Culture of fish food organisms

Unit 8 - Brine Shrimp or Artemia

8.4.5.Brine shrimp-Decapsulation and hatching of cyst
Process involved in decapsulation and hatching of cysts and its direct usage
To produce nauplii, Artemia cysts are either hatched naturally by incubation in seawater for 24–48 hours or hatched after decapsulation.

Decapsulation is the removal of the outer membrane of a cyst called the chorion by dissolution in hypochlorite, without affecting the viability of the embryo. The outer shell often causes problems when not removed since it can harbour bacteria and other organisms which may be harmful to the species feeding on Artemia. Also, non-hatched cysts and their shells cannot be digested and may cause blockage of the gut in fish and crustaceans.