While taking care of students who have been locked down in campus since April 10, Huang Linbin, a researcher at the fisheries and life sciences school of Shanghai Ocean University, has also been busy attending to lab-managed aquatic creatures.

The creatures stored in the 50 labs, including fish, shrimp, shellfish and algae, are fundamental to teachers' oceanographic research and student experiments, Huang said.

Huang is one of the seven teachers who have been taking turns to feed these creatures and deliver meals to students.

"Although we are equipped with biology knowledge, it takes time to get familiar with the creatures. The creatures' owners, most of whom are students, gave us instructions on when and how much to feed through video chats," said Huang.

Among the tasks involved is brewing yeast to feed the chironomids, a kind of freshwater insect, every day.

"It's like feeding formula to a baby. It's fulfilling to witness the growth of these chironomids," Huang said.