An economical, portable system for hatching brine shrimp Artemia spp.

Design and construction of a portable, inexpensive hatching system for brine shrimp A hernia spp. is described. The system design is based on batch culture methodology, which is easily customized to the feeding requirements of a larval system and optimizes the nutritional value of brine shrimp. This system can be set up quickly and provides stable temperature and aeration under a variety of external conditions. Harvest and separation of nauplii is facilitated by the shape of the culture vessel and placement of a light near the bottom of the vessel. During 14-d feeding trials, mean percent hatch of brine shrimp nauplii was 71% (59-81%) at 24 h and 83% (74-94%) at 28 h. Hatching rate was consistent across a range of initial cyst densities.