Does decapsulating brine shrimp eggs work?

[Bengals888]

Hi,

Is it a high success rate to successfully hatch decapsulated brine shrimp eggs?

I have tried several attemps but all failed. I am using new batch of brine shrimp eggs off ebay
which says to hatch at 86 degrees, also comes from China so that might be a hatching problem in itself.

I rehydrate the eggs for 1 hours in tap water, add 1 cup bleach. After 15 mins, the eggs look white,
overall still dark brown. I have seen videos that say 7-15 mins. I don’t see color change this quickly.

I will just let it bubble till I see some orange color I hope.

Any suggestions?

I have purchased new eggs, brine shrimp direct ones.

Thanks

 

[Lovemyreef2015]

I've always used San Francisco Bay brand Brine Shrimp hatch and have had great success. Very simple instructions as well. I have never heard of using bleach or tap water to hatch brine eggs.

 

[Bengals888]

It is to decapsulate the cyst, shell. I was curious what the success rate of hatching after decapsulation.

 

[Bengals888]

No one has used bleached to dissolve the brine shrimp cyst and hatched them???

 

[Clownfish2]

I don’t have any experience decapsulating. I too use the San Francisco brand which is really easy. I put a 1/2 teaspoon of eggs in half gallon of freshly made saltwater 1.026. Add a heater, air bubbler, and a clamp on light. 12 hours later most of them hatch by then.

 

[Breadman03]

I haven't, but read about it in Wilkerson's "Clownfishes."

You might have better luck posting in the fish breeding forum, or possibly the aquarium nutrition forum. Searching each forum for the term "decapsulate" returns 18 results.

 

[Bengals888]

Ok, not too popular then. Thanks. I looked up here and various places. I have another day to go, if any decapsulated eggs hatch.

 

[wesman42]

Considering white blood cells produce something almost identical to bleach in order to kill bacteria, viruses and other pathogens....I'd not feel comfortable using bleach on an egg of any kind.

 

[Bengals888]

Considering white blood cells produce something almost identical to bleach in order to kill bacteria, viruses and other pathogens....I'd not feel comfortable using bleach on an egg of any kind.

I understand your concerns. Few sites who sells brine shrimp eggs has instructions on their website. I was just trying to gather more info on who actually does this and succesful with it. They do sell live decapsulated eggs for hatching.

It is the goal, bleach killing bacteria and removing the cyst before hatching.

 

[Sallstrom]

We do this at work. Just like you say, eggs and water for about an hour. Then add bleach, bubble for about 10-15 minutes, until you see the colour change.
We cool the container with tap water during the bath with bleach. Otherwise the temperature will go up.

After that, rinse the eggs well under tap water until you don't smell bleach anymore.

Then we put the eggs in saltwater with high salinity, over 50 ppt, in a small bucket and place it in the refrigerator.

To hatch them we take a spoonful of eggs from that bucket, rinse in tap water for a couple of minutes. Then add them a container together with newly mixed saltwater and an air line. 48 hours later we separate eggs from the water, and put the eggs in new saltwater. Then use them to feed jellyfish and other filter feeders.

Let me know if you want a more details

Yes, and even after 6-7 years of this routine, we still fail with a batch now and then

 

[wesman42]

We do this at work. Just like you say, eggs and water for about an hour. Then add bleach, bubble for about 10-15 minutes, until you see the colour change.
We cool the container with tap water during the bath with bleach. Otherwise the temperature will go up.

After that, rinse the eggs well under tap water until you don't smell bleach anymore.

Then we put the eggs in saltwater with high salinity, over 50 ppt, in a small bucket and place it in the refrigerator.

To hatch them we take a spoonful of eggs from that bucket, rinse in tap water for a couple of minutes. Then add them a container together with newly mixed saltwater and an air line. 48 hours later we separate eggs from the water, and put the eggs in new saltwater. Then use them to feed jellyfish and other filter feeders.

Let me know if you want a more details

Yes, and even after 6-7 years of this routine, we still fail with a batch now and then

This is fascinating. I'd love to know the biology on this. Does bleach not perfect penetrate the actual egg?

 

[NoSurfnAZ]

I have been decapsulating brine for a long time using bleach. I gave up. I have been successful at it but have been wasting a lot of eggs as well. I’m not sure, but I think that there are differences in the various brands of bleach. Some is concentrated. I finally gave up and ordered decapsulated eggs from brine shrimp direct.com. Not much more expensive than regular eggs. Good luck.

 

[Bengals888]

We do this at work. Just like you say, eggs and water for about an hour. Then add bleach, bubble for about 10-15 minutes, until you see the colour change.
We cool the container with tap water during the bath with bleach. Otherwise the temperature will go up.

After that, rinse the eggs well under tap water until you don't smell bleach anymore.

Then we put the eggs in saltwater with high salinity, over 50 ppt, in a small bucket and place it in the refrigerator.

To hatch them we take a spoonful of eggs from that bucket, rinse in tap water for a couple of minutes. Then add them a container together with newly mixed saltwater and an air line. 48 hours later we separate eggs from the water, and put the eggs in new saltwater. Then use them to feed jellyfish and other filter feeders.

Let me know if you want a more details

Yes, and even after 6-7 years of this routine, we still fail with a batch now and then

Thanks!
I got spoiled from warmer weather, hatch after 12 hrs. It’s cooler now so it took over 24 hrs to hatch plus I used heater this time.

I also added ice cubes during the bleach process to cool down the water temp. as to not destroy the yolk.

Mine are hatching now, not sure percentage.

Will wait and see if more hatch, colony collapse...

 

[Bengals888]

Also, for me it takes 60 mins in bleach solution.
Not sure how it can be done in 10-15 min.

I’m also curious if they will hatch with the cysts at the white color stage to be on safe side.

 

[Bengals888]

We do this at work. Just like you say, eggs and water for about an hour. Then add bleach, bubble for about 10-15 minutes, until you see the colour change.
We cool the container with tap water during the bath with bleach. Otherwise the temperature will go up.

After that, rinse the eggs well under tap water until you don't smell bleach anymore.

Then we put the eggs in saltwater with high salinity, over 50 ppt, in a small bucket and place it in the refrigerator.

To hatch them we take a spoonful of eggs from that bucket, rinse in tap water for a couple of minutes. Then add them a container together with newly mixed saltwater and an air line. 48 hours later we separate eggs from the water, and put the eggs in new saltwater. Then use them to feed jellyfish and other filter feeders.

Let me know if you want a more details

Yes, and even after 6-7 years of this routine, we still fail with a batch now and then

Hi,

Any tips on improving hatch rate? I guess roughly mine is 50% right now.

Did you mean you allow 48 hour hatching time and there are still lots unhatched eggs?

Thanks

 

[Clownfish2]

Hi,

Any tips on improving hatch rate? I guess roughly mine is 50% right now.

Did you mean you allow 48 hour hatching time and there are still lots unhatched eggs?

Thanks

For a good hatch rate:
1.Keep brine shrimp eggs in the freezer during storage
2.Heating the water to 78 F with a clamp on light overhead will hatch then in 12 hours.
3. 12 hours after hatch, they are mature enough to begin feeding
4. Siphon them out and place them in new saltwater and tint the water with phytoplankton or spirulina powder.
5. I will add drops of birospira and cloramX to the culture to reduce ammonia spikes
6. I will do a couple 50-75% water changes when the culture is new (first 2 weeks). After that, can go month or longer without changing the water.

Here are some 4 day old baby brine:

 

[Bengals888]

Wow, yours are pretty big at 4 days old.

I was wondering if there is something else I’m missing during the decap process that might improve hatch rate.

When I hatched the decapped eggs, I did not have the heater on during first night. That might have been the issue, will try again soon.

Thanks for tip on biospora cloramx I will try that.

What size container do you grow them in?
Just rigid airline?

Yours is pretty dense yet they look healthy and thriving.

Do yours reach adult size in 2 weeks?

 

[Clownfish2]

Those previous pictures, I held a magnifying glass against the culture and put my iPhone camera up to it. I’d say they are half the size of a copepod now. I grow them in 1 gallon jars with a bubbler. Takes atleast a month to get big.

I noticed they shoal together in a corner of the jar. Not sure why.

 

[Bengals888]

Ok, lol, that makes sense. Thought you had some secret miracle grow recipe.

Not sure either, usually they would go to the light unless the light fixture ballast is emitting some EMF keeping them in that one area.

Are you successful in growing them out to adult in one month or you feed fish at various stages?

 

[Clownfish2]

Ok, lol, that makes sense. Thought you had some secret miracle grow recipe.

Not sure either, usually they would go to the light unless the light fixture ballast is emitting some EMF keeping them in that one area.

Are you successful in growing them out to adult in one month or you feed fish at various stages?

My last batch I hatched in June were still alive a few weeks ago when I fed them to my fish as a snack so they lived 6 months. They also will reproduce. I’d say they can grow to 1/2 inch long easily. At that size, my clownfish would bite onto one and a 1/3 of the shrimp would be wiggling out of his mouth.

I hatch them just for fun. Also if I have a sick fish or a finiky eater who refuses pellets, they will attack the brine shrimp most of the time.