Brine shrimp hatch rate

[rostervandross]

Hey everybody. for those of you that have hatched brine shrimp, how many would you say hatch from the eggs you put in the water? I am thinking I am getting maybe 30 to 40% tops.

My hatchery is a little small and I am working on sealing the water in while the air tube is aerating, and maybe the temperature is a little low at like 68 69 F?

 

[DaveK]

The hatch rate depends upon several factors. The main one is the quality of the brine shrimp eggs. If they get damp or otherwise damaged the hatch rate will go way down. I try to get the eggs that come in a sealed metal or glass container. Avoid any container where the eggs are not sealed air tight.

Be sure to store the eggs in a cool, dry place. If you get the eggs that come in a foil pouch, get something like a baby food jar to store the eggs in after opening, since it will seal tight.

If everything is going good, ideally you should get about a 80 to 90% hatch. The cool temp should not effect the percent of the hatch, but will slow down the process.

I found a 1 gal glass jar works best for a hatchery. You can hatch out a lot of shrimp in them.

 

[rostervandross]

Do you think perhaps the black DAP Sealant I used or the Plasti dip black rubber in a can stuff ( both used to seal and lightproof my hatchery ) would be affecting them?

 

[DaveK]

I really don't know. It might be.

Like I said, I always used a 1 gal glass jar.

If your just hatching the shrimp, you don't need to lightproof the container. If it's part of a direct feeding system, then it might be desirable to lightproof.

 

[rostervandross]

yea, just wondering out loud. I'll try warming it up to see if I can improve my hatch rate.

How do you separate shrimp from egg shell in the large jar? That's why my hatch chamber is light proofed , so they'll swim across to the second chamber

 

[DaveK]

Here is how I do it, others do it differently.

Use a 1 gal glass jar, set so that it is off level by about 1 inch
Add 2 quarts of RO water or dechlorinated water
Add an air stone
add 2 tablespoons of salt and dissolve
add 2 teaspoons of brine shrimp eggs
wait 1 to 2 days for the shrimp to hatch
add an additional quart of RO or dechlorinated water
wait about 10 minutes

You should now have a layer of egg shells floating, then mostly clear water. At the bottom you'll have a layer of dark brown brine shrimp eggs. Over that you'll have a layer of orange hatched shrimp

Use an airline tube wrapped around a stick or similar drvice, and siphon the shrimp out. Use a handkerchief or shrimp net to catch the shrimp. Then feed them to you livestock or put them in your feeder.

 

[rostervandross]

Nice Dave thanks for the run down. I am going to try it

I may have been using too much salt, or not letting them hang out in the Plain water for long enough before adding tank water