Sizes of common fish fry foods - Reference
Note: This is a work in progress, to be updated
| genus |
size |
notes |
| Vinegar Eels |
50 micron diameter |
1 - 2mm long, freshwater |
| Rotifers |
100 - 500 microns |
freshwater and saltwater varieties; some can be 50μm - 2mm |
| Artemia nauplii - newly hatched brine shrimp |
400-500 microns |
raised in saltwater; commonly fed to fresh fry |
| Copepods |
1-2 mm typically |
saltwater; great variation in size |
| Daphnia |
1-5 mm |
freshwater |
| Artemia - adult brine shrimp |
8-12 mm |
not nutritious unless gut-loaded |
Freshwater fry size progression and alternatives
| species |
size |
food |
culture notes |
| Vinegar Eels |
50 micron diameter |
apple, vinegar |
stable and very easy |
| Brachionus plicatilis - fresh water rotifer |
105 - 160μm |
phytoplankton, bacteria |
easy, crash with over population; salinity tolerant |
| Brachionus rubens - fresh water rotifer |
~150-250μm |
phytoplankton, bacteria |
easy, crash with over population |
| Brachionus calyciflorus - fresh water rotifer |
200-600μm |
phytoplankton, bacteria |
easy, crash with over population |
| Artemia nauplii - newly hatched brine shrimp |
400-500 microns |
|
feed soon after hatching or gut load; need "decapsulation |
| Daphnia |
1-5 mm |
microalgae, spirulina powder, baker's yeast |
Highly nutritious, easy to culture |
| Artemia - adult brine shrimp |
8-12 mm |
phyto (such as nannochloropsis) |
Lots of info available, kits, etc. More involved than other cultures, decapsulation may be needed |
Marine fry size progression and alternatives
| species |
size |
food |
culture notes |
| Parvocalanus crassirostris (copepod) |
40-100μm |
phytoplankton |
easy crash with over population; highly nutritious |
| Brachionus plicatilis - fresh water rotifer |
105 - 160μm |
phytoplankton, bacteria |
easy, crash with over population; salinity tolerant; not as nutritious as copepods |
| Tisbe Biminiensis (copepod) |
|
phytoplankton |
highly nutritious; no enrichment necessary |
| Apocyclops |
|
|
|
| Oithona |
|
|
|
| Artemia nauplii - newly hatched brine shrimp |
400-500 microns |
|
feed soon after hatching or gut load; need "decapsulation |
| Tigriopus Californicus (copepod) |
250μm - 1.7mm |
phytoplankton |
easy crash with over population |
| Artemia - adult brine shrimp |
8-12 mm |
phyto (such as nannochloropsis) |
Lots of info available, kits, etc. More involved than other cultures, decapsulation may be needed |
Culture resources:
Culturing Copepods
