Culture Journal, Species: Tigriopus californicus

General
Species:  Tigriopus californicus
Species description:  Large red copepods. 1000µm-1500µm  
Culture source (link if possible):  Reed Mariculture. 
If algae, CCMP # (Optional): 
http://ccmp.bigelow.edu/
Culture Establishment Date:  07/10/2013
Continuation Date:  10/08/2013

Culturing Vessel Details
Salinity:  1.023
Temperature:    60 in fridge (back-up), 74 room temp (main culture) 
pH:  8.2 

Vessel description:  Original bottle for fridge back up. Small plastic container (old Parmesan cheese container) and a 2g rectangular tall rubber-maid container, and 2L flat Rubbermaid storage container.  
Lighting description:  Ambient
Lighting cycle:  Ambient
Aeration description:  None- in either culture. 

Methodologies
Split methodology: Harvest as needed, always keeping back a bit to have a back up.  splitting is inconsistent as it is based on how many I have available at the time.  Run entire culture through set of sieves (from BSD) and remove the size range I want to harvest- return the rest to the culture bucket (usually use this time to feed as well). 

Culture medium description:  saltwater, with food: couple drops of rotigrow+ OR Nannoclorpsis paste (glycerin free)  with the occasional drop of Iso paste.


Cell count: Started stock cultures with 1-2/mL, from reed mariculture 6oz bottle. (still plenty left in there!) 

Reference links:  

Additional Information
(No Pictures or Videos in the Section Please)
Notes: 

Feeding a drop of rotigrow plus, and a drop of Iso paste. 

You will be required to provide photographic evidence and as much detail as possible about your project in this thread.
If your thread does not contain detailed enough photos  and information the MBI Council will not be able to approve your reports.

Here is the current vessel their in, until I decide how I want to scale these guys up production wise.  

Close up shots with dissecting microscope at 20x magnification. 
 

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/wa...page&v=9eclme-CJMM
 
<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/9eclme-CJMM?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
[video][/video]

THat last shot looks like all the contents of it were squeezed out?

FWIW µ needs another letter, in this case, µm for micrometer  

Yes GreshamH, the contents were 'squeezed' out... so to speak. He slipped out of the dip of my concave slide just as I lowered the cover slip. and kersplat... I have been meaning to get more shots... but I figured the first couple were sufficient at showing the organism. Thanks for looking though! lol...
 
And thank you for the critique, you stand correct that the µ needs to indeed say µm instead... I will correct this as soon as possible. I assure you, a minor oversight.  

Ok, well, I have been incredibly lazy with this culture! I wish I could say I wasn't but then again, they are doing fine without more attention so.... eh... let 'em be! lol
 
My first container (the parmesian cheese container) has done well for small amounts, seems too small for my needs though. 
I have sense then started a larger 'cereal' container that has proved to be very succussful. There has been a huge population boom over the weekend, which I am very pleased to see. Plenty of young in their along with the adults. 
 
Pleased so far.
 

 

 
Definitely this second container is doing better than the little one though! 
 
Both are very rarely fed a couple of drops of rotigrow+ and to date only top offs have been done, no water changes. 

You should extract a sample of the sediment and put it under the scope.  You will be able to observe nauplii at different stages.  They tend to hang out in the debris that collects on the bottom of the culture tank.  The nauplii are really neat to see and you could get some good photos!

I'll do that! I just gotta do all my fun scope work when the little one's sleeping... lol.  
 

Ok, got both of those still going strong and still have several hundred more to work with for inoculating more tubs! So I just picked up a 25g BRT at walmart and intend to set them up tonight. Will have pics in the morning! 
 
 

Just within this last week there as been a HUGE population spike I would say the larger cereal container now has 300-500 individuals easily, and I can't see all the naups. I'll probably need to ramp up the food a bit as they haven't been eating all that much up until now. They are clearing out the containers close to every 4 days.  
 
I went ahead and harvest out of the larger container, only pulled about 30-50 pods out gave them a quick rinse and gave them to my baby banggai who was instantly in love with them of course! He ate them all with out second guessing what he was hitting! He was fat and happy all that morning. lol.
 
 

 
Ok just added a new container, to see how they will do with a more flat than vertical container. This is 11.4L or 12qt, or 3g plastic shoe-box container from walmart. They only have a bit of water in it as I still have to make up some more water tonight. But the space is nice! They are on top of the armoire breeding cabinet! 
 
More updates and pictures to come soon. 

They like surface area vs depth.  I think they will like this.

yeah, i'm sure they will like this much better, but only starting with a couple hundred pods i had vertical containers to just start it off. They did very well in the vertical containers (better than I initially assumed)... but I am eager to see how they do in these! 

 

 
 
 
Well I am very pleased with the new containers so far! The pods seem much more active and there is a slightly noticeable bloom already.... lots of little guys in there! (and this is much easier for me to see them in as well! 
 
Don't know if I've mentioned this already or not, but they have been getting a bit of T. Iso paste as well, and I really think this helps a ton as far as density goes. Seems I run thicker, more dense cultures with at least 2 types of food, verses just feeding them the one. Probably common sense, but thought I'd write it out for those who are reading this. 
 
 

looks like too much food to me, but I've crashed most of my indoor tiggers, so who am I to judge (pope quote)? 

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Kathy, I thought so initially as well, and ran several buckets with varying food amounts..... this one seems to be doing the best. (granit this is just after I poured all the food in though! lol). I typically feed 1-1.5mL of nanno paste **glycerin free** from BSD and 0.5-1mL of T. Iso paste from BSD and I do that once every few weeks. I only top off water with DI once every few weeks as well and really they have to be pretty evaporated to get any attention. 
 
All the buckets I put more attention to (more smaller frequent meals, water changes, frequent harvests...etc..) seem to crash on me all the time. If I don't pay attention to it except once in a while with a good heavy feeding and a possible top off- doesn't crash! And theirs plenty of stuff settling at the bottom too.
 
Dirty looking, but working! 

Ok time to put in a continuation report on these guys!
 

Made multiple splits a few days ago... trying to add in a few more trey's of these guys. Baby banggai's eating them up quicker than I can grow 'em!  
 
Here's some scope pics of a small handful I isolated for a new split container. 
 

nice!
 

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Thanks Kathy- really wasn't sure how well these indoor cultures would go, as sooooo many people said they would crash, and do great outdoors... 
 
But I feel like it's hard to crash these cultures by the way I maintain them. Which is by not touching them that is. 
 
Last time I did a split/ water change was september... all I do is harvest when I want to feed them off to babies. Feed heavily and ignore for a few weeks at a time, then top them off with DI straight into their containers. 
 
Nice little pattern to be in with these guys. 

Jazz, I haven't unlocked the secret to these little critters either, but I also find the less attention I give them the better they do.  I feed lightly once or twice a week.  I've never actually crashed them though, they are very easy to "just keep alive".  If you ever think a culture has crashed, poor off most of the water and keep the sludge, add fresh water.  Chances are there are nauplii (or eggs?) in the sludge.  I've tried a variety of foods, although I haven't tried Isochrysis yet, and surprisingly none have made any noticeable difference.  Maybe the secret is simply volume. 

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

I have so found that less is more with these. I keep mine in a plastic cereal container and keep the water tinted pretty darkly constantly with no aeration and they do fine.

I've been horrible about getting on here and updating my journals... my day job's taking up a lot of time as of late! But I needed to check cultures tonight and had a charged battery on the camera so took the opportunity to snap a few pictures.  
 

https://www.youtube.com/w...g&feature=youtu.be