Bag of Bugs – Complete Ecosystem Microfauna Culture
Bag of Bugs is a full-spectrum biodiversity culture harvested directly from our established living systems.
This is not a single-species culture — it is a true ecological sample, containing both the organisms and the natural materials that support them.
Because this is a natural product, some variation is expected, but we put tremendous effort into maintaining a consistent, thriving creature community in every bag.
What You’ll Receive
Each Bag of Bugs includes two separate bags:
Bag 1. Living Plant and Creature Pack Portion
Typically includes a fast-growing habitat plant such as:
hornwort • guppy grass
This portion is rich with visible organisms such as:
Scuds
Snails
Daphnia and/or Moina
Seed shrimp (ostracods)
Copepods
and many other microscopic organisms
Bag 2. Leaves and Seed Pods Portion
A diverse mix of leaf litter that may include
live oak • willow oak • red oak • sweetgum • maple • cottonwood • and more2 sweetgum seed pods
These botanicals provide both structure and long-term food sources for the developing ecosystem.
The Power of Biodiversity
Biodiversity simply means a wide variety of life within an ecosystem.
In the aquarium, microfauna inhabit the substrate, plants, botanicals, and hardscape, where they:
Process waste and detritus
Recycle nutrients
Stabilize the environment
Create a self-sustaining food web
Produce continuous live food for fish and invertebrates
A natural aquarium is not just water and fish — it is a living, functional ecosystem, and fish consistently thrive in these conditions.
About the Scuds
This culture includes Hyalella azteca scuds, one of the most efficient detritivores in the freshwater environment.
They readily consume:
Decaying plant matter
Leaf litter
Algae
Leftover foods
Over-ripe vegetables and botanicals
In aquariums with fish, scud populations naturally balance and become a renewable live food source.
In fishless systems, extremely dense populations may graze on very tender plants if food becomes limited — a situation easily prevented by maintaining low scud populations.
Bag of Bugs vs. Leafy Bugs
All three cultures — Bag of Bugs, Leafy Bugs, and Bag of Leaves — contain the same diverse micro-creature community.
Bag of Bugs is the best choice if you want:
The added plant portion
If you do not need the plant portion, Leafy Bugs offers the same creature mix, leaf litter and seed pods at a lower price point.
Build a True Living Aquarium
By combining natural materials such as:
dirt • sand • coarse gravel • plants • wood • leaf litter • seed pods
you create a habitat that supports dense microfauna populations — which in turn support healthier, more natural fish.
Bag of Bugs is a great way to seed that process in a single step.
Bag of Bugs - Microfauna Culture
Bag of Bugs will ship to you in a special breather bag that allows oxygen and carbon dioxide to pass through microscopic holes in the plastic. The holes will not leak water.
You can simply dump the entire contents of the bag directly into your aquarium. If You have lots of fish, it may be better to wait until lights are out so the microfauna have a chance to get to safety before being gobbled up. You can also start a dedicated microfauna tank. This could be any kind of container five gallons or larger.