultures (size and quantity) to harvest daily and deal with the batch rotations, even if it was shorter, more frequent harvests. I should have the space to ramp up a third batch once every 3-6 months to start a fresh culture if I am developing ciliates or detrimental cross contamination issues between the strains or feel the need to attempt to maintain the purity of a culture.
