A rearing system for the culture of ornamental decapod crustacean larvae - R. Calado,*, L. Narciso , S. Morais , A.L. Rhyne , J. Lin

A rearing system for the culture of ornamentaldecapod crustacean larvae R. Caladoa,*, L. Narcisoa, S. Moraisa, A.L. Rhyneb, J. Linb
http://www.aquariterraneen.fr/PDF_Ricardo_Calado/ngsystemforthecultureofornamentaldecapodcrustaceanlarvae.pdf
 
I came across a link to this rearing system somehow, and well, what interested me when I saw it is this - to some extent these are not dissimilar from the MacDonald Jars / upwelling incubation devices used to incubate trout eggs and the like...just on a recirculating system.  HMMMMM...  
 
Eg. - http://www.fishfarmsupply.ca/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=FFS&Product_Code=J30&Category_Code=Hatch
 

I love that report, and have referred to it lots.  I have all my supplies to build such a system, but I haven't had the time to put it together.

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

The link dosent seem to work for me :-(

Interestingly, I can no longer find the full report online for free either.  I'm glad I saved it to my computer!

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

Found it!
 
http://www.pdffiller.com/...-Forms-aquariterraneen
 
Just hit fill online and it gives you the full article for free, and lets you download it!

I must be missing something about these.  They are cylindri-conical with a bottom drain valve, but otherwise look like any other larval tank.  They have interchangeable mesh screens on the overflow.  The water input is low in the tank to create an upflow instead of dripping water at the surface for agitation of the air/water interface.
 
What am I missing that makes these so effective?  

The cylindri-conical bottom. Regular cones have too sharp of an angle and tend to batter the larvae to death. Also, piping the returns way down to the bottom of the tank to try to set up kreisel-like flow patterns all around the tank. The flow patterns won't be perfect, of course, which allows larvae to kind of pick and choose where they are most comfortable, at least when then get a little older.

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

Andy, I see that non-cornered tanks are better than cornered tanks for pelagic larvae that evolved in the open ocean.  But I don't know what you mean by "regular cones have a sharper angles that batter larvae than cylindri-conical"?  Are you talking about 4 piece pyramidal cones made like a brine shrimp hatchery with 4 flat planes made into an upside down pyramid?  When you mention the word "cones" I tend to think of something round, like an upside down orange traffic cone.  My first thought isn't a cone with flat sides and corners.     
 
Sorry I'm not sure I fully understand what you meant by "cones" but I hope I get it now.  Am I still missing something?  

What you want is a cone with a curve. Straight sides make for bad water flow and larvae getting beat on the sides. Like so:
 

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

Thank you Andy, for the clarification.  Now I see it.  Sometimes a picture is so much simpler.

 
I can't find a way to download it for free.  It wants credit card information and wants to charge me a monthly fee.

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

http://www.researchgate.n...apod_crustacean_larvae

The flush and filter method they're using to dispose of uneaten food might be applicable to other rearing tanks with larvae that are susceptible to ammonia spikes after feedings.  Using different sized screens to "classify" the culture tank discharge I can see as worth trying out.

-Matt
-Avid supporter of the Laws of Nature-