Can You Feed Bettas Sea Monkeys
The responsibilities of owning betta fish as a pet include the proper way of feeding them and what kind of food should be given. Proper nutrition and a rich environment must be provided to betta for them to grow healthy and live longer. This is what Siamese fighting fish experience in the wild where they eat insects, brine shrimps, larvae,bloodworms, or daphnia. To emulate their original environment, these kinds of food can be introduced to them and not just give them regular pellets that can be bought in pet stores.
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Exploring options on what to feed your betta is an exciting task. Learning about what food to give them can give them a variety of choices and not just be limited to their boring and usual diet. There are even people who consider feed their betta fish strawberries, and some have made banans a treat for betta fish.
Live food such as brine shrimp is good for the betta. Another alternative for brine shrimps is the sea monkeys, also known to be ‘artificial hybrids of brine shrimps’.
Can Betta Fish Eat Sea Monkeys?
Yes, betta fish can eat sea monkeys. Contrary to its name, sea monkeys are not actual monkeys, nor do they live in the sea. Sea monkeys are artificial breeds of brine shrimp and can even be considered pets. Although it does not give any nutritional value, betta can enjoy feeding and hunting them. Live food can stimulate hunting instincts that are natural for the fish as they are aggressive feeders in their organic habitats. Feeding them sea monkeys must be regulated in moderation since too much of any food given to them can lead to overeating, constipation, and bloating.
Can You Put Sea Monkeys in a Betta Fish Tank?
Sea monkeys require specific conditions to survive. They need distilled water and an amount of salt to have the proper salinity level meant for sea monkeys to thrive. They also cannot survive in cold environments and with those tanks with aquatic plants. Sea monkeys can be raised on their own and not cohabit with other fishes. They cannot be kept in a regular aquarium. The tank must be aerated to ensure that there is oxygen present for the eggs to hatch and survive.
Sea monkeys have female and male species. Female species can also be sexual and asexual types. Sexual females need males to breed while asexual females can reproduce on their own without the need for sperms. Sexual species of sea monkeys can likely evolve and develop new species compared to the asexual type. Asexual types have limited chromosomes and can go extinct.
The difference between female and male sea monkeys is that the males have whiskers under their chin while the female has none. Since male species are rare, they often fight to catch the attention of females. Once they mate, the female will get pregnant and will develop a pouch that will house the eggs.
What about those sea monkey kits?
Sea monkey kits can be bought in pet stores. People have dubbed the powder that comes along with the kit as ‘magic dust’ since once poured into purified water, these creatures come to life. These magic dust are brine shrimp eggs that had undergone cryptobiosis, suspension of life in adverse environmental conditions. The hatching of these eggs will begin a day after it is placed in the tank full of water. Sea monkeys will feed on yeast and spirulina that are included in the kit. They grow to become very tiny and cute crustaceans that have a monkey-like tail which derived the name ‘sea monkeys’. They can be raised as pets and they can also be fed to other aquatic animals.
Sea-Monkey Facts
Sea monkeys are a type of invertebrate with a head, abdomen, and thorax. Their bodies are made of thin and flexible exoskeleton with muscles that are internally attached. Their skins are often shed periodically.
Sea monkeys were inspired by brine shrimps that were being sold in pet stores. Harold von Braunhut invented sea monkeys in 1957 together with biologist Anthony D’Agostino Angelo. They found a way to preserve the life of shrimps so that people can take them home and revive them using magic powder dust, which is shrimp eggs and food. Sea monkeys do not exist in nature. Braunhut and Angelo were able to cross-breed shrimp so they can live a longer life and can be commercially sold as a pet. The first breed was not very successful, it only lived for a month. Now, sea monkeys can live up to 1-2 years with proper care and sustenance.
There are sea monkey accessories that were promoted during their rise to popularity. In the 1960s, they sold sea monkey kits together with tanks. In the following decade, they promoted another set of accessories such as Sea-Monkey Speedway and Sea-Monkey Fox Hunt. These include treats for the sea monkeys such as desserts and toys they can play with.