What's the Deal with Sea-Monkeys?

Last Updated (Tuesday, 15 June 2010 11:08) Written by Raymond Nakamura

Kids these days are so spoiled. My five-year-old convinced my wife to buy her a Sea-Monkey Ocean Zoo. I didn't get my first Sea-Monkey until I was twenty-three.

"I liked how they look," my daughter explained.

"But they don't look anything like the pictures," I said.

"How come they draw them like that?"

"To fool people into buying them."

Dubious marketing practises notwithstanding, sea-monkeys, aka brine shrimp (genus Artemia) are real. They are supposed to be a specially bred hybrid selected to live longer and grow bigger with the scientific name Artemia nyos, for "New York Ocean Sciences Laboratory." I haven't been able to find them included in any scientific classifications of Artemia. They may be a variety, like dogs.

Because they are easy to rear and apparently tasty, newly hatched larvae are an important food source for rearing fish (over 2000 metric tons shipped annually). Reminds me of those signs for bunnies that say "For Pets or For Food." In the 1950s, Harold von Braunhut recognized their entertainment value and in the 60s, he came up with the Sea-Monkeys name and the comic book marketing strategy. And they are amazing, if not to watch, at least to think about. They have even been into space. Here are some bits I found out during the course of setting up ours.

Step 1. Add the Water Purifier to water

They suggested bottled water or boiled tap water. I don't think that's necessary in Vancouver. But you do need the packet, to make the water salty. They live in water five times saltier than regular sea water. It's so salty that no fish or or other aquatic predators can survive in it. These tiny crustaceans live in salt lakes all over the world, including Great Salt Lake in Utah. Perhaps they are one of the Lost Tribes. 

Step 2. Add the Instant Life. 

Artemia can reproduce through live young or eggs depending on conditions and the genetics of the mother. Some populations don't even need Dads. The eggs dry out and become durable cysts which can then hatch when soaked in salty water. A good life strategy in places where water levels fluctuate. The cysts can last ten years or more.

They are smaller than the period and there are other bits in there, maybe including some food. If you see little specks wiggling against the flow, that's them. I couldn't really tell on the first day. They say that the hatching depends on the ambient temperature. By the second day, we could see about a dozen.

Step 3. After Five Days, Add Food.

They do get conspicuously bigger each day. As crustaceans, they moult and shed their skins each time. So you might see some of this debris collecting on the bottom, along with other leftovers.

The instructions say to wait five days to feed them. I think the Instant Life packet also included some algae in there as well. It makes sense to aerate it. I was going to use a spoon to mix it up but then worried about them getting stuck on it. Maybe a mini turkey baster would be good. My daughter blows through a straw that we rinse out each time. 

And Beyond

Males develop "arms" which it uses to hang on to females. If you don't see any males, the remaining females may still be able to reproduce. Artemia seem to have all the reproductive bases covered. No wonder some people take Sea-Monkey ownership to the level of worship.

Please share your Sea-Monkey stories or advice.