| Summary: | Several species of the planktonic free-living genus <i>Oithona</i> have been successfully used in the larviculture of marine fish and shrimp. However, few studies have been published that allow us to estimate the potential of <i>Oithona nana</i> culture under controlled conditions. This work evaluated the effect of the microalgae <i>Isochrysis galbana</i> and <i>Chaetoceros calcitrans</i> as single (200,000 cells/mL) and mixed diets (100,000 + 100,000 cells/mL) on population and individual growth, ingestion rate, number of spawnings, fertility, development time by stage, and sex ratio of <i>O. nana</i>. We cultured this copepod at 28 ± 0.5 °C, 35 PSU salinity, 125 lux, and 12:12 photoperiod. Results showed that diet had no effect on the final population level (6273–7966 ind/L) or on individual growth, nor on sex ratio, with less males than females. With <i>C. calcitrans</i>, <i>O. nana</i> had a higher filtration rate (57 ng C/ind/day). On the other hand, a mixed diet induced a higher number of spawns (0.4 events/day) and nauplii per spawn (23 ind). Similarly, a single or mixed diet, containing <i>I. galbana,</i> accelerated the development rate by 6.33–7.00 days. We concluded that <i>O. nana</i> can be cultured with both microalgae, indicating its potential use in an intensive system for production. However, more research is required to improve the productivity of <i>O. nana</i> rearing.
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