If you are looking to start a large culture with rapid reproduction then we recommend you start with a large bottle of rotifers.
What you need is the following;
1. Culture vessel. This can be anything such as a 5 or 10 gallon aquarium / bucket etc. that holds water.
2. Culture water. You will need some freshly mixed clean seawater, do not use water from an existing aquarium or culture as this will contaminate your attempt to start a new culture of rotifers. A specific gravity of 1.017 to 1.021 for our strain of rotifer is suggested.
3. Small air pump, and airline tubing (Do not use an airstone).
4. Cover to keep dust and contaminants out and evaporation down.
5. A food source, such as Reefphyto Rotifer Feed.
6. Brief steps on how to get started. Fill your container half to two-thirds full with the clean seawater.Attach the airline to the air pump.
Place the end of the airline into culture vessel, and plug in the air pump. Make sure you use a drip loop and check valve to keep water from getting into your pump and electrical outlet. Depending on the size of your initial rotifer culture add a few drops of our Reefphyto rotifer feed to lightly color the culture water and your done.We will email a detailed rotifer culturing fact sheet once you have made your purchase or you can find it here to help you get started.
Pausing your rotifer culture?
Since rotifers need to be maintained/harvested every day, it can be a problem if you go away for several days. Fortunately there is an easy way to put your rotifers in "holiday mode" (hibernation): Pour a liter or so of your culture into a 1 litter container. Cover loosely to allow oxygen to enter.Add a bit of extra algae to darken the culture, Put the liter container into your refrigeratorAfter 7 days 50% of your rotifers should be alive,
After 14 days 15% of your rotifers should be aliveRestart your culture using our rotifer fact sheet.
What Are Rotifers?
Rotifers (Brachionus plicatilis) are very tiny animals measuring between 130-200 micrometers. Rotifers are often raised as food for live corals and fish larvae. They are the ideal starter food for species of fish such as clownfish fry which have tiny larvae with very, very tiny mouths. Who Should Use Rotifers? Almost any marine aquarium will benefit from the addition of rotifers, Their size and excellent nutritional value (50% to 65% protein) make them the perfect live food for all (freshwater and marine) fry, anemones, sponges etc.
How To Feed Rotifers?
To add them to your system, simply pour the bottle directly into the aquarium or use our rotifer sieve to strain them. Feed as little or as much as required. Rotifers can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days if you do not want to feed them all at the same time. Rotifers are perfect for a reef's food source because they multiply very rapidly and they are just the right size for almost all filter feeders.
Which Rotifers Do You Stock?
We stock (Brachionus plicatilis) which is the "L" strain which range in size from 150-360 microns. Our rotifers cultured in saltwater with a specific gravity of 1.019. Our rotifer cultures are usually maintained at a population density of 50 to 200 rotifers per ml of water.
Our live rotifers are available in 4 different size bottles, including a concentrated solution which includes 3ltrs of live rotifers in one bottle, please select the size you require from the drop down box above.
