Keeping BBS

[moss_fanatic]

Hi all,
I recently hatched 1 teaspoon worth of baby brine shrimp and i think i hatched more then what I need. I heard that we must feed it to the fishes once it hatches or else its health value which provides to the fishes will decrease. Is that true?
If it's true, then is there any way to keep its health value so that it won't decrease?

[stormhawk]

Well Garrett, there's more than one way of keeping BBS alive over several days or enriching its value.

One way is to keep them in a plastic tub, filled with abit of brine solution. About 1/4 of the height of the tub will do. Place this tub in your fridge as the cold temperatures reduce the metabolism of the BBS, which in turn slows down the moulting process of the BBS. They should be used within the week after hatching or else they will start to die off even in the fridge.

Ways to enrich the BBS would require the use of powdered foods. BBS are basically filter feeders so some people use spirulina powder, astaxanthin powder and even a little bit of baby food mixed with water as a light solution. If you really want to 'power up' the nutrition value of the BBS, you may need to use those commercial foods made just for BBS, of which I've personally not seen in SG yet.

Hope it helps.