Ghost shrimp

[fishliker]

Hi, I have had my 55 gallon tank a long time but recently discovered ghost shrimp. I have a few Amanos but can’t find them often. Anyway, I’m wondering how to care for them because when I buy them about half disappear in the first weeks. I read somewhere they like brackish water. Could this be the reason?

 

[dylanp]

Yes brackish and fresh water don't mix well. I'm sure it could work if the fish were slowly acclimated over a long period of time but mixing brackish with fresh is like mixing mollies with clown fish. I keep salt water so my point may not be entirely valid. I've kept mollies in salt water. A brackish fish. My thoughts say if you do this right it should work but don't get mad if I'm wrong also anyone with more input feel free to jump in because I'm basically just making this up. Brackish is basically the in between of saltwater and fresh so I'm just going off my experience with mollies. I bought 4 a few years ago i put one in at a time. 1 died after a couple minutes. I added the other a few days later and my snowflake eel ate it . The last 2 seemed fine I ended up selling all my stuff because I didn't have Time to o care for it with my job. Brackish to salt is a lot harsher then brackish to fresh I'd just take it slow and see what happens. Ghost shrimp are cheap and I've always thought of them as a feeder As do a lot of people so if you lose a few not a big deal

 

[fishliker]

dylanp, thx for your reply. That’s what I was guessing is going on. I have picked up 5-6 at a time from Petsmart about 3 times and do currently have 5 or 6 that have lived a couple of months now.

 

[Autumnsky]

Which ones disappear, the Ghost shrimp or the Amanos?

How are you acclimating them to your tank/water, when you buy them?

Either will be alright in FW. Fish like to eat them, they are especially vulnerable after molting, and can be sensitive to changes in water parameters/ poor water conditions, and could be in poor condition/sensitive from being transported, kept in ammonia polluted shipping bags.

There are some differences in the kinds of shrimps which are called feeders, some are Grass Shrimp. Lots of names are used by importers and breeders. But if they are called Ghost shrimp and have a sharp angle on the back of the abdomen usually are Ghost shrimp.