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Decapsulated brine shrimp

Sir Sauce

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
8
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
Is anyone using this stuff? If you are or have, what is you opinion on its merits and drawbacks? I have read the blah, blah, blah by the people hawking it. What is the real fishroom experience with it? Thanks!

Mike C.
 

beleg

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
346
Location
Istanbul/Turkey
I have been use a Russian made product for quite a few months. Especially my female agassizi goes crazy for it. Will start feeding the new hatched fry with it once they show interest to it. I am quite happy with it.
 

Marc

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
46
Location
Bremen/Germany
Hi Mike,

i've used and still use it in cases of emergency (artemia doesn't breed properly, unexpected offspring i.e. :wink: )and it works well. I use/d it in combination with Liquifry or Nobilfluid. Just a little water, decapsuled artemia and some drops of Liquyfry. To apply this food next to the youngsters, i use a syringe + tube. Every other day i gave microworms.

Fed my first breeding Apistogramma with this mix and from 80 larvae grow up 60 fishes. My opinion? It works well. Maybe not optimal (nowadays i use life artemia, Sealife Proaktive No.1 and sometimes microworms), but it still works.

Regards
Marc
 

Graham

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
38
Location
Minneapolis
I can't speak much for its use unhatched, but I just decapsulated a batch of cysts this weekend and will never hatch whole eggs again. The difference is amazing and the mess is gone!

Not all of my decaps hatched, since they get "sticky" (cling to the vessel and don't hatch) and I need to find a more tapered hatching cone. But I did see several of my Apistos picking them off the bottom of the tank. Surely there were unhatched decaps in the sand...
 

retro_gk

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
230
Location
Los Angeles
I decapsulate a batch of eggs when I have to leave town for extended periods of time with fry in my tanks and don't have someone qualified available to hatch shrimp. Works very well. I have not had occasion to use commercially decapsed eggs yet.
 

five

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
25
I can't speak much for its use unhatched, but I just decapsulated a batch of cysts this weekend and will never hatch whole eggs again. The difference is amazing and the mess is gone!

Not all of my decaps hatched, since they get "sticky" (cling to the vessel and don't hatch) and I need to find a more tapered hatching cone. But I did see several of my Apistos picking them off the bottom of the tank. Surely there were unhatched decaps in the sand...

Hey Graham, you mean you decap those eggs prior to hatching them and the hatch rate is good.

Care to share how do we decap these eggs? I got those commercially decapped eggs. I suppose they don't hatch...or will they?
 

IndianaSam

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
61
Location
Rockville, MD
Hey Graham, you mean you decap those eggs prior to hatching them and the hatch rate is good.

Care to share how do we decap these eggs? I got those commercially decapped eggs. I suppose they don't hatch...or will they?

Some will, some won't. You'll have to check out the label on your eggs. If they don't specifically state that they'll hatch, my guess is that they wouldn't.

Sam
 

brad

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
118
I tried this tonight but couldn't seem to get past step 1. :wink:

Honestly, I'm going to do it now. Thanks for the great write-up.
 

five

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
25
I got passed step 1, and then decided to put step 2 on hold...

Such detailed writeup...great!:tongue:
 

Graham

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
38
Location
Minneapolis
five,

retro_gk's writeup is more precise than what I can relay. :)

I rehydrated 2 Tbs. of eggs in 300mL of freshwater for 2 hours (aerate).
I added 300mL of bleach (still with aeration)
After the vast majority of eggs were orange-ish colored (about 5 minutes), I poured them off into a BS net running under a gentle stream of warm water for 2-3 minutes. I then put them in a dish and added a good dose of dechlorinator. I stirred them around for maybe a minute and rinsed again for another 2-3 minutes.

I then took off about 1/4 tsp to hatch immediately and put the rest in a saturated saltwater solution in the fridge. 24 hours later I changed water the stored eggs were in.

The 1/4 tsp of eggs I took right from the process (never stored) were "sticky' for lack of a better word. They were clumpy and wanted to settle on the walls of the hatching vessel (inverted 2-liter). Tonight (48 hours after dacapsulating), the stored eggs are no longer "sticky", as the portion I took out to hatch for tomorrow are not sticking like the fresh ones were. I don't know why.

I do know that pre-decapsulated eggs won't hatch unless they specifically state they are for hatching. I've only seen one or two hatchable varieties for sale, but it really is easy to DIY.
 

Sir Sauce

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
8
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
Thanks for all the responses. A lot of info to digest.

I am going to Belize and do not want to have to bother someone with having to hatch any. I thought it was the alternative, that I just premeasure some cysts to drop in fry tanks. Am I missing the point? Or don't I even have the right one?

Thanks again! Mike C.
 

retro_gk

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
230
Location
Los Angeles
Mike C, what you want are the non-hatching decapsed cysts. Have whoever is feeding your fish rehydrate a small quantity in a bowl of water for 15-30 minutes and then feed the fish.
 

Sir Sauce

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
8
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
Rahul (and everyone else, too),

Thanks!
I wasn't aware that there was a non and a hatching. I have the non and that and the tips are what I needed.
So, this is a good product in a pinch and in my application(fish sitter). Does anyone view it as a permanent replacement for hatching bbs? I am guessing that it isn't going to stay in the water column so that as long as I am not feeding it to fish that require that, it works???
 

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