Some drawbacks include the transmission of diseases or parasites to the aquarium, it is time consuming to maintain the cultures, and a lot of space needs to be devoted to raising live foods. The cost of equipment and supplies needed to maintain cultures is also a consideration for the beginner.

In this article I will discuss how to raise Daphnia. This article will be part of an on-going series on live foods. You can find many more related articles on http://www.kingdiscus.com.

Daphnia belong to a group known as the Daphniidae, and are close relatives of the freshwater shrimp, and the brine shrimp (Artemia). Their generic name is generally referred to as “water flea.” This common name is derived from the jerky movements of Daphnia in the water. The over 150 different species can be found in North America, with a similar amount of species growing in Europe. Some of these species find common ground on both continents.

Daphnia are a small crustacean, and are great to use as a fresh food because they will exist in the tank water until eaten by the fish. Daphnia can also be sterilized if it is felt necessary by placing in a 5% solution of Clorox for 3 to 5 minutes. Very few micro-organisms can survive this. Be sure, however, to rinse them thoroughly before feeding!

Daphnia can be raised both indoors and outside. Many people raise daphnia in a small children’s wading pool. A more controlled environment, however, is done indoors, and can be done year round if one lives in northern climes. This can be as simple as a couple of two liter bottles, to a 20 gallon tub purchased from a store such as Menard’s. The ideal situation is to have as much oxygenated surface area as possible, so if there is room for a larger container, by all means use it. A shallower environment suits daphnia best for prolific growth.

Setting up the environment for daphnia is quite simple. Many methods are used for collecting the water to use for the culture. The best advice I have heard is from Joe F. of Circle City Aquarium Club in Indianapolis, IN. He gave a presentation at the August meeting of Southwestern Michigan Aquarium Society, and recommends using tank water saved from a tank change. Joe has been raising live foods for a long time, and has had good success. His video presentation was top notch.

PH levels for successful Daphnia cultures should be in the range of 6-8, and should be more alkaline than acidic. If raised outdoors, no aeration is needed. If raised indoors, aeration should be adjusted to produce large bubbles. Small bubbles in the daphnia culture will cause the bubbles to become lodged in the carapace of the culture, and they will die.

Water temperatures for Daphnia magna are not a high requirement, but the optimal temperature should be in the 64-72 degree range. they are very tolerant to changes in temperature, and can withstand fluctuations down to freezing. In fact, Daphnia can be frozen and kept in the freezer, and then revived when needed. Moina withstand a higher fluctuation in temperature than do D. magna.

Lighting should be in the neighborhood of eight or more hours light per day and light intensity equal to or greater than 850 lux. A simple light and a timer can accomplish this indoors.

Feeding the Daphnia is where most aquarists fail. Daphnia feed on dissolved organic matter, yeast, various groups of bacteria, microalgae, and detritus, or mulm. Organic fertilizers, such as fresh cow manure. It is not recommended by our breeder, though, because of the antibiotics and supplements fed to dairy and beef cattle. A much better mixture is a combination of one tablespoon each of spirulina, soy flour, and active dry yeast, added to a pint of water. This mixture should be added so that the water is cloudy, but you are able to see the bottom clearly, and observe the Daphnia swimming in the culture. This mixture should be added carefully every two or three days, being careful not to over feed. At this time, you should see an abundance of Daphnia, and they can be harvested to feed your fish.

Harvesting is quite simple – simply use a small aquarium net, observing that the smaller Daphnia fall through the netting to grow further. In this way, the adults are harvested, and can be fed to your fish. The younger Daphnia can go on to produce still more fish food. Harvested Daphnia can be kept in the refrigerator for several days in clean water.

Daphnia are high in protein, and a very good diet for tropical fish. Some aquarists feed them exclusively. They provide up to 70% protein to your tropical fish, and are an excellent source of live food for the aquarium.

Much can be written on the culturing of Daphnia. this guide is only meant to help the beginner to live foods to establish a colony, and feed live food high in protein to their fish. A series of article on live foods is forthcoming, and can be viewed at http://www.kingdiscus.com.

About The Author

Alden Smith is a published author who has been publishing on the internet for 7 years. Visit his website, http://www.kindiscus.com, for articles, software, and other resources. This article is one of a series available at http://www.kingdiscus.com.

Written By: Alden Smith

Small children under 5-7 years of age should not be entrusted with the care of any animal including fish. This is not to say that small animals shouldn’t have pets but rather to say that the parents understand that the pet is their responsibility and not the child’s. A child in this age group can benefit a lot from being allowed to interact with animal, se fish swim and feed the fish but is not ready to care for the animal themselves. As an example can be said that children off this age group only should be allowed to feed the fish when a parent is present. It isn’t an uncommon event that children tries to be kind to the fish by feeding them the entire can of fish food causing a biological disaster, and if not discovered and corrected the death of all the fish in the aquarium within a matter of hours.

Small children under 5-7 years should never be allowed to change water in the aquarium or work with the electric equipment used in the aquarium due to the risk of injury.

Some parents might think that a fish is a good pet for a child since it require less care than say a dog and are cheaper. This is only partly true. A fish requires good care to remain healthy and the parents should expect that they will have to do a certain amount of work to keep their child’s fish alive and healthy. True it didn’t cost that much but it is still a living thing and does as such deserve to be threaded with care. Expect that an aquarium will require 5 minutes of your time each day for daily care and an hour each week for partial water changes etc.

Remember that a small aquarium requires more work than a large one. You should therefore never buy a small goldfish bowl or other small aquarium for your child. It might seem easier but requires a lot more work and only experienced aquarists should keep fish in small aquariums. I recommend an aquarium of at least 25-30 gallon (around 100 L) as a first aquarium for your child. Anything smaller will give you a lot of extra work and most likely more dead fish. A little larger aquarium also allows you the luxury to choose between more fish for your aquarium. So what fish should you choose to your child?

Some fish species are more suitable than others for children. First of, a child should never be allowed to keep toxic or otherwise potentially harmful fish species. Secondly the fish should be hardy enough to be easy to take care of, accept flake food and other easily storable foods and be calm enough not to be stressed by the children playing near the aquarium, tapping on the glass etc. Suitable fish includes many livebearers, barbs and tetras. Always buy fish that are suitable for you aquarium and don’t just let your child by the fish he think is most beautiful, coolest or otherwise most appealing without considering their demands.

And don’t forget that you as a parent have to do your research so that you know how to take care of an aquarium before letting your child get one. It might be your child that is getting an aquarium but you are getting the responsibility.

About the author:

You can read everything you need to know about setting up and caring for an aquarium at AC Tropical Fish & Aquarium . AC Tropical Fish & Aquarium features a large amount of articles containing info on all aspects of aquarium keeping from setting up the aquarium, to diseases and fish breeding. Visit the Aquarium article archive now

Written By: William berg

Aquarium cabinets range from all different sizes and colours, they can be custom built or you can have a generic one. Custom built cabinets are very expensive although you get exactly what you are looking for. Generic cabinets are available in all different sizes. They are built to withstand the different sizes of tanks so you can get generic aquarium cabinets usually up to about six feet long and they are usually sold in maple, black or pine and the style of design is usually a cupboard with shelves.

Aquarium cabinets are available in all fish and pet shops. Although if you are looking for a bigger cabinet then it is best to go to a specialised fish shop rather than your local pet store. The cabinet is usually used for adding a bit more decoration with your aquarium as placing them on tables and other types of units can look unsightly. The stand is there to add some more spice to your set up.

A custom made set up differs greatly from a generic one. They are often made to suit what kind of style that you want, whether that is drawers or open shelves. They are usually made in about four or five weeks, depending on the size and style of the aquarium that you are wanting to be built. No matter whether it is a custom or generic cabinet, the aquarium cabinet should accentuate the beauty of your tank! They are expensive but are worth the money that you pay for them!

About the author:

William Nabaza of http://www.Nabaza.com specializes in domains, webhosting, webmaster’s tools, netpreneur’s articles and resources. Stands out as a freebie provider, business opportunity provider and the like. Visit his site at http://www.nabaza.com or contact him directly at william@nabaza.com There’s more pet resources here: http://www.nabaza.com/pets.htm

Written By: William R. Nabaza of http://www.Nabaza.com/pets.htm

Aquarium cabinets range from all different sizes and colours, they can be custom built or you can have a generic one. Custom built cabinets are very expensive although you get exactly what you are looking for. Generic cabinets are available in all different sizes. They are built to withstand the different sizes of tanks so you can get generic aquarium cabinets usually up to about six feet long and they are usually sold in maple, black or pine and the style of design is usually a cupboard with shelves.

Aquarium cabinets are available in all fish and pet shops. Although if you are looking for a bigger cabinet then it is best to go to a specialised fish shop rather than your local pet store. The cabinet is usually used for adding a bit more decoration with your aquarium as placing them on tables and other types of units can look unsightly. The stand is there to add some more spice to your set up.

A custom made set up differs greatly from a generic one. They are often made to suit what kind of style that you want, whether that is drawers or open shelves. They are usually made in about four or five weeks, depending on the size and style of the aquarium that you are wanting to be built. No matter whether it is a custom or generic cabinet, the aquarium cabinet should accentuate the beauty of your tank! They are expensive but are worth the money that you pay for them!

About the author:

William Nabaza of http://www.Nabaza.com specializes in domains, webhosting, webmaster’s tools, netpreneur’s articles and resources. Stands out as a freebie provider, business opportunity provider and the like. Visit his site at http://www.nabaza.com or contact him directly at william@nabaza.com There’s more pet resources here: http://www.nabaza.com/pets.htm

Written By: William R. Nabaza of http://www.Nabaza.com/pets.htm

Reef aquariums are one of the most beautiful set ups that you will see, with a special set of lights you can ensure that your corals and anemones are going to look stunning. Also some fish can be included in your reef aquarium. Although when setting up your reef aquarium make sure that you avoid bottom feeders such as shrimps and crabs, another type of fish to avoid when it comes to anemones are the different kinds of puffer fish as they like to eat them although they sting! Crabs and shrimps like to eat and pick away at the reef life as well. So these are not advised!

After choosing the things that you want to include in your tank, you then have to make sure that you have the proper conditions for them. You have to ensure that the PH level, salt level and temperature are all correct for the things that you are going to place in your aquarium. If the conditions are not what the reef requires, then it will die! If taken care of ,your reef will grow to a beautiful picture and look absolutely stunning! What would you prefer?

About the author:

William Nabaza of http://www.Nabaza.com specializes in domains, webhosting, webmaster’s tools, netpreneur’s articles and resources. Stands out as a freebie provider, business opportunity provider and the like. Visit his site at http://www.nabaza.com or contact him directly at william@nabaza.com There’s more pet resources here: http://www.nabaza.com/pets.htm

Written By: William R. Nabaza of http://www.Nabaza.com/pets.htm