Daphnia

[Waterloo Kid]

Can anyone give some suggestions as to what to feed daphnia? I've just ordered some and plan on breeding them as a constant source of live food. I just do not know what to feed them. I read somewhere that liquidised letuce leaf will work. Anything else?

WK

 

[norbie]

id just try and make an environment similar to a garden pond - they seem to thrive in them.

get some very pondweed like plants, and erm... lots more plants, maybe put in some snails if you can to try and make it as pondlike as possible.

 

[Opcn]

they eat protozans bacteria and plankton. spirulina powder or ground flakes will work, but outdoors is best

 

[Candyco]

Glad i've read that.... may try it myself!

 

[Waterloo Kid]

Having done a shed load of research I've decided to feed my culture with yeast and some liquified vegetable matter. Others have reported decent results with this food. In the summer I'll also use green water. The suns not out long enough to make it at any useful rate at the moment.

WK

 

[KerriPaul]

I have been using daphnia as a biological filter in my fry tank for the last 3 months. I feed them the same as the fry - a few drops of interpet liquifry no.1 a day. I also use rainwater for the tank and have a gentle airstone + heater at bout 80F

Would warn that they dont seem to breed much in winter months though (mine only get daylight as the frytank is unlit.)

 

[Waterloo Kid]

The daphnia have turned up. Six bags of twitching fish food. I'm going to have to hope they survive the day in their bags and I'll put them in the culture tank when I get home this evening. They are a lot bigger than I expected. About the size of fully grown brine shrimp at 3mm or so.
My tank is only naturally lit too. I'll keep an eye on how long it takes to double the population. Might add a small tube light to promote reproduction if it's required. The tank is to be unheated so breeding rates will be down anyway. This'll be fun. I've never bred pond life before.

WK