Copepod farmers

[Papitto]

Hi MASA,

I have been looking at getting a Mandarin in my DT for a while now. I have a Ruby red dragonet for a while already and he/she is nice and fat.
I have to assume I have lots of pods in my DT. My sump is full of amphipods and many pods (benthic species) that I cant easily identify.

Are there any local pod farmers that have access to different varieties of pods, whether its the benthic species or free-swimming/Biminiensis etc.
I have a spare 3foot tank I want to setup as breeding grounds for pods.
I read an interesting online thread where a person used corrugated plastic etc. But I want to create low maintenance pod breeding tank which I can control temp/salinity/top-up etc.

Any thoughts or advise will be appreciated.
Oh NB: My phyto-culture and Rotifer culture crashed on me during the recent heatwave... bummer!

 

[devesh.r]

Tagging, my aim is also to.keep a mandarin.

 

[madmatt]

Tagging

 

[RiaanP]

They come and go. In my quarantine tank, at one point in time there where loads of them, running all over the sides. Different types as well. Had no fish in there and they could multiply as they wish.

Today, there are none. Well, none I can see. Tank is running empty again already for a month, and nothing is really happening.

 

[Papitto]

They come and go. In my quarantine tank, at one point in time there where loads of them, running all over the sides. Different types as well. Had no fish in there and they could multiply as they wish.

Today, there are none. Well, none I can see. Tank is running empty again already for a month, and nothing is really happening.

I was wondering how that works. Like at the moment I dont see many in my DT, but my refugium in my sump, there are loads.
Is there a dormancy period, where there is die off except for eggs/cysts that remain until a later stage like rotifers?
Maybe I should just choose a "nesting" piece of LR and keep transferring between the refugium and DT once a week. This should assist with the pod availability in my DT.

 

[RiaanP]

Maybe I should just choose a "nesting" piece of LR and keep transferring between the refugium and DT once a week.

that should help.

 

[CameL]

Things move around the system irrespective of pumps, filter socks etc..
I have discovered this in my own tank recently as i have had snails spawn, i now have snails everywhere, in my sump included. this is through the overflow, through a filter sock.
pods, brittle stars, asterina stars can all travel through pumps.
That being said, transferring the LR between the two is a good option.

 

[greatwyt]

what i have seen people do is take a few pieces of small live rock in a small mesh bag, leave that in your refugium/area where there are most pods, then shake out the mesh bag in your display once a week, you should free some pods or at least pod eggs thereby fast seeding your display