Tigger pods

Question
Hello,
I am in the long process of preparing my aquarium for seahorses. Last month I bought some tigger pods and put them in my tank. Due to the fact that I put them in during the day and RIGHT in front of my fish, I'm pretty sure they were all eaten.
Due to a cyanobacteria problem I had a few weeks ago, 3 of my 4 fish died. All that is left is a clown fish (which is obviously a slow moving fish). Now that the bacteria problem has been resolved, I bought a new bottle of tigger pods. Instead of dumping them all in at once, I put about 1/3 in my tank (at night time with the filters/power head turned off) 1/3 in a separate unit, and the rest I left in the bottle and put it in the fridge (with the cap open). I had a few questions I wanted to ask so I don't make any mistakes.
1) I was reading up about food for tigger pods and I'm still unsure about a few things. Do they need a food source like phytoplankton or can then survive off of the nitrates/nitrites in the water? If so, how often should I be feeding them? Should I feed the pods that I put in the second unit and the fridge as well?
2) What is the best way to go about raising pods in a separate unit? Does the water need to be filtered? Does the temperature matter? Do they need a hiding place such as a live rock? does the water need to be moving?
I appreciate any information that you give.
Thanks!
Mitch

Answer
Hi Mitch,

Regarding Tigger Copepods, see the following link below from Reef Nutrition; which will give you detailed information on the care requirements for these marine animals. I do recommend to have a small dedicated nursery aquarium/container just for raising copepods, so you'll have a constant supply, to feed your saltwater fish and saltwater reef. Please Note: cyanobacteria will return quickly if the underlying water quality issue is not fixed.

http://www.reefnutrition.com/tigger_pods_care.html

Regards,
Dave

All Experts - Editor

http://www.ocreef.com - Director