New cleaner shrimp... W/ eggs?! Help

[marsh]

I replaced a cleaner shrimp I had lost to my overflow sock recently and I brought home a new one yesterday.

She seems like she is berried with eggs! My RCS look similar and hold them under their "fans" on the underside of their tail/abdomen

What can I do, any chance they will hatch?

My tank is a 29 with a 10 gallon sump full of LR. I thought she was big enough not to be sucked into the overflow like my last goober (poor fella, he had been moved from a FOWLR tank and the overflow was a foreign concept)

I will remove the stocking on my overflow tube so that little ones can live if they are sumpified.

Anyone hatch cleaner shrimplets before?? Only tank mates are an algae blenny and lone blue Chromis, pulsing Xenia, bubble coral and another little coral I can't remember. Oh and 2-3 snails all different (one is so tiny I haven't seen him in days, the other is a regular guy, conical small size on the glass usually, the big guy is always under the sand with his snorkel out)

 

[kdpuffer]

I would try to move the shrimp to the sump till the eggs hatch. They will have a better chance of survival in the fuge than in the DT. The chromis would likely eat them at every chance.

 

[marsh]

Would the blenny also be a threat(the Chromis was for cycling, he can be returned) I have so much rock in my sump I'm worried about the momma. Ill post a photo. I was thinking maybe a breeder box or net might work, or more caves.

 

[kdpuffer]

I don't think the blenny would pose a big threat but most creatures are opportunistic. My starry blenny eats mysis and brine shrimp so I'm sure if a tiny cleaner shrimp that size crosses his path he wouldn't hesitate. Honestly I think the sump is the safest bet, breeder boxes have horrible flow through them and the shrimp wouldn't comfortable in there at all. Put it in the sump and after the babies are hatched fire mom back into the display.

 

[marsh]

my blenny eats bloodworms so I bet you are right.

My sump has rock all around the skimmer, but the return pump is in the smallest compartment with 1/3 the space. Is it possible they could be harmed by the return pump suction?

Also, it a net too scary to catch her with? I used to let my last shrimp do my nails and he was food oriented, but I just met her, her claws are pretty big... ahh and she preggers!

 

[kdpuffer]

A net would be fine, I would set the net in the tank and let it sit for 1/2 hour then feed the tank and scoop her while she out for food. Another good trick is to wait till lights are off for a couple hours and everyone nestles into their sleeping holes for the nights then blind her with a flashlight and while she is stunned net her. As far as the return pump goes its hard to say. My return has a foam prefilter on it and it prevents stuff like shrimp getting sucked in and turned into mulch. If yours doesn't I still think you would have a decent survival rate. If the young are hatched in the sump then they will likely stay in the rock work. The odd one may make the trip over the baffle.

 

[marsh]

Good advice. Tomorrow I will check for a place to fit a bit of sponge if it isn't present in the return intake already, and net her during feeding.

Does she need extra food? My other cleaner ate flakes or nori and loved the filter feeder juice and cleaned bloodworms out of my Koralias. What is most nutritious for a momma?

 

[kdpuffer]

Cleaner shrimp eat anything so I don't think it really matters what you feed and can't really see anything standing out as better than anything else.

 

[Beengirl]

At my LFS, to catch cleaner shrimps, they use a rectangular plastic cup that's kind deep. They hold it near the cleaner, and the cleaners are curious, so they actually just hop in the container. It was pretty cool to watch. The guy only ha FTP hold the container there for about 30seconds before he jumped in. Could use a deep Tupperware container in that way to catch it. Good luck!!

 

[Jasoncwrd2002]

I'm curious about this too. My cleaner is berried also. How hard would it be to raise the cleaner shrimp?

 

[Ericwm]

I have read they are one of the more difficult shrimp to breed. They need to be fed rotifers of newly hatched baby brine shrimp a couple times a day and reach metamorphosis in 5 to 6 months. I think you will need to set up a tank specifically for raising them and be fairly dedicated. I would like to try it some day but want some experience breeding other creatures first, and more free time of corse.

 

[marsh]

Hmmm I was afraid of that... I did a search an people seemed to have the experience you described, very hard to nourish the young properly (man RCS are garbage cans, not a worry they pop out hungry)

 

[marsh]

Since there doesn't seem to be any precedent for tank raising the young I am leaving my shrimp in my DT. Hopefully a few babies that get sucked into the sump will surprise me and survive.

It seems wrong to isolate her in my sump if the eggs aren't going to develop. Plus I want to enjoy her personality, I miss my previous shrimp.

 

[mr_X]

I have read they are one of the more difficult shrimp to breed. They need to be fed rotifers of newly hatched baby brine shrimp a couple times a day and reach metamorphosis in 5 to 6 months. I think you will need to set up a tank specifically for raising them and be fairly dedicated. I would like to try it some day but want some experience breeding other creatures first, and more free time of corse.

Agreed. Very hard to raise the young and impossible in a DT or refugium. Just let them release them in the DT and they will become food for other critters.

 

[marsh]

Thank you all for the insight. Beangirl I will try the Tupperware trick, might be a fun trick to train her.

My cleaner shrimp molted today and at feeding just now I didn't see the mass of eggs. I only saw them up close while acclimating her so who knows, but if she released them everyone had a feast because I don't see any.