algae eating shrimp

[shayfish]

At my lfs today I saw some shrimp marked "algae eating shrimp". Seemed a little generic to me... they sort of looked like amanos but they were quite small and I don't know a thing about shrimp so I couldn't tell! Is there a certain kind of shrimp that get marked as algae eating shrimp?

 

[Esra]

Ones that eat algae

 

[Satsumas]

My LFS also labelled some really small shrimp as algae eating shrimp, there may have been a latin name infront of it and i should be going there tonight so i'll try and remember it. They were probably Amano's but they've had their name changed now anyway!

 

[coldmachineUK]

lol, I see you've been keeping up your reading of PFK huh satsumas?! Good stuff!!!

It'll more likely than not be amano shrimp, yep. They're probably the most renowned and common algae eating shrimp, but you're best checking since LFS can be notorious for mislabeling stuff!

 

[Satsumas]

Yep i have the December issue coldmachine!

Yeah I have seen a few 'dodgy' labels. My LFS once had these apisto's in 3 tanks next to each other...cacatuoides, agassizii and the macmasters. Needless to say i didn't trust the labels, the guy actually said i can't be sure which one's which! He is the 'bright' one out of the bunch but i don't think he labelled them.

 

[coldmachineUK]

How about a cichlid tank at my LFS lablled 'zebra cichlids' lol. There were about 3 different species in there too (def. not the same/dimorphic species).

Aaah, its the agassizii article that got my interest piqued in them. I'd love a tank with 10-15, I think they look lovely

 

[Satsumas]

There are some fish in the tank which aren't labelled, there are also labels for fish which aren't in the tank. Also the majority of people there don't know much about keeping fish and i think i know more! I prefer it when the shop assistant asks me questions on my tank i've had this done to me once and i've also only ever seen it once. I sometimes see nice fish caught and bagges up thinking they'll be back in a week for their guarantee!

lol. Yeah so would i coldmachine, it would be interesting to watch their behaviour aswell. They would have to pick the most stunning apisto's and have a big full page picture of them!

 

[shayfish]

Well, my impulsive side got the better of me when I was back cruising the lfs today and I bought 5 of these shrimp. They look similar to my one amano, but much more clear and smaller (but not as clear as ghosties). The guy working at the store today said they weren't amanos, and that they really are just called algea eating shrimp. I snapped a bunch of pics that turned out blurry when they were in the bag acclimating and I haven't seen them since I set them free in my tank!! If I ever get a shot, I will post it for ID purposes.


edit: Umm... is it possible that larger mollies (adult sailfins) might eat little shrimpies like these? I seriously can't find any of them... 8O

 

[czcz]

My LFS insisted these were called "Indian Algae Eating Shrimp" and not Amano shrimp, but I am fairly certain they are Amanos. Shortly after this they started being nice to me and acted like a knew something. Notice the slightly different color between these two "Indian Algae Eating Shrimp," though.

 

[coldmachineUK]

lol, maybe Indian Algae Eating Shrimp is the new common name for them? (joke). I'd say those were definitely amanos too, and I'm betting thats what you have as well shayfish? They can be small to start with but they'll be molting in no time!

 

[lovemybarbs]

My bamboo seem to be eating some of the brown stuff off the plants, but they can't get the glass.

 

[coldmachineUK]

My bamboo seem to be eating some of the brown stuff off the plants, but they can't get the glass.

I wouldn't worry too much about diatoms: they usually take hold in new tank setups because the silicates leach into the water from the glass and whatnot (it's to do with a higher silicate to phosphate ratio). You should see them disappear within 12 weeks.

 

[lovemybarbs]

I think they are disappearing a bit, but I am tired of scraping the glass weekly.

The shrimp are eating it off the plants, but my pleco is too spoiled to eat algae. That's my fault.