What Kind of Shrimp Should I Get Next?

[Scottyhorse]

In a couple months I am going to get a couple 10 gallons for breeding, andone of them is going to be for shrimp and/or snails. Right now in my 2 gal (what I started this hobby with!) is a couple Amanos and Sakura Red Cherry Shrimp.
In my ten gal want to have maybe 3 or 4 colonies or around 20 shrimp each. I need to make sure that they don't crossbreed. I am going to be breeding and selling these shrimp, and shipping them out too.

I need suggestions about what shrimp I should do. I think I am going to do CRS for another, since those are popular. What grade should I buy?


Here are some species I like. Let me know which ones will work

Tiger Shrimp
Blue Tiger Shrimp
Emerald Green Shrimp
Yellow Neo Shrimp
Bee Shrimp
Blue Jelly Shrimp
Chameleon Shrimp
Ninja Bee Shrimp
Cardinal Shrimp

I know I can't do all of these, and some will crossbreed with others, but I want an idea of what I could do.

In my brackish tank I am also going to set up I am going to try my hand at breeding Amano and Opea Ula Shrimp, so that people will have access to captive bred specimens. Also, it seems like a fun challenge!

Since I am going to be selling them, I want to use shrimp that people don't want to buy. If there are other shrimp that I could do, please suggest them!

Thanks!

 

[mazie51109]

I like Ghost Shrimp They're really fun to watch and I've had them breed in my tanks before.

 

[Mogurako]

Allot of these shrimp species you want are line bred and very sensitive to any changes in water chemistry. They need to be added to well established tank with live plants and lots of bio-film for them to graze on. Your best best bet is to only keep one species per tank, it's very easy for one species to out compete the other.

 

[owen0992]

Have you thought of getting a tank divider to split each ten in half? That way you could keep 4 species separate without the threat of crossbreeding.

 

[Scottyhorse]

Alright, I have decided to upgrade at least one ten gal to a 20 long, (divided) and have my sakuras, crystal reds, tiger shrimp, and Chameleon Shrimp.
In the ten, I would have Blue Tigers, and snails. If I do another 20 long (divided) (I am going to ed up with a fish store in my bedroom!!) I would do the Blue Tigers with Ramshorn Snails, Blue Jelly Shrimp, Ninja Bee Shrimp, and then Yellow Neo Shrimp.
Yes, I am addicted to fish keeping and invert breeding. LOL.

 

[Mogurako]

Cross breeding is still possible even with dividers, shrimp jump, keep each in a separate tank. If you are serious about raising some of the high end shrimp then I would choose the two you want to breed the most and get the biggest tank you can afford for them. The bigger the tank the more stable the water chemistry will be and also the more room for shrimp. To get a good start you'll want 10-20 of each species and with some of the species that can cost a pretty penny.

 

[Scottyhorse]

Yeah I guess you are right.
See, I love shrimp, and I would like some more of the high end species, so I figured that if I breed them I could make a little money. I don't want to start a full time buisness before I can even get a job, but I would like to have a little business to fuel my MTS...
If I could, I would buy a ten gal tank and keep each species. What species would be the best to breed.

 

[Mogurako]

Most of your Neocaridina are going to be very prolific and will sell pretty well, while they aren't as expensive you'll end up dealing with a large quantity of shrimp and relatively fast turn around.

If I were you I would start with a very strong strain of Red Cherry shrimp, while they are easy to keep they are difficult to do well. Most strains I have seen locally are very muddy or just plain clear. If done right those will be your bread and butter shrimp. Red Rilis are another one that will sell well, they are very popular due to their contrast. The third one I would recommend is Super Tiger Shrimp.

The top sellers at the auctions for our club is always Cherries and Tigers.

 

[Scottyhorse]

Right now I have some Sakura Red Cherry Shrimp. When I have a bigger tank I want to buy about 10 more.
I also LOVE LOVE LOVE Blue Tiger Shrimp. Tigers and Super Tigers are cool too. I also like Rilli Shrimp. They are cool to. So say I bought 5 gal tanks for Sakuras and Tiger Shrimp, would that be OK?

 

[jcolon]

Have to agree with Mogurako, Red Cherry Shrimp and Tiger shrimp are a good Neo and Caridinia combination that will not crossbreed and will give you a stable hardy colony of shrimp to start from.

A 5 gal is fine to get a small colony of RCS's and maybe some Tigers going. Get their numbers up, sell some and eventually get other tanks for the more expensive breeds. I love the look of Rilli's, my next tank I'll look to get some. Rilli's and the Blue Tiger's could both be kept in another tank down the road. High grade CRS, Bee Shrimp, Red Wine, KingKong and other expensive breeds can be further down the road.

 

[Scottyhorse]

I'm thinking I would give them their own tanks. But I already have Sakura Red Shrimp. Would those be OK instead of Cherry Shrimp?

 

[Mogurako]

I would not go with a tank smaller than 10 gallons from a water chemistry stability stand point. I'll state again if you are serious about breeding shrimp to sell do not mix species unless its a large tank otherwise one will out compete the other.

Now when you say Sakura Red cherries do you mean fire red aka painted cherry shrimp? Blue tigers can be tricky stick with the less finicky species first until you have a handle on things.

 

[Scottyhorse]

I would not go with a tank smaller than 10 gallons from a water chemistry stability stand point. I'll state again if you are serious about breeding shrimp to sell do not mix species unless its a large tank otherwise one will out compete the other.

Now when you say Sakura Red cherries do you mean fire red aka painted cherry shrimp? Blue tigers can be tricky stick with the less finicky species first until you have a handle on things.

Hmm, I guess I will have to pick a few species, and buy some ten gal tanks and start with those. So Sakura Red Cherry Shrimp in one, Tiger Shrimp/Super Tiger Shrimp in another, rilli shrimp in one, and I would like to have a 4th one. What should I have in the fourth one?

The shrimp look kinda like this:

AquaBid.com - Item # fwinverts1358147877 - 15 Painted Fire Red Shrimp - Ends: Mon Jan 14 2013 - 01:17:57 AM CDT

Males are smaller, clear and red. I bought them from TheFishBoss97 and they seem very nice! I was told they are Sakura Red Cherry Shrimp.

I also plan to have 2 5 gal 'experiment' tanks with amano shrimp and Opae Ula shrimp. If it works I will upgrade to larger tanks. Although I can't keep too many tanks, because I would like 4 other fish tanks, so I want to keep my tanks to ten max. And my other tanks will be larger, and I don't have endless amounts of room, unfortunantly. I would love to have tons of shrimp and fish tanks!

I love getting your guys' input!

 

[Coursair]

I agree, 10-20g tanks are best. Single species and start slow. Most high end Shrimp are expensive for a reason. If they were easy, everyone would breed them. My SS grade CRS are much more sensitive than my Cherries.

You can cull for color and keep strong color for breeding.

 

[Scottyhorse]

I agree, 10-20g tanks are best. Single species and start slow. Most high end Shrimp are expensive for a reason. If they were easy, everyone would breed them. My SS grade CRS are much more sensitive than my Cherries.

You can cull for color and keep strong color for breeding.

Yeah, I am just going to put the ones I wont sell in my community tanks, that way it won't matter if they get eaten or not. If they breed, they breed, fish get snacks.
I am going to buy some more nice cherry shrimp to add to my sakuras, and get a nice strain going.

 

[The CodFather]

Here's a pic of a few of these for you to see their color Scottyhorse

 

[Scottyhorse]

Wow they are really pretty!! And I bet that the older they get the pinker they will get! Love them!!

 

[The CodFather]

Yea they are supposed to get brighter with age they are very pearly shimmery now too The pic isnt very good but you get the gist

 

[jlieu]

I did 10g for awhile...but I believe 20g Long is one of the best size for shrimps. Same height as 10g but with a larger footprint for more shrimps! More water is always useful as a buffer in terms of water params.

Look at some Chocolate Shrimps or Blue Rili/Blue Velvet...different look than your traditional Red Cherry/Fire Red/Sakuras

 

[Mogurako]

I did 10g for awhile...but I believe 20g Long is one of the best size for shrimps. Same height as 10g but with a larger footprint for more shrimps! More water is always useful as a buffer in terms of water params.

Agreed, the bigger the tank the better for shrimp. Not only is it more floor space for the shrimp but the more volume means allot stabler temperatures and water parameters. As soon as I have the space all my shrimp will go into 40 breeders.