Many of us are happy to watch the erratic movement of fish in the aquarium. This sight calms and relaxes, but only a few know how troublesome the maintenance of a house of such beauty actually turns out to be.
Fish food
For many decades, home-fish lovers have been using daphnia as food for their aquarium pets. Even in Soviet times, these small crustaceans were caught by aquarists in natural reservoirs. It is clear that they should have known exactly where Daphnia lives. Then, the caught crustaceans were used not only live, but also frozen and dried. Of course, at home it is quite difficult to contain a large number of them, which is why many try to freeze daphnia during its mass reproduction in nature. If we talk about the nutritional value of frozen food, then it is almost inferior to living crustaceans. Currently, you can easily buy frozen daphnia in pet stores, which is why such an independent procurement becomes a relic of the past.
Daphnia structure
I would like to talk a little about how these branched crustaceans, which we call Daphnia, are arranged. Their body is rather strongly compressed laterally, the latter are covered with a bivalve chitinous shell.
Usually daphnia have two eyes, which are located on the head, but sometimes sexually mature individuals differ in the presence of one complex eye, next to which there may be an additional small eye. On a small head there are also two pairs of antennas. The rear (second) pair is additionally equipped with bristles and is large. It is thanks to the stroke of these antennas that Daphnia makes a peculiar leap when moving. Therefore, the people they are also called "water fleas."
Breeding crustaceans
If you look at the process of reproduction of these tiny crustaceans from a human point of view, it goes very unusual. Females of this species have a so-called brood chamber, which is reliably protected by the edge of the shell and is located on the back. When favorable conditions are created around, the female lays 50-100 unfertilized eggs in this cavity, where they develop. It is curious that only females that safely leave the chamber are hatched from these eggs. After a few days, the process repeats again, and young, grown and matured females will join this fast breeding process. That is why in the summer where Daphnia lives, the water seems to turn reddish. The reservoir is simply teeming with this plankton. When the end of summer comes, the temperature of air and water drops, males appear who fertilize females giving eggs with a denser shell. These fertilized eggs are called ephippias. Their distinctive feature is the ability to withstand winter frosts and drying out of water bodies, and they can spread with dust. With the onset of spring and heat, females hatch from them, and the life cycle repeats again.
Habitat
After we learned what Daphnia is, the habitat of these representatives of the planktonic genus should also become known to us, because for sure many of those who read this article are lovers of domestic fish and want to own such information. So, you can meet these tiny crustaceans in standing reservoirs, for example, lakes, ponds, as well as water pits, ditches and even puddles. Often, for their own harvesting of daphnia, places of their mass accumulation are excellent. This place can be identified quite easily: where Daphnia lives, the water most often has a gray-green or reddish hue. Food for them are ciliates, bacteria, plant plankton.
So different daphnia
Those who want to catch Daphnia on their own must take into account how sensitive they are to lighting. In bright light, the crustaceans will try to go to the depths. There are different types of daphnia. The most common crustacean in the middle lane is daphnia magna. The female reaches a length of 6 mm, but the male - only 2 mm. Usually they live 110-150 days and in one clutch they bring up to 80 eggs, which grow within 4-14 days. The smallest crustaceans reach only 1.5 mm in size and mature within a day, but they have litters every 1-2 days, up to 53 eggs.
What are they good for fish?
Why are aquarium fish lovers trying to feed them daphnia? Everything is very simple. Regardless of whether it is freshly frozen or freshly caught, their stomach is usually full of plant foods, and this is so useful for aquarium fish that lack a natural diet. That's why daphnia in the aquarium must be. Despite the fact that the shell of Daphnia is not digested, it serves as an excellent ballast substance. Thanks to him, the intestines of the fish become more active, which does not have the ability to fully move in the aquarium. Representatives of the smallest daphnia - the moin, popularly known as the "live-bearer" - are just perfect for aquarium fish that have not yet grown up.
If you plan to catch crustaceans on your own, it must be borne in mind that where daphnia lives, the population of crustaceans changes in sequence. For fishing use a tissue net, the cells of which must correspond to the desired catch. Some experienced "fishermen" advise catching a net with very small cells, and only then sort the food by size through a sieve with different cells. You can engage in fishing, starting in spring and until a crust of ice appears on the pond. They usually choose a shore protected from the wind for such an event in calm weather in the morning or in the evening. Ideal if the lighting is dim. Then daphnia, the habitat for which in this way becomes favorable, will rise to the upper layers.
Tips experienced
Remember that crustaceans cannot tolerate too much density, so keep this in mind when transporting daphnia after fishing. They can also die with a sharp change in temperature. This may concern the process of sorting and washing them, as well as feeding the fish. It is very important to note to the owners of aquariums that it is dangerous to feed your pets with unwashed crustaceans. This can lead to parasites or infections in your body of water.
