# Fairy shrimp as food source for fish



## skullbanger (Jun 17, 2012)

Hey guys. Recently I went for a hike up a local mountain and came across a few small pools from rain runoff and such along the trail. In only 1 of the pools I found fairy shrimp in it. At first I thought they were small fish so I stayed and checked it out for a while and realized these weren't fish at all but what looked like huge brine shrimp. After some research I found out that these are fairy shrimp. Are they any good for fish food and would it be worth trying to see if I can culture in a tank at home? I know I've seen that people do use them for food but I figured it's best to ask here first before I hike up there and possibly kill them because they're impossible to keep. I personally would rather feed live food because it's more natural for fish and such and with a potential source just filling up a pond it's so tempting to try to keep some.


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## VElderton (Jun 3, 2015)

There are a lot of reasons to feed fresh food to fish ... just remember that any food items coming from an open / wild source are also coming with bacteria, fungus and viruses from that source as well. 

In this case it's a cold water source but still it is not a sterilized water source ... if it was what the Fairy shrimp be feeding on in the first place. 

Hope this helps.


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## skullbanger (Jun 17, 2012)

Ok cool. I wouldn't just put them directly in any tank I had but am definitely curious about their viability as a food source. They're just HUGE compared to daphnia. I've since read that they have to be hatched out each time so that could be a good reason why they aren't used more.


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## davefrombc (Apr 21, 2010)

I used to gather fairy shrimp regularly to feed my fish when I lived in the Northern interior ..I tried culturing some completely without any success. They are a springtime phenomenon where found Did a little searching and found this item from a California educational site on fairy shrimp site.. You may be able to use the same techniques on those you found. You won't be able to keep a continuous culture going like you could with brine shrimp or daphnia though.. The eggs require a dry time and cold period before being rehydrated to hatch.
Instructions for Growing Fairy Shrimp - Sacramento Splash


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## skullbanger (Jun 17, 2012)

Thanks a million for that. I have done a bit if research so I know it's not quite as easy as keeping daphnia....at all..lol. They're honestly just so neat looking that I'm intrigued. Im not against collecting eggs and drying them to see it all work out and enjoy it. I don't want to collect eggs and hurt what I can only guess is an isolated thing in our area. There's around 6 ponds on the side of this mountain and only the 1 had any in it that I saw. Also had the most clear and clean water, which I'm probably sure is from them filtering all the stuff out. I just can't figure out how they ended up there to begin with. I'm going to go back this weekend and really explore the pools. That is again for the info.


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## davefrombc (Apr 21, 2010)

Usually things like the fairy shrimp and daphnia get spread through eggs in the dirt sticking to the feet of various birds and animals frequenting the ponds where they are and then dropping / washed off in new ponds.. I doubt you'd find the shrimp in ponds that don't dry up. They need that dry period for the eggs to develop properly. The only places I collected them was in such ponds and ditches around town (Fort St. James) up there . There was a swamp a few miles from town where I used to gather daphnia every fall.. They concentrated in huge clouds around a small bridge over part of the swamp. i could get masses of them and froze them in an ice cube tray then bagged them for feeding fish treats over the winter.


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