The Dark Origins Of 'Sea-Monkeys' Are Leaving Parents Seriously Uneasy
What do you do when your kid wants a pet but they're not responsible — or financially stable — enough to take care of a dog? You turn to sea monkeys, of course! Aquatic specks that zip and zoom around a portable tank, they're the perfect pals for a kid curious about the world. But before you fork over some cash to become a proud grandparent to sea monkeys, you might want to see what, exactly, they are — and the dark truth behind the man who first sold them.
Sea Monkeys
Their name has spread far and wide, but few people really know what sea monkeys are. They don't live in the sea, and they're far from what you would call monkeys. The truth is, they weren't given the name until some time after their creation.
Harold von Braunhut
It started with Harold von Braunhut back in 1957. He was notorious for selling the most ridiculous products, like x-ray glasses and invisible goldfish. Seeing the success of the ant farm in 1956, he eyed his own slice of the simple pet market.
Breeding
He looked to what were not yet called "sea monkeys" which were bred from a type of shrimp called "brine shrimp" in the 1950s. This explains their shape, of course; but it does not explain why we call them monkeys.
Scientific Name
Well, the scientists that artificially created these creatures named them "Artemia NYOS," a calling card based on the brine shrimp's official moniker, artemia salina. That name wasn't going to sell these creatures to anyone, so von Braunhut honed in on one specific trait of these shrimp to come up with a new name.
