Sea monkey
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| Other names | Instant Life |
|---|---|
| Type | novelty aquarium pet |
| Inventor | Harold von Braunhut |
| Country | United States |
| Availability | 1957–present |
Sea-Monkeys is a brand name for brine shrimp—a group of crustaceans that undergo cryptobiosis—sold in hatching kits as novelty aquarium pets. Developed in the United States in 1957 by Harold von Braunhut, the product was heavily marketed, especially in comic books, and remains a presence in popular culture. May 16 is National Sea-Monkey Day in the United States.
Ant farms had been popularised in 1956 by Milton Levine.Harold von Braunhut invented a brine-shrimp-based product the next year, 1957. Von Braunhut collaborated with marine biologist Dr. Anthony D’Agostino to develop the proper mix of nutrients and chemicals in dry form that could be added to plain tap water to create an accommodating habitat for the shrimp to thrive. Von Braunhut was granted a patent for this process on July 4, 1972.
They were initially called "Instant Life" and sold for $0.49, but von Braunhut changed the name to "Sea-Monkeys" in 1962. The new name was based on the supposed resemblance of the animals' tails to those of monkeys, and their salt-water habitat.
Sea-Monkeys were intensely marketed in comic books throughout the 1960s and early 1970s using illustrations by the comic-book illustrator Joe Orlando. These showed humanoid animals that bear no resemblance to the crustaceans. Many purchasers were disappointed by the dissimilarity, and by the short lifespan of the animals. Von Braunhut is quoted as stating: "I think I bought something like 3.2 million pages of comic book advertising a year. It worked beautifully."
A colony is started by adding the contents of a packet labelled "Water Purifier" to a tank of water. This packet contains salt, water conditioner, and some brine shrimp eggs. After 24 hours, this is augmented with the contents of a packet labelled "Instant Life Eggs", containing more eggs, yeast, borax, soda, salt, some food and sometimes a dye. The Sea-Monkeys that hatched from the original eggs seem to appear instantly. "Growth Food" containing yeast and spirulina is then added every few days.
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