How Many RCS does it take to.......

[Lt.]

So, I wanna put RCS in the new 45 long, that I'm setting, but I wanna make sure they won't be out-competed by 8 cories I'm putting in as well. Also wanna ask how many RCS should I get.

[MartyMA]

If your tank is heavily planted, RCS should be able to find enough to eat in moss and other plants that the cories will not find or care about. RCS will eat anything and can survive on biofilm. I have a colony of RCS in a 20g competing with about 200 endlers. I don't think they are starving and the endlers are total pigs when it comes to food. I would start with 50 RCS to get the colony up and running.

[CorallineAlgae]

You can add any amount that you can afford. It would be hard to have to many in that large of a tank. Even if you only add a few they should breed well if you don't have any fish that eat the fry. Remember to put a sponge over your filter intake to keep any shrimp from getting sucked in.

[jcolon]

If your looking to breed and keep them, with considering the rate at which they can breed ... assuming no predators ... start with as little as 10 nearly adult RCS. Those 10 can quickly become 80+ in a couple of months assuming you keep good water and you have a few saddled / berried females from the beginning.

If you have fish, then a moderately planted tank with DW and rocks should provide enough hiding spots for a growing ..albeit slower ... colony.

[Lt.]

Do they really need a sponge over the filter intake? A normal plastic strainer isn't enough? Won't the sponge slow water movement?

[jetajockey]

A strainer will suck babies up.

[Lt.]

Oh, ok what if I don't want babies?

[MartyMA]

Originally Posted by Lt.

Oh, ok what if I don't want babies?

Well then your experience with RCS will be short. They want to reproduce and some may survive. The idea that the unlucky babies getting ground up in the filter is unappealing. The sponge filter will protect them and is a good way to nurture beneficial bacteria. Yeah, the sponge does slow down the flow eventually but just like any filter medium, it just needs a rinse and squeeze in tank water when doing a WC and your good to go.

[ianeberle]

Agreed with Marty. I actually bought RCS from jetajocky (two messages up) and I have tons of babies all over the place! They're so fun.

If you don't want babies, don't get shrimp at all.

[CorallineAlgae]

A cheap little powerhead or round Fluval sponge won't reduce flow by much at all. These are coarse sponges that virtually everybody with shrimp and a power filter use. The shrimp will often be found feeding off of the tiny debris caught on the surface of the sponge so instead of the filter intake being a threat to shrimp it becomes an asset. Win win.

[Lt.]

Oh, ok didn't know