Cuttle Eggs!

**longpig** · Jul 19, '12, 8:12pm

Ordered three cuttlefish eggs from NY Aquatic on Monday. After seeing a number of posts on here stating they usually send more than ordered, I only ordered three. Well I got eight! My question is how many mysis shrimp should I order when my first one hatches? I want to be able to keep only as much as I can use since I know there will be die off. I found this site online ( http://mblaquaculture.com/content/or...sis_shrimp.php ), anyone used them before? Any other good sources on buying mysis? I have a separate tank for feeders kept at the same parameters as my display. Would that be fine to house the mysis?

**DeepBlueWonders** · Jul 19, '12, 8:18pm

I get all my mysid from Paul Sachs. Look up Sachs Aquaculture systems if you are interested.
Cuttles usually dont eat for a little while after they hatch, so I would only buy 100, until they begin eating for sure. I bought 100 for my cuttles, and they have lasted me almost two weeks now.
Mysid shrimp will be shiped to you in brackish water (1.014 specific gravity), so you will want to keep them at that salinity if possible (to avoid further die off).
How do your eggs look? Can you see the cuttles inside the eggs?

**longpig** · Jul 19, '12, 8:28pm

They look pretty good, I mean none look shriveled. I don't have a way to candle them in the water. Sorry I can only get a blurry pic. Should I buy rotifers to feed the mysis? I really don't want to fool with culturing brine shrimp.

**DeepBlueWonders** · Jul 19, '12, 8:35pm

Im not sure if rotifers will work...although I have no idea. I dont culture brine. I bought a cheap brine shrimp hatchery off Fosterandsmithaquatics.com and just hatch the eggs in there. After about 24 hours, they are ready to feed the mysid.

**DeepBlueWonders** · Jul 22, '12, 7:32pm

Have any of your eggs hatched yet? Can you see cuttles inside the eggs?

**longpig** · Jul 28, '12, 8:32pm

No hatching but a number of them are definitely bigger.

**lilalancarey** · Jul 29, '12, 4:29pm

I wish you the best of luck longpig.

**longpig** · Jul 29, '12, 9:46pm

Thank you so much. I have my fingers crossed.

**lilalancarey** · Aug 05, '12, 4:41am

How are your eggs doing longpig?

**longpig** · Aug 10, '12, 10:28pm

They're still there but unhatched. I assume at this point it's safe to conclude they're duds?

**DeepBlueWonders** · Aug 10, '12, 10:56pm

Originally Posted by longpig

They're still there but unhatched. I assume at this point it's safe to conclude they're duds?

Not necessarily! Eggs take time. How long have you had them? An updated pic would be nice.
My first batch of eggs lasted about 23 days before my first hatch

**longpig** · Aug 11, '12, 1:58am

I'll try to get a new pic tomorrow. I've had them since the 19th of July. One broke off of the main group but the rest are still together.

**longpig** · Aug 11, '12, 5:36pm

Alright, see what complaining gets ya?!?!?!? Who's yer daddy! Three babies hatched overnight. I won't be able to get mysis until at least Wednesday. Will they be OK? I do have tiny (1/16") red feeder shrimp for a baby angler. Will they work?

**DeepBlueWonders** · Aug 11, '12, 5:54pm

Very nice! Those shrimp should work, and if you have enough, they might be cheaper than mysid. Usually cuttle hatchlings don't eat immediately, so you should be ok, but I would get msid as soon as possible. Also, be prepared to go through a ton of food. My hatchlings got up to eating about 10 mysid a day in their second week.

**longpig** · Aug 11, '12, 5:58pm

Originally Posted by DeepBlueWonders

Very nice! Those shrimp should work, and if you have enough, they might be cheaper than mysid. Usually cuttle hatchlings don't eat immediately, so you should be ok, but I would get msid as soon as possible. Also, be prepared to go through a ton of food. My hatchlings got up to eating about 10 mysid a day in their second week.

I'll throw in a couple of the tiniest red shrimp I have. They've been lasting in the same specific gravity as my reef so they might be hardier than mysis too. Can the mysis be put in a bucket with an air stone to live or should I just put them all in the net breeder with the cuttles? Should I add a little macroalgae to the net breeder now or wait?

**DeepBlueWonders** · Aug 11, '12, 7:14pm

DO NOT put all the mysid in the net breeder with the cuttles. This is known as flood feeding and will actually cause the cuttles to reject the food all together. I never kept anymore than 2 mysid per cuttle in the net breeder. Most of the time, I put 10 mysid in the net breeder (with 6 cuttles) at each feeding. Then I just feed frequently. I make sure there is always food in the net breeder with them, but never too much at one time.
I kept my mysid in a small 2 gallon cube acrylic tank with an aerator. You want to give them space (so they dont eat each other) but you also want to keep them confined (so they are easier to catch). Surface area is key, not height.

**longpig** · Aug 11, '12, 7:35pm

Should I use a sponge filter on the mysis tank? I'm going to buy a 2 1/2 gallon tank and a pump and airstone. Should I put any sort of hiding area for the shrimp in the tank?