4 replies to this topic

[Fleendar the Magnificent]

I always get my tank water from the quarry down by the river and I picked up two-5 gallon buckets yesterday. When I did a partial water change in the tank with my pumpkinseed I discovered a million and 1 of these tiny white critters with 2 micro thin legs at their head. They haven't been there all winter until now as it warms up. They're a micron bigger than live baby brine shrimp. Are these copepods? I am assuming that they are and that natural foods are the best.

Sorry for the poor photo, they do not stand still, but the fish seem to really like them.

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[swampfish]

From their shape, they appear to be Cyclops, a common genus freshwater copepods that make great live fish food. 

 

Every year when I turn over my stock tanks and fill them, I get "blooms" of Daphnia., a genus of cladoceran. Another great live fish food.

 

Both copepods and cladocerans are groups of microcrustaceans. They tend to more numerous in colder water in the spring.

 

Phil Nixon

[Matt DeLaVega]

I find keeping live food cultures to be every bit as rewarding as keeping the intended consumers.

[gerald]

Or maybe Diaptomus, another copepod that swarms in mid-water.  I find Cyclops to be more assocaited with surfaces; not so much in mid-water.

[Fleendar the Magnificent]

These are surface critters. It's a stone quarry that I get them from and the water is about 4 feet deep where I bucket from. Looking closely at them I see what looks like egg sacs on either side of the tail. I was thinking Cyclops but wasn't sure. Massive bloom and the water is kind of murky because there's so many. Kept the punky occupied all night.
Wish I had a way to breed them and keep the food source going.