Breeding live brine shrimp

Not sure where to post this...
I am wondering 2 things about brine shrimp. First, I've heard/read that they are not nutritional enough for every day feeding, but are good for a "treat" for the fish. Can anyone confirm or deny that?

Second, I'm wondering, if I have live ones (not eggs), is it possible to breed them to keep a stock of them or do you have to have the eggs? I've seen several articles on the internet about raising eggs, but nothing about having the hatched ones and breeding with them. Any thoughts?

 

I tried buying live ones and keeping them in the refugium ... they were dead the next day...but I also didn't acclimate them ...just dumped them in, so that could have been the problem.

 

Brine shrimp are nutritional only when they're first hatched and still have a yolk sack. Breeding and hatching brine shrimp is a messy and time consuming process so I wouldn't bother, especially considering their nutritional value is practically nil once the egg sack is gone.

 

I have read it somewhere that the eggs need to be dried/freeze dried before it can hatch. Not sure tho.

 

Unfortunately this is a myth that has been passed on for so long, by so many uninformed people that the true value of brine shrimp seems to be known by only the mariculture industry that uses them as a major part of their feeding regeme to produce fish and shrimp for us to eat. While the brine shrimp are more costly than some foods the industry could use, the brine shrimp have proved to be more productive in the long run. Also the brine shrimp have the added advantage of being able to convey other nutrients/vitamins merely by gut loaded the brine with whatever they wish to target feed their product.
The best total information I've found comes via the UN article edited by experts from the Laboratory of Aquaculture and Artemia Reference Center University of Ghent The article contains a wealth of information on many live foods in addition to brine shrimp.
The brine shrimp article also has a piece on nutrition of juveniles and adults as well as the nauplii. Nauplii are high in the huffa's, low in protein, while the juveniles and adults lack a lot in the haffa content, but excel in the protein levels. And, as mentioned, these levels can be boosted by gut loading.
CLICK HERE AND SCROLL DOWN TO ARTEMIA, SECTION 4

 

Brine shrimp are easy to grow to adults if you only want a few at a time, and don't mind waiting the 3 to 4 weeks for them to grow. (more containers started at different times can give continuous supply)
Many hobbyists have found that nauplii left forgotten in a container and merely left for a time, produced adults, and even adults with newborn nauplii, so yes, you can use purchased live adults to produce more.
The more dense the numbers you wish to use though, the more work it becomes.
If I could buy live adult brine shrimp, I wouldn't grow them, but there are none available in southwestern Ontario, or for that matter probably most of Canada, as the shipping costs to bring them in are prohibitive.
This page on my web site shows basically how I grow them out.
RAISING BRINE SHRIMP TO ADULT

 

wow.... rayjay... that is an amazing link! So much info. Thank you for your input. What do you gut load your bs with??

 

I use Tahitian Blend from Brine Shrimp Direct to feed them with all the time so they are always gut loaded and I can take some out, rinse, and put in the tanks at any stage/time of growth.
For specifics I have Selco, also from Brine Shrimp Direct which is the fatty acids or Huffas as some know it.
For high protein levels I use the high grade spirulina from Jehmco, about 95% spirulina compared to normal spirulina which is usually around 45% spirulina.