Brine Shrimp Question

[whyjune1st]

My axie eggs just hatched so I started trying to hatch some baby brine shrimp. Its been about 24 hours and there seem to be large black balls in the hatchery. I was wondering if anyone could tell me what they were and if i needed to start my hatching process over. Also how do I know when the brine shrimp have hatched? I'v included a picture so you guys can see what i'm dealing with.

Thanks,
Ben

 

[MereB]

Newly hatched BBS are a nice orange color and if you watch them closely (they are tiny) you will see them wiggling/vibrating. What you have there looks about the right color and I can see some shells floaring around the edge at the surface so something has hatched and I would have expected you to be seeing hatched BBS by now. What's your hatchery setup like?

I have no idea what the black balls are . What sort of brine shrimp eggs are you using? The ones I use are black to start (in their shells) and the shells can clump together after hatching if left to sit still for very long but they look like lots of little black dot's stuck together in a random shaped blob not like those balls from what I can tell.

Is it possible there was something in the airpump you were using to agitate the water that got dislodged and blown into the water?

 

[whyjune1st]

I dont think it could be anything from the pump. As you can see from the picture I have an air stone on the end of the tubing so nothing that large could possibly come out of it. My setup is a gallon milk container cut in half with the tube put through the handle down to the cap. Could it be because I didnt cover the container? I'm not sure.

 

[twistedfisher]

it very well could be that something has gotten into it. I prefer to use the 2liter bottle cookers like the one in the photo here that i made a few year ago. The picture has green water in the hatchery so you can see the bubbles moving up it.

 

[Jennewt]

The black bits look like some pieces of gravel that got in somehow. What I see looks like it could be unhatched eggs. The critical question is, can you see any movement? When they start to hatch, it will be obvious when you look up close.

When/where did you get the BS eggs? To hatch, eggs need to be fairly fresh and properly stored. It is possible to have a batch of duds.

 

[bayhicoach]

I haven't the foggiest notion what the black things are - very unusual indeed.

About hatching brine shrimp, it depends on how many mouths you have to feed but I have been successful with small batches in a 20 ounce bottle that looks much like the 2 Liter setup pictured above. I also like to keep the water about 80 degrees F so they hatch in about 24 hours.

Newly hatched brine shrimp are positively phototrophic - they will swim toward light - so if you want to know if there are any in there, just shine a light on one side of the bottle and take a close look. You'll see the little orange buggers hopping about in the water near the brightest part of the light beam.

 

[femme]

To check if they hatched i just used to turn the pump off and wait 5 mins.. the eggs float and the bbs gather at the bottom. Your batch may still hatch, it depends on the temperature you got them at. The warmer the water the faster they hatch, tho if its too warm they won't hatch at all. Once you get the hang of it you will wonder why you were so worried about it, its as easy as pie - well thats what i thought when i first started hatching them