# Daphnia Dilemma



## AccidentalAquarist (Sep 11, 2013)

Hey all

I've had a daphnia culture going for about a year now. Got the original culture from canadian aquatics, and just about every group order I have done since has included someone wanting a culture like mine.
I just use a 4l glass jar, every other day I pour about 2 cups out of the jar through a coffee filter. getting an average of 2 tbsp of daphnia every time.

This morning I went to collect some of the culture and found no daphnia at all. What I did find is a cloud of worms(?) and a thick layer of dead daphnia on the bottom. The worms were so dense that the jar appeared cloudy. To the naked eye they seem about 1/2 the size of microworms, and swim freely in the top half of the jar.

They are so small and hard to focus on that I can't get a pic or video of them.

Anyone have any ideas what type of worms they are? 
guess I need to get a new starter culture...


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## mollyb (May 18, 2010)

vinegar eels? did your pH crash? just guessing.


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## AccidentalAquarist (Sep 11, 2013)

Never cultured vinegar eels before so didn't think of them. 
pH is at 6.7, will have to research what pH they grow in.

Found out the kids wanting to help in the fish duties. Dumped a bunch of yeast into the culture and from their description it was probably 200x what I feed in a week.
So I now know the how, just not the what.

thanks


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## barvinok (Nov 20, 2011)

Sorry your culture crashed, kids just wanted to help. 
How you kept your culture so prolific? I understand you feed it with east but how much and did you dissolved them before? Tried yeast before and it did not work for me


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## AccidentalAquarist (Sep 11, 2013)

I feed them yeast, spirullina, chlorella every other day. I take a bit of water out of the culture and mix in the food then add it back to the jar. a 25% water changes in between feeding days. 100% water change ever other week.

Probably over doing it on water changes but it's working for me.


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## AccidentalAquarist (Sep 11, 2013)

I also have about 1/3" of crushed coral on the bottom of the jar and 3-4" subwassertang (sp), a few cherry shrimp, a few huge ramshorn snails
Not sure if that makes a difference, but a little greenery and the larger inhabitants makes it look nicer sitting on the window sill.


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## mollyb (May 18, 2010)

I know one guy who used to get his daphnia from the boat pond in Beacon Hill park, just netted stuff out of the water, made sure there were no 'bad hitchhikers'.


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## AccidentalAquarist (Sep 11, 2013)

mollyb said:


> I know one guy who used to get his daphnia from the boat pond in Beacon Hill park, just netted stuff out of the water, made sure there were no 'bad hitchhikers'.


I've been tempted to try and gather some too, I just can't think of any place between Sooke and the western communities that would be easy to collect from. I guess any body of fresh water technically would be easy


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

I have a guy who supplies by request. Takes one day's notice


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## mollyb (May 18, 2010)

I think the water should be pretty still, smallish, no fish, shallow would be good. That is why the boat pond works so well.


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## Salishsea (Oct 19, 2014)

*Daphnia culture in bowl outdoors*

Daphnia and seed shrimp etc did well in an open bowl on my deck over past few summers, started from a few dip net sweeps from a pond and releasing any predators. Easy culture, no real feeding other than the algae that grows and topping up water when I water the plant pots, with occasional diluted plant fertilizer to feed the algae. A large creamy-white ceramic bowl worked best. Mosquito larvae appeared too, my fish go crazy for them! No real schedule either except catch the mosquitoes before they hatch.


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## Salishsea (Oct 19, 2014)

Meant to add thanks for tips about what to feed daphnia rest of the year - where do you buy spirulina and chlorella? What kind of yeast- any kind? Amounts?


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