Brine Shrimp Hatching

Bear Claw · Jul 11, 2023

Im looking to hatch my own brine shrimp for my fish as some of them will only eat live brine shrimp. I was wondering if anyone with experience would give me the best eggs, hatchery products, and food for the brine shrimp. I only have four small fish to feed so a small setup is more than optimal. Thank you!

afrokobe · Jul 11, 2023

for a small setup, something like this should work https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brine-shrimp-hatchery-dish-brine-shrimp-direct-inc.html

exnisstech · Jul 11, 2023

I ran 3 hatcheries for a while when I was feeding a group of young anthias. I just used 2 liter bottles with air stones and a heat lamp to keep all 3 hatcheries warm as they were in my basement. Cost was just three 2 liters of pop as I don't drink pop and the light with bulb. I used old tank water and had everything else laying around. I got decent hatch rates from BRS eggs. I didnt bother to feed as I staggered my hatches by around 8 hours so I had a continuous supply of nauplii which is when they provide the most nutrition.
Function over form

Bear Claw · Jul 11, 2023

Is there a good hatchery that works to hatch and raise brine shrimp, phyto, and possibly copepods? It would be nice to keep them all uniform. Also, how much is BRS’s shipping?

littlefoxx · Jul 11, 2023

Bear Claw said:
Im looking to hatch my own brine shrimp for my fish as some of them will only eat live brine shrimp. I was wondering if anyone with experience would give me the best eggs, hatchery products, and food for the brine shrimp. I only have four small fish to feed so a small setup is more than optimal. Thank you!

I second the BRS hatching kit. This is what I use and it works very well and Im constantly hatching shrimp with it

Bear Claw · Jul 11, 2023

What should I do after they hatch? I was thinking about putting them in a small tank with air stones? Does that seem good?

Bear Claw · Jul 12, 2023

littlefoxx said:
I second the BRS hatching kit. This is what I use and it works very well and Im constantly hatching shrimp with it

What should I do after they hatch? I was thinking about putting them in a small tank with air stones? Does that seem good?

afrokobe · Jul 12, 2023

You feed them to your fish

nothing_fancy · Jul 12, 2023

Second the BRS hatchery the eggs they sell are good too. You could DIY your own hatchery similarly though especially if you want to harvest more. The brs hatchery gives me 2 or 3 feedings for every harvest. I stopped lighting it a while ago as there was no difference for me in lighting it or not lighting it. Sits in a closet that gets a little light from a window.

Michelada Palooza · Jul 12, 2023

afrokobe said:
for a small setup, something like this should work https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brine-shrimp-hatchery-dish-brine-shrimp-direct-inc.html

I use this unit & it is easy. The fish (especially the Catalina gobies) & corals love it. Affordable & simple to clean. I get about 3 days of larvae after a 1 day soak. Rinse it out & start over to have live food available most of the time. Get 2 & you'll never be out

Bear Claw · Jul 12, 2023

afrokobe said:
You feed them to your fish

Yes I do. I prefer to feed the larger adult brine shrimps and I don’t think they would survive to adulthood in the hatchery

afrokobe · Jul 12, 2023

Bear Claw said:
Yes I do. I prefer to feed the larger adult brine shrimps and I don’t think they would survive to adulthood in the hatchery

you should feed newly hatched brine as it is more nutritious to your fish

DaveWrasse · Jul 12, 2023

You can find everything here too.

A Beautiful Habitat Begins with Balanced Nutrition

Brine Shrimp Direct is your direct source for fresh water and marine fish food including artemia cysts( brine shrimp eggs), premium aquarium and hatchery feeds, frozen fish food, premium flake foods, and accessories at factory-direct prices!

www.brineshrimpdirect.com

Bear Claw · Jul 12, 2023

afrokobe said:
you should feed newly hatched brine as it is more nutritious to your fish

Should I just feed the brine shrimp a little bit of the spiralina powder right when they hatch and then feed them to the fish like the next day or not bother with the spiralina or any gut loading them and just feed them plain?

littlefoxx · Jul 12, 2023

Bear Claw said:
What should I do after they hatch? I was thinking about putting them in a small tank with air stones? Does that seem good?

Feed them to the fish, I tried putting them in a tank like that but they just die, guess they need a more complex setup than I had. I just feef them out of the breeder now

Michelada Palooza · Jul 12, 2023

Bear Claw said:
Should I just feed the brine shrimp a little bit of the spiralina powder right when they hatch and then feed them to the fish like the next day or not bother with the spiralina or any gut loading them and just feed them plain?

I just direct feed corals w/em once they hatch. The rest that swim around, my wrasse & damsel go nuts on. For my Catalina gobies, I broadcast feed them (turn off pumps) into the tank for the lil guys to actively forage for them

Bear Claw · Jul 12, 2023

Michelada Palooza said:
I just direct feed corals w/em once they hatch. The rest that swim around, my wrasse & damsel go nuts on. For my Catalina gobies, I broadcast feed them (turn off pumps) into the tank for the lil guys to actively forage for them

What about spirilina? Do you use that?

reveriesh · Jul 12, 2023

I just added my first post yesterday and it happened to discuss my experiences with hatching baby brine shrimp (BBS) so I’ll include an excerpt here.

I had come across such bad information regarding the hatching and feeding of live BBS. I read that they are devoid of nutrients unless gut loaded, I read to add spirulina as soon as they hatch, etc. From what I have researched (see scientific papers and research reports below), this information is inaccurate.

First, BBS are highly nutritious if used as food in the 1st 6 hours post hatch due to the yolks attached to their bodies. Since BBS hatch in my setup between 18-20 hours then I know exactly when to start/harvest them for highest nutritional value. I use an incredibly easy hatching system by Ziss. I run two batches at a time (I have 2 Ziss) and then I harvest and rinse them (using a 50 micron screen I bought from Reef Nutrition) in fresh seawater, place them in a wide flat Tupperware container (so there is enough water surface exposed to air to keep them alive) with about an inch of freshly made seawater and then I add them to the refrigerator for future feedings. Mine live for up to 2 weeks like this - with the yolks remaining intact for the entire time due to slowing down of their metabolic rate from refrigeration (I know this because I set up a lab with microscopes in my basement). So then I have fresh BBS on hand whenever I need as long as I open their container daily to let fresh air in. And they become very active when I add them to the little feedercup with fresh tank water to warm them up.

As far as gut-loading, freshly hatched BBS cannot be gut-loaded because they do not yet have mouths (see research below). So I add 1 drop of Selcon to those that I pull out to feed the tank. The Selcon sticks to them and adds extra nutrients.

And when I add to the tank, I turn off the pumps for a few minutes, squirt them all over the tank and everyone feasts! My mandarin is nice and plump (maybe too plump). So in my experience, this is a terrific way to keep fish healthy and offer them a varied diet.

Anyway, sorry for the long post but I wish I had read something similar when I started

Below are the resources that helped me, I hope it helps someone else

https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1085&context=srhonorsprog

4.3. Use of nauplii and meta-nauplii

https://www.tfhmagazine.com/article...commonsense-approach-to-brine-shrimp-hatching

reveriesh · Jul 12, 2023

Oh and I forgot to mention that I buy my eggs and hatching salt online from Aquarium Co-Op. I actually get better hatching rates when I use their salt than when I use the Red Sea salt I use for my DT.

Jmp998 · Jul 12, 2023

Second the Ziss blender. The flat dishes from brine shrimp direct that BRS sells work ok, I used them daily for a few months, but to me the Ziss blender is much less fiddly (and easier to avoid spilling). If you plan to hatch daily long-term, the Ziss is a worthwhile investment. The Ziss also is much higher capacity if that matters to you. Whichever you choose, I suggest getting a shallow container to keep it in while culturing so that the inevitable spills are easy to clean up.

I tried eggs from several vendors (including directly from brine shrimp direct), and I have had the best/most consistent hatch rates with the Aquarium Co-op eggs.