Who feeds CORALS with hatched BRINE SHRIMP?

[xiaoxiy]

@shred5

Looks like INVE Sep-Art has been used to feed corals, including acropora. Here are some published coral studies that used Sep-Art specifically in their protocol.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/scien...ZnLUph5EZ3N36j7LMrsEhboDHmm-z4zuNeDN2kAU8W-aE

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/rec.12698?casa_token=7LCH60fpBEgAAAAA:afN3rseIgVH-REt5NzzJbDnkuG28DJU07gYjO0RdpfZZInMbUuLXOCbmOj7V1K3ZgJZGNv_lcj0WPnlo

A new technique to increase polyp production in stony coral aquaculture using waste fragments without polyps

The wild harvest of corals for the aquarium trade has had negative impacts on coral reef ecosystems. Although this problem can be directly addressed b…

www.sciencedirect.com

 

[AlgaeBarn]

It's a pretty cool concept for sure!

 

[hart24601]

It's a pretty cool concept for sure!

It sure would be nice if you stocked it vs buying off Amazon....

 

[Reef and Dive]

So simple...
I grab saltwater from my holding tank and fill to the line. Scoop of eggs and sprinkle around the outside. Scoop of Spirulina the same way. Pop the cover on and wait 24-36 hours.

To feed you can either suck them up in a pipette from the hole or scoop them out with the center basket. I get brine for 4-5 days before I dump it and start over. I have 2 of those so I can always have a hatch of fresh brine.

Cool!
But I think there’s no need to feed spirulina for recently hatched brine...

 

[hart24601]

Right, they don’t even have mouths until roughly 24hr post hatch if I remember correctly

Cool!
But I think there’s no need to feed spirulina for recently hatched brine...

 

[jgirardnrg]

Cool!
But I think there’s no need to feed spirulina for recently hatched brine...

I don't collect them as soon as they hatch... I wait 24-36 hours after I start seeing them come to the center before collecting them.

 

[jgirardnrg]

I'll just leave this here:

 

[hart24601]

I have used the auto hatcher on and off for several years and it’s nice, these days I prefer to get a larger quantity though. While could use a couple of them at some point that is more cleanup than just a simple cone hatchery.

 

[xiaoxiy]

I just made my first batch of Sep-Art and was impressed. It's super easy to separate the cysts from BBS. This is probably one of the cleanest batches of BBS that I've made. It's pretty comparable to the cleanliness of the auto-hatcher disc. The only difference I was able to collect way more Artemia with Sep-Art than I had been able to per auto-hatchery batch.

 

[ultraArcite]

I use the Aquarium Co-op method to hatch brine shrimp. It's super simple and all of my fish go crazy for it. I've been having issues getting it to the coral, but I think I might try a coral feeder.

How to Hatch Baby Brine Shrimp to Increase the Growth of Fish Fry

Live baby brine shrimp (BBS) is one of the best foods for fish fry to increase their growth and survivability. Find out how to easily hatch them at home.

www.aquariumcoop.com

 

[AlgaeBarn]

It sure would be nice if you stocked it vs buying off Amazon....

We are looking into carrying something like this

 

[Stacyod]

This works REALLY well.

Brine Shrimp Hatchery Dish

No Aeration, Heat, or Tubing Required! Brine Shrimp Direct's Brine Shrimp Hatchery Dish is probably the easiest to use hatchery on the market today. The unique design keeps all the unhatched eggs and shells in the outer ring, while the hatched shrimp will seek out the light and swim to the open...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

I’ve used that for 2 years with excellent results

 

[Reef and Dive]

Interesting, I fed “a lot” of brine yesterday to test for phosphate, with the water, without the eggs.

Phosphate today (Hanna) = 0!

 

[AlgaeBarn]

Interesting, I fed “a lot” of brine yesterday to test for phosphate, with the water, without the eggs.

Phosphate today (Hanna) = 0!

NICE!

 

[BanjoBandito]

I dump a load of freshly hatched brine shrimp into my tank about every 3-4 days. I use an old pure leaf tea bottle and air stone to hatch them at 1.018 salinity. I still feed the fish daily, and the coral maybe once a week. I can't speak on the nutritional value, but boy....everyone loves shrimp dump day.

 

[BanjoBandito]

@hart24601 has been feeding his corals with baby brine shrimp and I plan on doing it too. Like you said, there are a lot of great studies on it which show improved growth and health of corals fed with BBS.

He and I just bought a big can of INVE Sep-Art for this exact purpose. With Sep-Art the cysts are coated with a ferrous material, so that egg cysts can be easily separated from Nauplii with a magnet. Hopefully this will make culturing/separating baby brine shrimp less of a hassle.

I just siphon from the bottom after turning off the air stone for a minute or two....the shells float the shrimp swim....so I generally don't have an issue with egg shells.

 

[ariellemermaid]

I dump a load of freshly hatched brine shrimp into my tank about every 3-4 days. I use an old pure leaf tea bottle and air stone to hatch them at 1.018 salinity. I still feed the fish daily, and the coral maybe once a week. I can't speak on the nutritional value, but boy....everyone loves shrimp dump day.

I too use the simple dish hatchery and it’s amazing. Mostly as an extra treat for fish but if corals eat them as well, great!

What I want to add though is about the 1.018. That’s what I did in the past and it didn’t make a lot of sense to me because it’s in the name…”brine” shrimp. I’ve read that in the wild they thrive well above reef salinity, but maybe there’s more nuance to it for babies. Anyway, I got tired of mixing up a different salinity every time I wanted to use it and just stopped.

Fast forward to recently…I needed to refresh my memory on what salinity to use and found a comprehensive article about raising brine shrimp. The article I found called for full reef salinity with reef spec salt. So I tried it with eggs that have been in my fridge for like a year. And, it’s working great! My collection rates are identical to what I had in the past despite the eggs being much older now.

For me this huge. Rather than sweating the salinity I just use pre-mixed water I have on hand, give it a rinse out every 3 days or so, and repeat. Couldn’t be easier to make this live food; no special bubbler setup or water mix. I do keep it on a plant germination heat mat though just for a little extra heat above ambient.

 

[AcanSkywalker]

I think either people do not want to devote the extra time into doing it or they don't have a good method down/hatchery that works for them. One of the coolest ways I've seen feeding done for coral for live food is taking the top portion of a water bottle with the lid and using it as a dome over the coral. You can unscrew the lid and the put the live food in and the coral can eat it over time without fish getting it all or the current taking it away. -Raven

I use Strawberry baskets to cover my coral when feeding!