Sea Monkey kits have been sold in pet stores for decades, and the packaging on these kits, showing playful, pink, shrimp-like creatures, has contributed to their appeal. While adding the packet of Sea Monkey eggs to the tank included in the kit won't produce large, anthropomorphic creatures that play volleyball and wear bathing suits, Sea Monkey eggs do hatch into interesting, if small, creatures.
Identification
Sea Monkeys are a special laboratory-developed strain of artemia, or brine shrimp. They are able to exist in a state of suspended animation, and in most cases hatch instantly once they come in contact with water.
Physical Characteristics
Like all shrimp, Sea Monkeys are crustaceans, and have an exoskeleton, which they shed approximately seven times during the course of their life. Sea Monkeys breathe through their feet and have three eyes.
Feeding Sea Monkeys
Sea Monkeys do not require a lot of food to survive, and the instant live eggs packet included in the Transcience kit contains not only the eggs, but also enough food for the newly hatched shrimp to live on for about five days. After that, you need to feed them once a week using the feeding spoon and food packet included in the kit. Do not feed your Sea Monkeys any other type of food except for the approved food supplements sold by Transcience.
Tank Selection
Healthy Sea Monkeys reproduce frequently and grow quickly. While the small, rectangular tank that comes with most standard kits can support many shrimp, you may want to move your pets to a larger tank at some point. When doing so, be sure to condition the water in the new tank first to avoid killing off your Sea Monkey colony.
Considerations
Sea Monkeys are a relatively inexpensive aquatic pet, and their interactions with one another can be fun to watch. Keep in mind that at first, your new pets will be small and difficult to see, so don't be disappointed if they do not seem like very entertaining pets when they are newly hatched.
Tags: Monkey eggs, newly hatched, packet included, your pets