Composition :
80% Nannochloropsis and 20% Tetraselmis.
For the cultivation of rotifers, two species of easy reefs® microalgae are used:
Nannochloropsis (80%) + Tetraselmis (20%).
The dosage will depend on the number of rotifers reached. The average consumption is 4 ml Easyroti per liter of rotifer culture per day (25% of the rotifers will be harvested each day).
To maintain a culture of rotifers, follow the instructions below:
Necessary material :
3 cylindrical bottles of 2 L with slow bubbling.
Rotifer inocula.
Cultivation cycle from the strain: 5 days
Recommended saltwater specific gravity: 1019, although they can be grown well up to 1022.
Cultivation temperature: 22ºC to 28ºC. Optimum cultivation temperature: 24ºC.
To filter rotifers, you must use a 50 micron mesh.
Once you start the culture, you can harvest the rotifers after 6 days. You will have one vial for the "strain" and another for the "production" culture.
The following information describes the dosage to use under ideal conditions assuming rotifer density is ideal. It is sometimes possible that the quantities of microalgae added are not adapted to the demand of the rotifers. This is because in aquariums people don't count rotifers, so the amount of microalgae added is not accurate to the amount of rotifers. If the culture water becomes clear, it means that the amount of microalgae is not enough. If the rotifer goes without food for more than 4 hours, the number of eggs will decrease as well as the yield of population growth. It is essential that the rotifer always has food.
Rotifers are very sensitive to changes in water parameters. The rotifer population will be affected if the water quality decreases. If you observe an excess of dirt in the cylinder, you must filter the rotifer and start the culture in a new clean bottle and add the necessary amount of microalgae.
The amount of microalgae needed depends on the intensity of the green color of the vial. With time and experience, the green color difference will allow us to establish our own feeding protocols. There is no difference between using live microalgae or Easyroti as food. We will place a glass tube with a slight bubbling of air (5-10 bubbles per second) in the graduated flask used for the culture of rotifers. This mixing of air will make it possible to obtain a homogeneous mixture in the culture. Excessive water movement will cause the rotifers to lose their eggs, so they will not hatch.
It is recommended to feed twice a day. But due to lack of time, rotifers are usually fed once a day.
