The benefits of feeding live fish food in a community tank are many: live food improves strength and color and more closely resembles food found in the fish’s natural habitat. Live food is easy.
Some disadvantages include the transfer of diseases or parasites to the aquarium, take a lot of time to preserve crops, and a lot of space needs to be devoted to growing live foods. The cost of equipment and consumables necessary to preserve crops is also subject to review for beginners.
In this article I will explain how to raise Daphnia. This article will be part of an ongoing series of live products. You can find many more articles on the topic: [http://www.kingdiscus.com],
Daphnia belongs to the group known as Daphniidae, and are close relatives of freshwater shrimp and brine shrimp (Artemia). Their common name is usually called “water flea”. This generic name comes from the abrupt movements of Daphnia in the water. Over 150 different species can be found in North America with a similar number of species growing in Europe. Some of these species have a common language in both continents.
Daphnia is a small crustacean, and they are great for use as fresh food, because they will exist in the water of the tank until they go for fish. Daphnia can also be sterilized, if necessary, by placing it in a 5% Clorox solution for 3 to 5 minutes. Very few microorganisms can survive this. However, keep in mind that rinse them thoroughly before feeding!
Daphnia can be lifted both inside and out. Many people raise daphnia in the pool of young children. However, a more controlled environment is held indoors, and it can be done all year round if a person lives in the northern areas. It can be as simple as a pair of two-liter bottles, up to 20 gallons, purchased from a store such as Menard. The ideal situation is to have as much of the oxygenated surface as possible, so if there is room for a larger container, be sure to use it. Smaller environments are best for daphnia for fruitful growth.
Setting up a daphnia environment is pretty simple. Many methods are used to harvest water for use in culture. The best advice I've heard is from Joe F. of Circle City Aquarium Club in Indianapolis, IN. He made a presentation at the August meeting of the Southwestern Michigan Aquarium Society and recommends using tank water saved by changing tanks. Joe has been growing live foods for a long time and has achieved good results. His video presentation was top notch.
PH levels for successful Daphnia crops should be in the range of 6-8 and be more alkaline than acidic. When raised outdoors, aeration is not required. When raised indoors, aeration must be adjusted to produce large bubbles. Small bubbles in the Daphnia culture will cause bubbles in the culture armor, and they will die.
The water temperature for Daphnia magna is not a great need, but the optimum temperature should be in the range of 64-72 degrees. they are very tolerant to temperature changes and can withstand fluctuations up to freezing. In fact, Daphnia can be frozen and stored in a freezer, and then revived when necessary. Moina withstands higher temperature fluctuations than D. magna.
Lighting should be within eight or more hours of light per day and light intensity equal to or greater than 850 lux. A simple light and timer can do this indoors.
Feeding Daphnia is where most aquarists fail. Daphnia feeds on dissolved organic matter, yeast, various groups of bacteria, microalgae and detritus, or a mulma. Organic fertilizers, such as fresh manure. This is not recommended by our breeder, however, due to antibiotics and supplements fed to dairy and beef cattle. The much better mixture is a combination of one tablespoon of each spirulina, soy flour and active dry yeast added to a pint of water. This mixture should be added so that the water is cloudy, but you can clearly see the bottom and watch Daphnia’s swimming in culture. This mixture should be added carefully every two to three days, trying not to feed. At this time, you should see an abundance of Daphnia, and you can collect them to feed your fish.
Harvesting is quite simple - just use a small aquarium net, watching the smaller Daphnia fall through the net to grow further. Thus, adults collect and can feed your fish. A younger Daphnia can continue to harvest even more fish. Collected Daphnia can be stored in the refrigerator for several days in clean water.
Daphnia has a high protein content and a very good diet for tropical fish. Some aquarists feed them exclusively. They provide up to 70% of protein to your tropical fish and are an excellent source of live food for an aquarium.
Much can be written about the cultivation of Daphnia. This guide is only intended to help newcomers live with foods, to create a colony, and to feed high-protein live food into fish. A series of articles on live products is being presented and can be viewed at [http://www.kingdiscus.com],
