Pistol Shrimp not doing what it is supposed too

[Picollo]

About six weeks ago I bought a Randalls Shrimp Goby along with it's symbiont; a little yellow Pistol Shrimp, they built a burrow & behaved naturally but after a couple of weeks the Shrimps claws seemed to just fall off and it disappeared. I think it may have had a little trouble molting.

So after a couple of weeks when clearly this Shrimp had bit the dust I invested in another, a gorgeous red & white stripy one hoping it would keep the Goby company, but what has happened is the shrimp has found a cave about midway up and behind the rock work and can only be seen with great difficulty. Whereas the Goby perches at the bottom in front of the rockwork waiting for food!

I though Pistol Shrimps were obligatory burrowers so why will this one not get stuck into the sand and rubble like the previous, is it a matter of patience here or have I got a rogue one that prefers to live higher up in the rockwork!

Any suggestions? I have a 24G (US) tank with various coral, Common Clown and a Randall's Goby which is meant to team up with the Shrimp!

 

[austinsdad]

I'd suggest you wait it out.

 

[roka64]

Yeah wait it out. Pistols are nearly blind and may not realize the goby is there. What kind of substrate do you have?

 

[Roberz00]

red and white stripes (head to tail pattern) usually are associated with the Skunk Shrimps( aka Cleaner shrimps) and not a pistol shrimp. Or at least as I have been told and seen in pictures.

 

[Picollo]

Definitely a pistol Shrimp 1 big claw, 1 small claw, snapping noise at night!
I am using crushed coral sand and a fair amount of rubble, i'm going to add some more coral sand in a couple of days though as it is only about an inch deep due to siphoning!

 

[roka64]

What's "coral sand"?

 

[Picollo]

Marine substrate made up of crushed coral skeleton & shells etc.! Its pretty standard stuff! Good for keeping the PH up!

 

[ccCapt]

Marine substrate made up of crushed coral skeleton & shells etc.! Its pretty standard stuff! Good for keeping the PH up!

Unless the pH in your tank is below 7.2, substrate (aragonite sand, crushed coral, shells, etc.) has no affect on pH or any other buffering. Very common misconception.