Algagen Group Order?

I'll try to get in touch with him tomorrow, but it would be difficult to
culture a mix of algaes. The strong will quickly outcompete the weaker.

What if we all cultured a different species, then we traded?!

Just a comparison. I can usually get nannochloropsis cultures to about 20 million cells/ml. The instant-algae that only has nannochloropsis has about 68 billion cells/ml. So one ml of the instant algae is equal to almost 3.4 liters of homegrown. Sounds wrong to me and I think a lot of the cells are dead in the instant algae.

Suzy, i like the idea of making our own super-mix. I'll be growing 3 species i think (tetraselmis, t-isochrysis and rhodomonas) maybe even nannochloropsis if i have the room.

I am soooo excited! Erik emailed back!!!!

So, it turns out he wants us to get the Phycopure from our LFS! That is
good, 'cause S&H won't be so heavy. I know Chad at The Pet Factory had
some last tine I was there. Has anyone seen it elsewhere?

The PURE microalgae cultures are $25 bucks each. They are in 250 ml
liquid form, so we can start them quick! I remember a few of the
species...but not all.

Nannoclorosis- easy to grow
Chaetocerous- A bit harder, diatom that needs silicates
Tetraselmis- moderately easy to grow and has a natural antibiotic
Rhodomonas- Very fickle, but the most nutritious of all
Isochrysis- I could not get this one to grow! Not supposed to be that
       hard, but....I did get this one from FAFUSA, so maybe it was a bad
       plate?

There are a few more. I just emailed Erik to find out the others...


Here is the coolest thing! Eric is going to give us a discount on his
Papered pedigreed Copepods! I really really want some! Here's a cut N
paste from his email:


"""""The copepods are typically $50 per 1000 with a 3000 min
order($150). I can give them to YOU at a discount of $35...I do not give
this price out often. PLease understand that the Acartia and any other
pelagic species is very different from the benthic types that eat the
detritus (the species found in sea/ocean pods). Those detrital eaters are
called harpacticoids and are very common on live rock and in most reef
tanks. The Acartia and other calanoids, parvo-calanoids are not
common and these are the types are and have been used very
successfully in raising difficult to grow species, increasing overall survival
from 10% to 80%+. They require microalgae and some level of care to
raise successfully. I would recommend trying them and if you go ahead I
would work with you so that you can have a positive experience with
them. """"


So, zooplankton Lovers!!!! I am sooooo excited!!!! Last time I shared my
pods, this time we need 3 people to order them! These are way cooler
than our last pod order!

I think I am not going to share these very special cultures, 'cause I want
to get a bunch of people going in on this order.

I know we have a few breeders in our ranks. When you get fry, you are
going to want these! And, you weirdo coral lovers, what are you feeding
your lifeforms?

Anybody want 'em? If I can get more than 3 of us, we can split 'em!

   

Ok im in Suzy. So is he going to ship the pure cultures to the LFS?

I'll take the Rhodomonas culture and the T-Iso culture.

Hmmm, those acartia sound tempting to try. Have you tried those before Suzy?

Yahoo! Ok, so I'll start the list here:

Phytos: Adam: Iso, Rhodo
Suzy: Chaeto!!
Bob: Nanno
Rodney?
Amie: tetraselmis
Josh?

Super Pods:
Suzy
Bob
OceanBlue Sky
Where are the seahorse breeders?

I have not tried these these pods before, but I have tried others and they
are easy. You can feed them paste or phyto or fish poo or flake stuff!
They are the only zooplanton I know that can make it's own DHA/EPA.
The others are just a package to carry the fatty acids of the phyto they
eat. I think they are much better than rotifers, easier and more nutritious.
I think Erik will ship cultures to us. I'm waiting for a return Email about
the other algaes I can't remember!

Edited by Suzy

Suzy, I'd like to try some Nano, but it appears now is not the time.  I just got stuck with a ton of work so I wouldn't be able to set it up for at least a month.  I'm also broke after setting up my 130 and now I have to work to pay the bills rather than the hobby.

When I'm finally ready to do this I'll see if anyone has a culture I can "frag".  Thanks!

Suzy, I usually pay for "Frags" anyway.  I'd be more than happy to buy my portion in the future, I just don't want to buy it now and have it die before I get to set it up.  I think it is pretty rude to wait for you to buy it and then ask for a start for free.  Problem is you've just always been too nice.

OK, Adam and Bob, it might just be you and me. Should we bag it and do
it another time? Maybe when winter comes there will be more interest...

BananaTropics wrote: Im not too sure about the cryopreservation. They use MeOH, DMSO or maybe another chemical which I believe prevents the cells from freezing. So if you keep them in the freezer, the cells are not actually frozen, just very very cold... ...track it back to who started the culture. Did you say you got it from Mark?

Re: Freezing - Tim Troy, BSD owner, told me they use Glucose to keep the algae paste from going solid below 32 degrees F.

I got the culture from DNellans with the understanding that it was Tetraselmis.

Edited by Mark Peterson

I'd like the Nannoclorosis.  I might want tetraselmis also, but I need to look under the microscrope at the phyto I currently have to see what it is.  I'll do that tomorrow.  How large are the individual phyto. cultures going to be?

If I knew more about copopods, I might be interested - but I would have a clue what to do with them.  Do you just dump them into your refugium or do you set up a hatchery area for them?  Is it like growing rotifers?  Are they smaller/bigger than rotifers?