One local fish store owner told me that it was too costly vs demand. Said he wasn't getting enough people asking for it.

I've been debating whether to try out this device called "The Shrimpery" to hatch brine fish that doesn't need an air pump. All my fish love to munch on live brine shrimp!

Its a shame, I've had good success feeding live tubifex worms for a long time. Its excellent for bottom feeders and oddballs like Elephant noses and Kuhli loaches. I think the aquarium hobby may be shrinking due to young people having so many other outlets [cable tv, gameboy, ps2, computers].

There was a definite progression in the elimination of live food.

The first to go was Daphnia, which, although not considered as nutritious as shrimp or worms, was great as a occasional treat. Plus, since they were so active in all levels of the tank, it was just a lot of fun to watch all the fish "hunt" them.

Next on the list was Tubifex. From what I've heard/read, Tubifex was not only labor intensive to obtain because they had to be thoroughly "cleaned" prior to sale, but also because their shelf life wasn't very long - even when refrigerated.

For awhile one used to also be able to pick up 2 other live food items: Glass Worms & Blood Worms (not really worms, but some sort of larvae). Fish never seemed to relish these as much as the old favorites. But they did add variety if you had fish that could handle them, as they were about an inch long & a bit wide for small tropicals. I can only surmise that they went because there was little demand for them, not to mention Lord knows what ugly little fly or whatever they eventually pupated into if not sold - lol!!

Brine Shrimp can still occasionally be found, especially at stores that carry a large inventory of specialty &/or saltwater fish - but once again, they require a tank of strongly aerated salt water to survive, & again don't have a long shelf life.

These days, the only live food I seem to EVER find - at least here in VA - is the Black Worm, which resembles a slightler larger & darker Tubifex. They definitely have a longer shelf life than Tubifex, if kept jarred in fresh, cold water in the refrigerator, & fish do seem to love them, but coming across them seems to be a rarer than rare treat.

The new varieties/brands of frozen foods seem to have become my fishes' best friends. I try to have 4-5 different varieties in cube form that I thaw out under running water in a fish net & pop into the tank every morning. I vary this with the ever-popular TetraMin-type flake food.

You can still get cultures. Bloodworms turn into midge flies ;)

Adrea