What shrimp to get???

[Kitekat87]

I have a 12 gallon fluval edge with two guppies in at the moment. I plan on adding a few more guppies and would really like some shrimp. What shrimp would everyone recommend for the tank? I have had two small/young RCS before but both disappeared within a few days with no trace, so I was thinking maybe a slightly larger species???

 

[tropicalmackdaddy]

Amano shrimp

 

[Borderlesscott]

Amano shrimp

+1 on the Amano

 

[Autumnsky]

I have had Orange Sakura shrimp with a few guppies in my Edge. Right now Blue and natural "Red" Cherry Shrimp with Boraras Brigittae "Chilis" with them.

With Red Ramshorns too.

Looking at getting some OEBT pretty soon. Either Yellow or green Babaulti shrimps.

In honesty one of the most fun shrimps to have in the tanks are the Amanos...they are big and easy to see and scamper around like a ballerina shrimp!!! Fight over shrimp cuisine and sinking pellets and are social - love picking the Java moss and driftwood, even play with the Rams Horn snails that fall off the glass and hold them like a ball. Humorous.

 

[hpiguy]

Are Amano shrimp easy to care for like Ghost and Cherry shrimp?

 

[jondamon]

I don't have to feed my Amano's anything other than what I give my fish.

They take care of any algae in the tank and are great at finding their own food.

My Amano's seem to grab my TETRA PRO COLOUR WAFERS every time I feed using them.

My largest amano is almost 2" long.



Jon

 

[Borderlesscott]

Very easy, I have to be honest I have Hikari crab pellets that I feed to my shrimp via planting tongs - really cool, they walk up and grab them then scamper off! though not necessary at all, they will just scavenge around.

Pic of one of my guys cleaning my Seneye probe

 

[Autumnsky]

Algae eating shrimp like more than algae!

I also feed Hikari Shrimp Cuisine and Hikari omnivore sinking pellets. You can break those and feed smaller amounts. They love all of them and fight over them too.

Mine are also appx. 2" and originally they just scavenged what fell to the sand.

In my Cherry Shrimp tank I was feeding very sparingly to keep water parameters good and only occasionally dropping little pieces of the Hikari Algae tabs in for them which they ate, but I noticed they started acting crazy at feeding time like they were starving and stealing the Shrimp Cuisine pellets away immediately at the top of the tank when I dropped them in. Then they started acting crazy like in a frenzy to get at a snail with a cracked/hole in the shell, so I figured they were hungry for meat. lol

I changed them to pieces of the omnivore sinking pellets and they seemed much more satisfied than with the algae tab diet. The omnivore sinking pellets are much smaller than the algae tabs and they will grab away a whole one and scurry into the moss to eat it and keep it away from the other one.

 

[Kitekat87]

Shrimp really do sound so much fun, can't wait to get some.

Do you guys bother cleaning the gravel or do you just leave the shrimp to it? I'm worried that if I do gravel cleans with shrimp in there they might get sucked into the bucket

 

[tropicalmackdaddy]

They shouldnt, just avoid them and they should avoid the giant scary tube lol.
And worse case scenario u an probably just net them out of the bucket

 

[fishfool58]

Shrimp really do sound so much fun, can't wait to get some.

Do you guys bother cleaning the gravel or do you just leave the shrimp to it? I'm worried that if I do gravel cleans with shrimp in there they might get sucked into the bucket

I had ghost shrimp in my tank, & I syphoned a few out by accident.. I just poured my bucket over another bucket pouring it through a net, & caught the 2 that went for a ride through the tube..

 

[jcolon]

Shrimp really do sound so much fun, can't wait to get some.

Do you guys bother cleaning the gravel or do you just leave the shrimp to it? I'm worried that if I do gravel cleans with shrimp in there they might get sucked into the bucket

It wasn't too long ago that I couldn't have cared less about shrimp ... Never really saw what the hoopla about shrimp.

NOW .... I'm planning of turning my 20long in storage into a shrimp tank. An RCS / Red fire colony, lower grade CRS and my favorite ... Amano's ... Maybe a bamboo or two later on.

I'm leaving the ones in my 75gal there and getting all new. Shrimp really do add a unique dimension making it feel more like an aquarium ... Not just a fish tank.