Growing triops with the attitude of a gardener

This past year I've discovered the joy of growing triops, which are little tiny shrimp-like critters that grow from eggs. And my attitude towards them is so much like a gardener that I wrote on my calendar today "planted triop eggs". And it's so similar to planting seeds, or bulbs, that I get the same kick out it. I'll see if I can explain.

Triops only live for a few weeks, and they grow like crazy. This is actually my fourth generation, and it's kind of like planting annual flowers, you enjoy them for a while, and then their life cycle ends. You can also compare them to bulbs, although they don't come back year after year, but they start out very tiny, hit their peak, and then it's time to start thinking about the next season - although with triops the seasons are every few weeks!

I just "planted" some eggs in the aquarium, which I got online. They come in a packet with sand, and are incredibly tiny, but you can see them. In the past I've dumped the whole packet into the aquarium, but so many hatch that it becomes the same problem that you have with planting too many seeds, so I changed it up a bit this time.

I carefully scraped out some sand and eggs on my workbench for planting, then put the rest back in a tiny zip-lock bag. The aquarium is only about a gallon, and can comfortably accommodate only about three or four adult trips. In fact, one would be fine, if it comes to that. I just hate the idea of "thinning" them after they're born, the way that you do with seedlings, so this seems a nice compromise.

They should start to hatch tomorrow, and once they start growing, they grow like wildfire. I've never seen anything like it, it's wild! I'll let you know how it goes.

Update: Sunday morning. They're definitely swimming around in there, although they're so tiny that they're about the size of specs of dust, and the only way that I can tell that they're triops is that they're swimming around. One or two are much larger, and must have hatched earlier, either hours or days, which makes a big difference to triops!

A newly-hatched triop (on the right by the rock). Everything else is just dust.

I started some of them in the smaller tank, and when I saw signs of life I dumped them into the big tank, by just pouring the whole thing out. I'm keeping the water level fairly low, and will add more as they grow. Need more distilled water!

Update Monday morning: I still don't see much signs of life, but I've realized that they blend in with the white rocks, and they stay close to the ground when they're tiny. When they get more size I'll be able to see them better against the black background that I have taped to the back of the aquarium. I also added a tiny bit of their food.

Update July 9th: Like gardening, it's all about growth, and the display. Only one triop has survived to this point (I think he, or she, ate the other ones - they do that), and what I'm working on now is keeping the water clear (with the filter) and just generally fussing with the appearance of the tank. I've settled on a rock and a seashell, and no more, as I feel that it displays the triops best, and gives plenty of swimming room. The aquarium is one gallon, and I got it at Walmart as a "Spongebob Squarepants" aquarium - it came with stickers, which I didn't use, and a filter, which works great.

Update July 10th: Galactus (I always name my triops) the triop is doing fine, and seems to especially like freeze-dried worms. I've also started adding tiny pieces of carrot (which you can see there in the corner), and of course his (or her) regular adult triop food which came with the eggs. I do a feeding first thing in the morning, and the in the afternoon. While he (or she) is dining I turn off the filter, wander away, and then turn it back on when I think of it. It will remain on for the rest of the evening, and all night, until tomorrow morning at breakfast. The water is crystal clear! I figure that Galactus is about 3/4 inch from tail to tip of nose (do triops have noses?).

Update July 11th. I'm very happy with the new aquarium (which I got during my last batch of triops). Since there's only one occupant, and the filter is working so great, the water is staying very clear, and I'm not having to do the water changes that I used to do with the tiny "starter aquarium". All is well here.

Update July 14th. Galactus is doing well, and even shed an exoskeleton yesterday which means that she (or he) is still growing. But I know that they don't live very long after becoming full-grown, and I've started the next generation in the little tank.

The next generation of eggs. I expect hatching in a day or two.

Update July 17. Since I haven't seen any hatching yet, I decided to bring back the small lamp, which I can attach to the edge of the table, to give the eggs a bit more heat. Nothing yet! On a side note, Galactus is still growing after over two weeks, as I took out an exoskeleton from his (or her) aquarium this morning.

Update July 18. I can see some signs of life in the nursery tank, I definitely have a baby triop! Need to go out to the garage and get the baby triop food, and sprinkle a bit.

Update July 21. The baby triop, whom I have named Torpedo, is growing like crazy (triops do that, you know, but I never get used to it). She (or he) is still in the nursery tank, and will not move into the main tank until it's either vacated or he (or she) is big enough to live safely with Galactus, who is now three weeks old, and is pretty darned big. There's the risk that Galactus would eat Torpedo (triops do that, you know), so I'll wait.

Four day old triop

Three week old triop

Update July 27. Galactus passed away peacefully in his (or her sleep) yesterday of natural causes. She was a little over three weeks old. She is survived by Torpedo, and there's another baby in the nursery tank which I will move into the main tank in a day or two.