Duke3d Posted February 13, 2005 Report Share Posted February 13, 2005 Being the sort of caring hobbyist I am, I trudged down to the local river today which comes from a pond, which I thought may contain some goodies for my fishies. Got some great still water and bought back about 40L of it. I now have a bin and a few buckets outside. In them I am hoping to cultivate some mosquito larvae (will have to stop spraying them). I think this shouldn't be far away just once the nights warm up a bit. Interestingly enough there were a lot of little bugs in the water - do not look like Daphna (but there are different kinds which I only know the one that whiplashes forward - jitters). A few waterboatmen aswell to keep me amused. I have read on the net through all the live food sections that waterboatmen aren't/shouldn't be used. However once I diving into water boatmen i have found a couple of interesting things 1 These guys eat mosquito larvae 2 Will also eat the Daphna 3 They are part of a fishes staple diet in wild. I have my tub of worms which I found out a month ago are no stinkin good due to the tiger worm taking over and being repungnant to fish. I experimented with one today, and while the fish played with it there was no eating. I have my tub of white worms. This isn't going awfully well so will have to put some more effort in here. Too wet I think, and food is going mouldy which isn't helping. http://www.ak.planet.gen.nz/~bio/index.html above is a link to website devoted to selling live food to fish and us for cultivation - I am awaiting their response on a couple of questions as Micro and MealWorms look good. Well thats my growing efforts - need something more substantial as a staple diet. Please people share your insect rearing efforts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiverJohn Posted February 13, 2005 Report Share Posted February 13, 2005 I got some meal worms a while ago. My silver sharks dont like them and they are too big for the barbs & harliquins. Frozen blood worms go down a treat tho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted February 13, 2005 Report Share Posted February 13, 2005 I have a 60l bin under the house which I have some driftwood water logging in, it also has quite a few mosquito larvae in it which my fish absolutely love. I just go out with my fish net a couple of times a week scoop as many as I can catch, and dip the net in the tank and the fish go nuts. A little tip that I learnt the hard way - if you are going to do this make sure that you are harvesting the large ones a couple of times a week, otherwise you will have a swarm hanging around the bin waiting for you to catch their babies . Cheers, Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duke3d Posted February 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 Has no-one else got these readily available supplies? What else can we breed for amusement - anyone got real worms as opposed to the dreaded Tiger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucid Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 I keep, the frozen blood worms, usually have frozen mozzie larvae aswell. I have a couple of barrels with green water and dapnia in it( which I reackon is one of the easiest live foods to keep.) and it also has some mossie larvae in it, hich I feed out as soon as they appear. And inside I have two small white worm cultures to compliment the others. B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
critter_guy Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 i have 2 buckets out side full of live blood worms and daphnia and a bin that has drift wood soaking in it which has mossquito larvae in it and i also buy frozen foods ive caught worms from the garden and feed them out they love them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 Duke asked: anyone got real worms as opposed to the dreaded Tiger Find an old hessian sack... or a piece of old carpet. Lay it on the lawn somewhere and soak it thoroughly. Come morning there will be heaps of worms there Bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duke3d Posted February 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 The good worms tho Pegasus? Tell me about these Daphna - why so easy to keep? I have read you feed veges etc in a mesh bag, or manure? White worms - why are mine not thriving? My biggest problem I think is it is very wet, however there must be a trick to it? - please let me in on a couple. Hadn't thought of keeping them inside - don't they like it cold? Live Blood worms. Are these the ones found in water troughs? If they are aren't these known as tubifex worms? Why does it seem to read that you don't really feed tubifex worms to your fish - is it disease or.....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucid Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 the daphnia are easy, cos I left a barrel of water outside to go green and then added some daphnia, coutesy of Wok, and left em to it, occasionally throwing in the odd lettuce leaf. And I feed em out to the fish say once a week, and they are still going strong. B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duke3d Posted February 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 How long has it been going? Do you think the green algae is depleting or is there plenty? Have you oxygenated it? Is it a clear barrel to promote growth? Are they quite visible in the tank - or is it more for the fish's pleasure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucid Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 they have been gong a couple of months at least, and the water clears up as the feed on the ------ ( forgot the name now) and then they feed on the lettuce as it breaks down and they keep reproducing. they barrels are opaque but i don't think that is important as I know people who have them in the big blue food grade barrels, and it is not oxygenated, but some people do throw airstones in for them. Hope This Helps B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke* Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 Feed on the the... infusoria/green water. Is this what you were thinking of Ballistic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucid Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 thats the one luke Infusoria, I was having a dumb moment lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 Duke said: The good worms tho Pegasus? These "are" the good ones.. all sizes HINT*** The TIGER worm gets its name for a reason Run them through bran or fine bread crumbs for a day or so if you are concerned about the soil. ... and... White worms - why are mine not thriving? My biggest problem I think is it is very wet, however there must be a trick to it? - please let me in on a couple. Hadn't thought of keeping them inside - don't they like it cold? The mixture the WW are in should be moist... but not wet. If it is wet and slimy looking, then it is time to replace the medium. I use organic potting mix... (no fertilizers).. and soak it thoroughly, then squeeze it out in a cloth until it holds together without being too wet. Any worms remaining in the old mixture can be forced out by tipping the old mixture into a large fishnet suspended over a container. Place a bulb over the top (not too close).. and the light will drive the worms out through the net and into the container. Put a small depression in the new mix culture and tip the white worms in. Add a quarter of a slice of bread dipped in .. well... I use tank water, but others have their own methods... and cover this with a sheet of glass that is in contact with the mix. Cover this with a piece of card to eliminate the light. Place in a "cool" but not cold or too hot place. Leave for a few days and the worms should be thriving. Feed only the worms that have collected on the glass. Remove any uneaten food that has gone slimy or mouldy. Once the culture is in full swing... split it and start another as above. Live Blood worms. Are these the ones found in water troughs? If they are aren't these known as tubifex worms? Tubifex are a different type of worm... normally found in the areas of sewage outlets... hence the reluctance to sell them live in NZ... but I do believe one firm is selling them. Bloodworms I believe (may be wrong here).. are a stage of... possibly the mossie larva... not too sure, but they are always in abundance in the bottom of my mossie barrels where all the gunk collects. Other thoughts on live food here... http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/grumpy ... ltures.htm Starter Cultures Available Here.... http://www.ak.planet.gen.nz/~bio/ HTH Bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiverJohn Posted February 19, 2005 Report Share Posted February 19, 2005 my $7 WW culture from the lfs was going really well for a couple of months before i drowned them (too much water one day and it went slimy :-? ) Anyway once you get the moitsure level right as Bill said, I fed WW on a square of bread soaked in milk and just put ontop of the soil. For feeding out 2 fish i would simply put a moist cloth on top of the culture and put teh whole thing ontop of my flouro light fitting. The WW's would come to the top and i would scoop them out with a teaspoon. I only gave my fish WW's ( or any treats) about once or twice a week. Currently I am feeding a mixture of Biosupplies "Cichlid Tucker" and Frozen Bloodworms. And the rest of the time Flakes and Spiro' Discs. My Silver Sharks really like their greens :-? Spiro Discs and Zuchinni get demolished!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted February 21, 2005 Report Share Posted February 21, 2005 Bill the blood worms are the larval stage of some sort of midge. The advantage of these over mosquito larvae is the adults don't bite you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted February 22, 2005 Report Share Posted February 22, 2005 Thanks Matt,... Thought it must have been something along those lines.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HummingBird Posted February 22, 2005 Report Share Posted February 22, 2005 I didn't know you could get live blood worms in NZ, where'd you get yours from Ant? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted February 22, 2005 Report Share Posted February 22, 2005 I'm not aware of anyone selling live blood worm - they just turn up in buckets/baths/containers/troughs of water left outside. In cattle troughs they're often hidden away in the sediment that accumlates at the bottom or on the sides (often in a little tube of sediment). As Matt has said they're the larvae of a non-biting midge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duke3d Posted February 23, 2005 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2005 Can someone then please explain what tubifex worms are? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted February 23, 2005 Report Share Posted February 23, 2005 Tubifex Worms are normally found at sewage outlets that are running into fresh water supplies. . (The "live" ones... not the Freeze Dried They congregate in masses, and survive in the mud and effulent that is being washed over them They are a thin wirery worm, around the same diameter as a White worm, but are normally a dark livery red. In past times when these were commonly available, the method of keeping them was to have them in a container under a constantly dripping tap. This "eventually" flushed the worms of all the rubbish they had been surviving on. A ball of these worms around the size of an egg would contain many tens of thousands of worms, and would keep the fish supplied with live food for weeks in some cases. They "were" available year round, so were a good standby when other live foods were unavailable. One downfall that used to happen, was that any uneaten worms that managed to drop onto the gravel, soon took up home there, but more often than not, they would die and cause pollution in the tanks. HTH Bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted February 23, 2005 Report Share Posted February 23, 2005 Do live blood worms and tubifex worms look the same then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caserole Posted February 23, 2005 Report Share Posted February 23, 2005 No is the short answer caryl. tubifex worms look like well small garden worms, were as bood worms being a larva of an air breathing insect has a breathing snorkil at the end of its tail and a visable mouth, worms do not .i could go on but if you look at either closely you should be in no dout which one is which.( spelling sorry ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted February 23, 2005 Report Share Posted February 23, 2005 As Caserole's mentioned there's definitely a difference in appearance between bloodworms and tubifex worms. Also tubifex are not the larvae of a flying insect - and therefore are not going to turn up in tub of water you left outside to grow daphnia or mozzie larvae in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aqua Posted February 24, 2005 Report Share Posted February 24, 2005 How do you collect Daphnia? I'm guessing you'd need a small amount of live ones to start them off? Or do Daphnia have an adult form that can fly, and therefore finds pools of water to breed in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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