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Microworm (Panagrellus redivivus)

Microworm (Panagrellus redivivus) are <2mm Non-parasitic Nematodes and ideal as a first food for Caudate larvae (also good for fish fry). Microworms are able to live for several days in an aquarium are easy and inexpensive to culture and have a very fast life cycle making them much quicker to culture than similarly sized livefoods such as Vinegar Eels.

For your culture you will need a clear plastic tub with lid, oats, water, a mixing bowl & a starter culture:

Measure out your oats to give a 1cm layer in the base of your plastic tub:

Mix your oats with boiling water until of a thick sticky consistency. If you make your mix too dry your culture will die off, if you make it too wet your culture will smell:

Spread your porridge over the base of your plastic tub and leave to cool:

Once cool your porridge should have a rubbery feel and you should be able to touch it without it sticking to you fingers. Now spread your starter culture over the centre of your porridge:

Make a few pin holes in the centre of the lid and clip onto the tub, place the culture at room temperature:

Within 48 hours you should see your worms multiplying and they will start to climb the sides of your tub:

You can harvest your Microworms by simply scraping them from the sides of the tub and washing them into the aquarium. Be careful not to scrape up any of the porridge at the same time as this will foul the aquarium water. It is best to start new cultures at weekly intervals as they begin to smell after this time.