Live Brine Shrimp

What are brine shrimp?

Brine shrimp are a small crustacean with stalked, compound eyes and a tapered body that has 11 pairs of legs. In the recent past they have otherwise popularly been known as Sea Monkeys.

Where do brine shrimp live?

They can live in a remarkable range of salt water environments from those having water several times the salinity of seawater to water having only one tenth the marine salt concentration. They are found only in inland saltwater and not in the oceans – possibly because they more are susceptible to the many predators in the ocean.

How do brine shrimp reproduce?

When conditions are good, mature females release developing, free-swimming embryos into the water. However, when temperatures drop and food is scarce the females release dormant cysts, often referred to as eggs. Inside the cysts, the development of embryos stops and they can remain dormant for several years. When conditions improve, the embryo resumes development, and the life cycle continues. Here at Cornwall Aquatics our brine shrimp supplier takes only the very best quality cysts from Great Salt Lake, Utah that have been harvested, dehydrated and sealed into a container with an inert gas that ensures the optimum storage conditions. They then prepare them and reintroduce them to a sterile and stable environment for hatching and raising making them a very safe live food.

A female and male adult brine shrimp, each about 8-10mm in length

Fish thrive with live food

Dried food gives fish what they need to survive but feeding them live food will ensure they thrive. Live food provides nutrients in their natural form helping to keep fish well-conditioned, active and healthy.  

What fish eat brine shrimp?

Live brine shrimp can be fed to any marine or freshwater fish and will live for several hours when introduced to a freshwater aquarium, giving plenty of time for your fish to find and devour them.

How do I store live brine shrimp?

Brine shrimp should be stored in a cool place in the unopened bag they are sold in, It is advisable to use as soon as possible but brine shrimp should keep for a few days if kept cool and out of sunlight. Once opened, if not all used in one feed, they need to be kept in the water they were supplied in – do not replace this with fresh water. The best way to store the opened bag is to place it upright in a tall glass.

How do I feed live brine shrimp?

​If feeding brine shrimp to freshwater fish strain the contents of the bag through a net with a mesh size no larger than 500 microns (0.5mm) and add just the shrimp to the aquarium from the net. This avoids adding salt water to the fresh water environment. For marine aquariums it’s OK to add the entire contents to the aquarium, or if preferred, you can filter through a net as above.

​One bag of brine shrimp is about the right quantity for a single feed for aquariums over 60cm (24 inches), although this is obviously dependent on the amount and type of fish. The bulk of the brine shrimp introduced into an aquarium should be consumed within 15-20 minutes. Don’t worry if there are a few odd ones left after this time as they will live for up to 5 hours in fresh water and your fish will hunt them down and eat them providing them with a natural treat!

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