<< I recently caught some nice isopods in Ohio. They are nearly an inch in
size, and dig like crazy in the leaf litter of my tanks. I keep them now only
for sculpin food, but if they would reproduce, they conceivably would do the
job. >>
Yes, I have been working with the idea of a freshwater aquarium with a
refugium where lots of small crustaceans grow, reproduce, and provide a constant
source for crustacean display. With a refugium a lot of small fish, worms, and
other inverts can be kept out of the mouths of fish that would either eat them
or out compete them for food. Adding small inverts like tadpole, clam or fairy
shrimp to the refugium tank will allow them to be slowly spread into the main
tank so that with small fish an occasional oddball can be seen swimming along
with the other fish. also this idea can be used to spread live fish food into
the aquarium slowly so the fish can be seen feeding over a, longer period of
time. Large isopods, amphipods, cyclops, or daphnia magna can reproduce in the
refugium providing a small amount of live food as well. problems with this
include the need to the refugium to be above the main tank so small fish and
inverts don't have to be pumped, the refugium needs to be at least 1/2 the bottom
area of the main tank. I would prefer the refugium to have twice the bottom
area of the main tank. It can be quite shallow but needs the area to be
productive. the refugium needs at least as much light per square inch as the main
tank. I'm sure there are other probelms as well but you get the point.
Moon
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