Welcome To My Newsletter Series. In this newsletter letter series I will provide you with information about keeping tropical fish. The information contained in the newsletter comes from my passed experiences while working with fish, conversations I've had with friends and other tropical fish lovers, as well as knowledge I gain while researching material to write the book. So as you can see that the content comes from a number of sources, which I think make for a well rounded newsletter series.
Please feel free to forward this newsletter on to your friends who maybe interested in tropical fish keeping as well.
BENEFITS OF CRUSTACEAN
Crustaceans belong to the Phylum Arthropoda family, which also includes spiders, insects, crabs, and shrimp. Interestingly, there are more than 50 million different species of crustaceans. In fact, there are more Arthropod species in one square mile of tropical rainforest than any species of vertebrate animals in the entire world. Although crustaceans come in every possible shape, size, and color, they have four common denominators – the exoskeleton or tough outer coating, jointed limbs, are one sex per individual, and they grow by molting off old skin.
Crustaceans come in a wide variety of forms to include isopods, krill, amphipods, copepods, brine shrimp, and so on, all making up the base for many food chains. The three major groups found in a saltwater aquarium are shrimp, crabs, and barnacles. When adding crustaceans to a new fish aquarium, they should be acclimated very, slowly since they are exceptionally sensitive to salinity fluctuations.
The key is to add one quarter of the bags water from the fish tank every 10 minutes for about an hour. It is also important that the fish aquarium provide adequate hiding space since all crustaceans need them to molt. During this process, the animal will shed off its old skin, growing a new, slightly larger one. Once the crustacean has finished molting, its skin will be soft, making the animal vulnerable to fish. At this time, the crustacean will need some type of shelter.
We recommend you leave the old molted skin along since some crustaceans will feed off it, consuming valuable minerals that were lost while going through the molding phase. Another fact about crustaceans is that they all carry out autonomy. That means if they should a predator grab it by the leg, the leg would simply fall off. Then, during the molting season, a new one would grow. This action protects the crustacean when being attacked.
To keep crustaceans healthy and happy, the pH level of the aquarium should be a minimum of 8.1. Additionally, calcium supplements should be added to ensure the shell of the crustacean remains in excellent condition. Typically, crustaceans are not too fussy about diet but you do want to provide them with the appropriate food. Of all crustaceans, the barnacles are probably one of the most fascinating. These creatures will actually settle to the ground, at which time they cement their head to it. Once they have settled, the barnacle will create a shelter around itself, using the legs as a means of filter food from the tank’s water.
To survive for long periods, crustaceans need to be fed frequently of phytoplankton. The best rule to follow is that crustaceans prefer areas with high water flow and low lighting. Crustaceans are perfectly harmless and fun to keep in an aquarium but you need to remember that they often fall prey to some larger fish and even other crustaceans. To give you an idea of just some of the types of crustaceans you might consider adding to your fish aquarium, we have listed them below:
I hope you enjoyed this article and look forward to the next article which looks at homemade fish diets.
Until next time...
Katy
www.kingdomofpets.com/tropicalfish
If you are really serious about learning more about keeping tropical fish, Click Here to order my Book and DVD set. Let me guide you through it all!
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