NATIONAL SEA MONKEY DAY | MAY 16
The tiny brine shrimp is better known by its brand name, Sea-Monkey. On the 16th of May each year, many of us celebrate fond childhood memories for National Sea Monkey Day as we look back to our aquariums filled with these magical little creatures that hatched and grew before our eyes.
#NationalSeaMonkeyDay
Sea Monkeys are a type of Artemia (brine shrimp). They got their name because of their monkey-tail look.
Following the popularity of the ant farms, Harold von Braunhut invented the “Sea Monkeys” and hatching kits in 1957. He did most of his advertising through comic books. He once said, “I think I bought something like 3.2 million pages of comic book advertising a year. It worked beautifully.”
These little crustaceans have made their appearances on television shows including Spin City, Roseanne, Night Court, South Park, The Simpsons, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, and Desperate Housewives.
Sea Monkeys also went into space with astronaut John Glenn on October 29, 1998, aboard Space Shuttle Discovery. They returned to Earth after spending nine days in space and the eggs hatched eight weeks later, apparently unaffected by their travels.
HOW TO OBSERVE National Sea Monkey Day
Share your experiences with Sea Monkeys. Do you have some swimming around now? Share a photo using #NationalSeaMonkeyDay to post on social media.
NATIONAL SEA MONKEY DAY HISTORY
National Day Calendar continues researching the origins of this pop culture holiday.