# Spirulina turning shrimp red



## NOWIS

Hi everyone! Just a quick post
I started feeding my red cherry shrimp  spirulina algea pellets a few weeks ago and the colour change in some of the shrimp has been amazing.
Has anyone seen this affect? I can't think of any other possibilities other than select breeding with in the aquarium by luck
Could be worth a try if your shrimp aren't the deepest of colours.


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## Edvet

That's why flamingo are red (spirulina-> artemia--> flamingo)


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## NOWIS

Haha yes! I'm just a little surprised it's not used  more often. My cherries are now better coloured than any local shop


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## Aqua360

First time I've heard this, definitely trying now!


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## zozo

Depends also a bit on the so called Spirulina.. For example Sera sells green Spirulina tabs, but if you read the small letters very closely about it's contents you'll find out it only contains 20% spirulina, the rest is clamp meat powder or shrimp meat powder, vegtebla powder, color agent (To make 'm green again) etc. etc. 

By law a manufacturer can call a product Spirulina if it contains at least a few % of it. Many of these products are completely useless from the Spirulina side if it contains less than 20% Spirulina.

So read the small letters closely about contents before you buy it, if you realy want to have the benefit of feeding Spirulina. If it contains less than 20% than you are not buying what it says it is. As @Edvet says, Flamigo's are pink if they get loads of shrimp for diet, if not they likely will stay white. That's from the Carotene in the pink shrimps. So if the Tab mainly is made out of clamp or shrimp meat you are feeding more Carotene than Spirulina.


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## sonicninja

Can you tell us what sprirulina product you’re using?


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## Gill

I use Spirulina Powder from the Health Food Retailer/Shop. As that way I know I am getting Pure Spirulina. And not the Min 6% that Fish/Shrimp food versions have in them.


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## NOWIS




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## a1Matt

At 36%, that is a decent amount of spirulina. (Which you knew already from your shrimps colouration.)

Full ingredients list according to
http://taaquaculture.uk/Foods_Tropical.htm

Analytical constituents: crude protein 48.0%, crude oils and fats 6.0%, crude fibres 3.8%, moisture 10.0%.

Ingredients: algae (including Spirulina platensis min. 36%), vegetable protein extracts, derivatives of vegetable origin, fish and fish derivatives, cereals, molluscs and crustaceans, yeasts, oils and fats, minerals (including zeolite 1%). Additives (per kg): Vitamins, pro-vitamins and chemically well-defined substances having similar effect: vit. A 38 000 IU, vit. D3 2 000 IU, vit. E 200 mg, vit. C 540 mg. Compounds of trace elements: E1 (Fe) 42.0 mg, E6 (Zn) 11.5 mg, E5 (Mn) 9.0 mg, E4 (Cu) 2.1 mg, E2 (I) 0.26 mg, E8 (Se) 0.26 mg, E7 (Mo) 0.06 mg. Colourants. Antioxidants.


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## Edvet

a1Matt said:


> vegetable protein extracts, derivatives of vegetable origin, fish and fish derivatives, cereals, molluscs and crustaceans, yeasts, oils and fats, minerals (including zeolite 1%


This actually says nothing of value and neither does 


a1Matt said:


> crude protein 48.0%, crude oils and fats 6.0%, crude fibres 3.8%


I don't say it's bad, but it says nothing.
Don't forget they usually take scrap waste from the food industries (cheap) and proces that, in this case together with some spirulina..
Crude protein 48% says nothing about the composition of those proteins, or the biological availability of those protein. It could be the body can only use 1% of that protein and the rest has to be burned. In order to give usefull information , and the same goes for our pets foodstuffs, you need a hell of a lot more info on the ingredients., something the manufacturers don't provide, and something the regular "public" can't merrit on it's worth. So looking on a packaging and seeing"Hey it has 48% protein, it must be good, better then the food with 30% protein" has no value.


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## a1Matt

I agree with you 100% (not just 36%  )

I edited about a minute before you replied, changing it from 'it looks like a good quality food' to 'it has a good amount of spirulina' as I realised my words didn't reflect my thoughts.

Its the same for the food we eat, you never really know what your getting unless you make it yourself.  Labelling is a minefield. Eg.  Even if it says 100% of an ingredient, it can often be heavily processed and reconstituted.


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## Linas S

Yeah Spirulina hits hard in coloration, I started making spirulina lollies and give them once per week, the results were stunning in few weeks.
And shrimps love it.


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## Gill

Need to try one of the recipes for the lollies

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## Kalum

Will need to look how to make the lollies up as that's a nice easy way of feeding it


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## Linas S

That's easy mix spirulina powder with some agar-agar melted in warm water. Sink bamboo skewers into this liquid and let them dry for a few hours. Avoid using gelatin it is not the best option for shrimps. Veg gel is an option though. I usually mix some other natural stuff like dried leafs powder or other dried and grounded veggies. Last time I tried adding some natural sea weed, the shrimps are going mad for it.
You can use just Spirulina powder without any agar-agar or veg gelatin but it will melt in the water pretty fast.
Well you just need to experiment and you will find proportions which suits best for you and your shrimps.


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## Gonçalo Silva

i'm no expert in shrimp but that looks like a fire red or a high grade red sakura.


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## Daneland

Gill said:


> I use Spirulina Powder from the Health Food Retailer/Shop. As that way I know I am getting Pure Spirulina. And not the Min 6% that Fish/Shrimp food versions have in them.


Aldi 100% £2.49
https://www.aldi.co.uk/spirulina-powder/p/075266120709500


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## Edvet

Daneland said:


> ldi.co.uk/spirulina-powder/p/075266120709500


I can't see wether it contains 5% or 95% spirulina sadly


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## Daneland

Edvet said:


> I can't see wether it contains 5% or 95% spirulina sadly


Well in the shop you can turn it around and you see this :


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## Edvet




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## Edvet

According to wikipedia humans can't proces the B12 in spirulina making that etiket........................................questionable ( so does made in China, but that is my personal hangup)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirulina_(dietary_supplement)


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## Daneland

Edvet said:


> According to wikipedia humans can't proces the B12 in spirulina making that etiket........................................questionable ( so does made in China, but that is my personal hangup)
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirulina_(dietary_supplement)


Dont worry, I dont eat it/drink anyways. 

If I can find bloody memory card, I will send some pictures of my shrimps...


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## Daneland

I need to find an online photography course urgently. I am quite rubbish.


.


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## Edvet

Yeah them shrimp are fast moving


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## Daneland

I managed to make !00% spirulina sinking tablets.But I am afraid shrimps did not show much interest the way I expected.They eat it but not the way they eat other fish-shrimp food.
I will to mix it with some other very fine shrimp food and try it again later.
And some photos...


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## Kalum

Tried a spirulina/Bacter AE mix with agar agar and the shrimp have went crazy fighting for it, best reaction of any food I've tried and are still there an hour later


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## Daneland

Kalum said:


> Tried a spirulina/Bacter AE mix with agar agar and the shrimp have went crazy fighting for it, best reaction of any food I've tried and are still there an hour later
> 
> View attachment 114144
> View attachment 114145


Can I have a small piece please ?


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## Kalum

Daneland said:


> Can I have a small piece please ?



Its really simple to make but more than happy to chuck a few bits in the post if you want to try it out


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## Daneland

Kalum said:


> Its really simple to make but more than happy to chuck a few bits in the post if you want to try it out


I was joking but thanks for the offer


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## Kalum

No worries 

Just wondering what the shelf life is on this now it's made up as it'll take a while to get through all of this, need to make in much smaller batches I think


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## sciencefiction

Kalum said:


> Just wondering what the shelf life is on this now it's made up as it'll take a while to get through all of this,



Chuck it in the freezer. It will last some in there.

I actually made some homemade food yesterday for the first time ever. I put spirulina powder, pro-biotics, NLS algae max pellets, broccoli, carrots, spinach, garlic, paprika, turmeric, some frozen bloodworms and some frozen krill. I got a very good response and my clown loaches, beaufortia hillstream loaches, denison barbs, SAEs, corys, shrimp, etc...all accepted it rather well. But I guess some fish would eat anything 

That's how mine looks:


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## jameson_uk

Kalum said:


> Tried a spirulina/Bacter AE mix with agar agar and the shrimp have went crazy fighting for it, best reaction of any food I've tried and are still there an hour later
> 
> View attachment 114144
> View attachment 114145


Just wondering how you made this up


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## Kalum

jameson_uk said:


> Just wondering how you made this up



Was really easy and you don't need a lot at all. I just made a mix of the spirulina and Bacter AE and added to water until I was happy with the consistency and then added agar agar as per the packet (tiny amount). Added it all to a saucepan and brought to the boil where it gets a bit thicker then into a plastic tub to set at room temperature (was set in about 10min but takes about 30-60min to fully set through), before sticking in the freezer (as per SF's suggestion) I cut it up into smaller bits and job done


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## zozo

Kalum said:


> agar agar



Had to look that one up.. And even this seems to be from an algae origine..  Nice stuff..


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## Hanuman

Kalum said:


> Was really easy and you don't need a lot at all. I just made a mix of the spirulina and Bacter AE and added to water until I was happy with the consistency and then added agar agar as per the packet (tiny amount). Added it all to a saucepan and brought to the boil where it gets a bit thicker then into a plastic tub to set at room temperature (was set in about 10min but takes about 30-60min to fully set through), before sticking in the freezer (as per SF's suggestion) I cut it up into smaller bits and job done


Old topic, yet interesting. I know that agar agar needs to be boiled else it won't become a gel. This said, wont the boiling kill all bacteria in the Bacter AE?

I tried a similar recipe in the past but with gelatin. It was not for shrimps but for snails. I added spinach, spirulina, egg shell etc. It was a total failure as the gelatin completely liquified once added into the tank. I had to throw it all.


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## oddn0ise

the recommendation from earlier in this post is having an amazing effect on my shrimps, thanks Simon.
Great stuff http://taaquaculture.uk/


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## Hanuman

I bought some 500 grams 100% pure organic spirulina. At that time I paid ~56 USD and it is enough for a lifetime plus it is also for human consumption since it is not fish food specific. They are now selling it for 10USD less here <..https://healthfoodthailand.com/en/superfoods/905-spirulina-organic-500-gram.html..>
Granted this is a store in Thailand but I am sure you can find similar products in the USA/Europe and most probably for way cheaper.


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