Artemia salina

Balneo-Research Journal Vol.2, Nr.4, 2011 

Artemia salina (L.) is a primitive aquatic 

arthropod (salt lakes) of the Artemiidae 

family (figure 1) with an age of about 100 

million years. Linný (1758) described it as 

Cýncer salinus but 61 years later, Leach (1819) 

transferred it to Artemia salina. 

It was reported for the first time in Urmia 

Lake in 982 by a Iranian geographer (Asem, 

2008). 

Figura 1. Artemia salina 

Species ecology 

Artemia salina lives only in lakes and 

ponds with high salinity, which varies between 

60-300 ppt. It was also discovered in Elkhorn 

Slough (California), which communicates 

directly with the sea. It is a species endemic to 

the Mediterranean, but is found on all 

continents (figure 2). 

In our country is reported in salt lakes 

(Bear Lake, Ocna Sibiu, Techirghiol, Braila 

Salt Lake, etc.) contributing to the formation of 

sapropelic mud used in peloidotherapy. 

A. salina is associated with current or past 

commercial exploitation of salt (Abatzopoulos 

Artemia salina 

Mioara Dumitrascu 

SC Biosafety SRL-D; 

et al., 2002, quoted by Abatzopoulos et al., 

2010). 

Can tolerate large amounts of salt (up to 

300 grams of salt per liter of water) and can 

live in quite different solutions of seawater 

such as potassium permanganate and silver 

nitrate.Iodine, which is found frequently in salt 

for human use, is harmful to this species. 

Kingdom: 

Scientific classification 

Animalia 

Phylum: Arthropoda 

Subphylum: Crustacea 

Class: Branchiopoda 

Order: Anostraca 

Family: Artemiidae 

Genus: Artemia 

Species: Artemia salina 

(Linnaeus, 1758) 

These animals have the ability to reduce the 

osmotic pressure of haemolymph by NaCl 

excretion against the concentration gradient. 

Has been shown to developed a mechanism to 

maintain haemolymph extreme hypotonic in 

saline extreme media (Croghan, 1957). 

Also, this species can survive in water with 

high oxygen deficiency. Minimum 

concentration of oxygen for an adult is very 

low, 0.5 milligrams per liter, and for naupliia 

even less than 0.3 milligrams per liter. Typical 

salt lakes have seasonal or cyclical droughts, 

periods when completely dry. During this 

process salt water concentrations ranging from 

ideal to barely tolerable. 

119


Figure 2. Artemia salina worldwide 

distribution (Global Biodiversity Information 

Facility Database http://www.discoverlife.org ) 

Description 

The body consists of three segments: head, 

thorax and abdomen. The species presents 

sexual dimorphism, the main morphological 

differences between males and females were 

observed in maximum distance between 

compound eyes, length of first antenna, the 

width of the third abdominal segment, the total 

length, diameter of compound eye, length of 

abdomen. 

The adult male reach to 8-10 mm long, and 

the female 10-12 mm. Adults have three eyes 

and 11 pairs of legs. 

Adult color varies depending on the 

concentration of salt in the water from green 

tored (high concentrations are red). Their blood 

contains pigment hemoglobin. 

Lack of competition in this extreme 

environment allows them to develop large 

populations when conditions are suitable for 

reproduction (heat, sunlight, wide range of salt 

concentrations). 

This organism can withstand long periods 

of drought and cyst stage to resume the life 

cycle when conditions are suitable for 

development and reproduction. 

Males have two reproduction organs. The 

uterus of one female of A. salina may contain 

up to 200 eggs. It is an oviparous and 

ovoviviparous species. 

The two methods of reproduction 

alternates depending on the conditions of life: 

are ovoviviparous when they are favorable and 

when become unfavorable, tend to be 

oviparous. 

They produce eggs, which float on water 

and can develop either directly into nauplia 

(larvae) or unfavorable environmental 

conditions (water drying) is transformed into 

120 

cysts (dormant forms of life) that can survive 

long periods of drought. If environmental 

conditions improve, cysts are "re-vitalizing" 

and hatch nauplia. 

Under natural conditions Artemia salina 

feeds with algae, protozoa and detritus. 

Feeding mode is active non-selective filter; 

removes suspended particles less than 40-60 

mm. 

Figure 4. Individuals of the Artemia salina 

Life cycle 

Mode of reproduction is controlled by 

environmental factors: the concentration of 

oxygen in water and its fluctuation, the type of 

food, salinity, etc. (table 1). There was a 

correlation between water salinity level and 

method of reproduction. Ovoviviparous to less 

than 150 ppt salinity and oviparous 

predominantly between 150-200 ppt salinity 

Table 1. The modalities of Artemia salina 

reproduction 

REPRODUCTION 

OVIPAROUS OVOVIVIPAROUS 

-- low O2-content 

(such as in high 

salinity) 

- strong O2fluctuations 

- Fe-rich food (such 

as green algae) 

-high oxygen content 

(such as in low salinity) 

- minor O2-fluctuations 

- Fe-low food (such as 

organic debris)


Oviparous reproduction 

After copulation fertilized egg develops 

into a gastrula stage and are surrounded by a 

tough brown crust consists of chitin, 

lipoproteins, etc. 

Cysts thus formed are released into the 

water and must pass through a drying process. 

Only when this initial dehydration occurred, 

the cysts can get free larvae when conditions 

become favorable. 

Ovoviviparous reproduction 

The fertilized egg develops to the stage of 

gastrulă, but instead of being confined, still 

gastrula differentiate into female body, the 

larvae called nauplia. Eggs hatch nauplia which 

will have a whitish colour. Nauplia are free 

fins larvae. 

Cysts (0.2 - 0.3 mm) turn into larvae water 

swimmer, nauplia (0.45 mm) in a period of 24- 

36 hours. Complete hydration cyst takes about 

an hour. Depending on food availability, 

nauplia will reach adults (max. 12 mm) within 

3 weeks. 

Figure 5. Artemis salina life cycle 

(http://brineshrimp.wordpress.com/) 

Nauplia turns into reproductive adults that 

produce live young in rapid succession when 

conditions are favorable and cysts that can 

survive dry conditions for years if conditions 

begin to become less favorable. 

In order to result free fins nauplia from 

cysts, they need water (hydration) and oxygen 

to initiate and complete the metabolism. 

Cysts 

Cysts are very resistant to extreme 

conditions, lasts up to 80ý C. Hydrated cysts 

die at temperatures below 0ýC and greater than 

40ý C. The higher salinity of 70 ppt, naupliia 

will not be able to hatch due to osmotic 

gradient too high. At less than 5 ppt salinity, 

cysts will hatch, but nauplia results will die 

quickly. 

Dehydrated cysts measuring between 200- 

270 microns and an average weight of 3.5 

micrograms. 

Cysts are able to survive in contact with 

aggressive liquids, extreme dryness, lack of of 

oxygen and pesticides influence. For example, 

in the United States in 1976, during a drilling 

operationin the Great Salt Lake in Utah, A. 

salina cysts were found in thesoil sample 

between two layers of salt. Carbon analysis 

showed that age radiactiv cysts would be 

10,000 years. (artemiaworld.com ). 

Nauplia 

Have optimal growth at 28 0 C and 35 ppt. 

Lethal temperature limits are 0 0 C and 37-38 0 

C. 

Larvae have only one eye (photoreceptor). 

Later, it developed two eyes, but the initial eye 

remains, resulting three eyes. Nauplia are 

phototactic, while adults not. They swim 

through the water column (phototaxis) using 

antennas. Mandibles are used to filter water 

and phytoplankton. 

Figure 6. Anatomical characteristics of 

nauplia of Artemia salina 

121


Adults 

Adults swim using swim / filter feeding 

appendages. Median eye is accompanied by 

two lateral compound eyes. A simple brain 

formed a ring like structure around the mouth 

(typical of most invertebrates). Females 

develop eggs in a ventral egg sac with a rapid 

rate under favorable conditions. 

Figure 7. Anatomical characteristics of 

Artemia salina adult 

Importance 

Artemia salina species individuals, 

especially in stage nauplia, are used in 

aquaculture as live food for commercial growth 

(in incubators) of many species of fish and 

shellfish. 

Resilience of these animals makes them 

ideal for testing samples in the experiments. 

Artemia salina is one of the organisms used 

regularly for toxicity testing of various 

chemicals. 

Together with other bodies formed by 

decomposition salt lake bottom mud used to 

treat various rheumatic , gynecological, 

endocrine diseases, etc. 

Salt water and mud from lake Ursu 

heliothermal contain hormones released by 

Artemia salina: human estrogen-like SU 95%, 

respectively human progesterone-like 0.7 to 0.8 

mg% (Stoicescu Munteanu, 1977). They are 

used to treat gynecological diseases: ovarian 

failure, infertility, etc. 

122 

References 

1. ABATZOPOLULOS T., BEARDMORE 

J., CLEGG J. and SORGELOOS P. 

(2010). Artemia. Basic and applied 

biology. Kluwer Academic Publishers. 

2. ASEM A., RASTEGAR-POUYANI N. 

and RIOS-ESCALANTE P. (2010). The 

genus Artemia Leach, 1819 (Crustacea: 

Branchiopoda). I. True and false 

taxonomical descriptions. Lat. Am. J. 

Aquat. Res. v.38 n.3 

3. CROGHAN C. (1957). The osmotic and 

ionic regulation of Artemia salina (L.). 

Department of Zoology, University of 

Cambridge. 

4. MUÑOZ J., GÓMEZ A., GREEN A., 

FIGUEROLA J., AMAT F. and RICO 

C. (2008). Phylogeography and local 

endemism of the native Mediterranean 

brine shrimp Artemia salina 

(Branchiopoda: Anostraca). Molecular 

Ecology 17, 3160–3177. 

5. STOICESCU C. and MUNTEANU L. 

(1977). Natural curative factors of the 

main balneoclimateric resorts in 

Romania. Edit. SportTurism, Bucharest. 

6. VOS J. (1979). Brine shrimp (Artemia 

salina) inoculation in tropical salt ponds: 

a preliminary guide for use in Thailand. 

FAO Associate Expert (Culture of Food 

Organisms) National Freshwater Prawn 

Research and Training Center Freshwater 

Fisheries Division, Department of 

Fisheries Ministry of Agriculture and 

Cooperatives. Thailand. 

7. VOS J. and de la ROSA NYMPHA. 

(1980). MANUAL ON ARTEMIA 

PRODUCTION IN SALT PONDS IN 

THE PHILIPPINES. FAO/UNDP-BFAR 

Brackishwater Aquaculture 

Demonstration and Training Project 

PHI/75/005 

http://www.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?search=Artemia+salina 

http://www.artemiaworld.com/home/ 

http://jeb.biologists.org/content/35/1/219.full.pdf 

http://jgp.rupress.org/content/14/6/753.full.pdf 

http://www.drvoigt-consulting.de/background.htm 

http://www.isamm.org/artemia-salina.htm 

http://www.michaelsharris.com/12ubio/text/projects/brin 

eshrimplab.htm

Artemia salina

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