# Crystal Red Shrimp



## LondonDragon (5 Jun 2008)

Hi guys,

I am thinking of starting to breed this type of shrimp, as anyone got experience breeding them?
Also how many do you think is a good number to start off with for breeding? I was thinking of buying 10 or 15.

Many thanks


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## Garuf (5 Jun 2008)

Doctor Dan has... 
If you can get your hands on it I believe there was a copy of how to keep them in PFK. If not PM Ryan of planetinverts he's always been very helpful to me.


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## LondonDragon (5 Jun 2008)

Thanks, I will see if Dan gives me some feedback, otherwise I will keep the usual red cherries to start off with.


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## ziggy_909 (16 Jun 2008)

i am trying to breed crystal shrimp....

 in the past i have bread 1 baby form only 3 shrimps,,  but it didn't make it ...

i have now upped the number to 11, i also have 2 amano's in the same tank ... will that be a problem...they have eggs regularly, but nothing develops

tank = 25 ltr aqua cube
internal filter
heated 
11 watt light

planted with java ferns,  red and green tiger Lilly's and xmas moss

what temp. range is best suited...etc ? 

just started EI dosing and adding Flourish excel.
try measuring 1/64th of a tsp spoon .....


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## LondonDragon (16 Jun 2008)

Ziggy from what a read that tank is too small, some say they need at least a 20 gallon. I am thinking my 60l is too small too but I will give it a go. Temp should be between 23-25ÂºC
Amano's are complicated to breed they need brakish water, but they are not a problem when mixed with CRS.
The plants are fine and probably easier to use a gram scale rather than spoons


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## ziggy_909 (16 Jun 2008)

why do they need more space for breeding... i figure if stocking levels are not to high it will be ok... as opposed to larger tank loaded with shrimp....



> Amano's are complicated to breed they need brakish water


, 

yeah looked into that ..... salt water and stuff = more tanks...no thanks....

in EI index what will 1 tsp weigh on your scales....

cheers....


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## Wolfenrook (17 Jun 2008)

I'd be more worried about the EI dosing more than the size of the tank you have.  Shrimp are highly sensitive, and a lot of the dry trace mixtures have too high levels of chemicals that they really are not keen on (read copper).  Shrimp are also sensitive to high levels of nitrate.  You might want to read this article on planetinverts about fertilisers and shrimp for a bit more info.

I myself have had to reduce my dosing of TPN+ from 9mls a day back down to 5mls a day (180litre Rio) after noticing that my shrimp were hiding more after the increase.

Ade


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## LondonDragon (17 Jun 2008)

I am going to do a low tech tank for my shrimp and have just crypts,anubias and mosses, I have no intention in dosing anything in this tank.


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## ziggy_909 (18 Jun 2008)

```
I myself have had to reduce my dosing of TPN+ from 9mls a day back down to 5mls a day (180litre Rio) after noticing that my shrimp were hiding more after the increase.
```

cheers will keep an eye in that..... but at the minute they seen to be coming out more to the front since i did a 50% water change and also started EI dosing.... plus they seem to be getting a bit more giggy with each other... they seem to chase each other with the intention of climbing aboard the back of their chase victim.

its only been 4 days in the EI dosing.....


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## daniel19831123 (18 Jun 2008)

Well to be honest I haven't have much luck in these shrimp myself. don't know whether I should be blaming the water in stoke on trent of something that I'm doing wrong. There is too many variable in the equation.

Postulated theory of why my shrimp die

1. EI dosing. 
2. Long distance travel prior to settling in my tank
3. Stoke water
4. Small tank
5. Bolbitis in the tank

I have managed to use RO water so I think no. 3 is corrected. Small tank probably won't get to change unless I get a bigger space and a bigger tank. 10g in my room don't do well as the temperature fluactuates between 21-25 degree everyday! There is also reports of shrimp keeper where shrimp had died mysteriously when they had place new rhizome plant in the tank and anubias seemed to be a no-no with CRS. Not sure if bolbitis is true. Travelling all the way accross half the globe doesn't help either. I would like to think that they will survive that travelling but unless I can get some quality shrimp from local source that is kept in the same parameter, I can't really comment on that. It is well known that even if the shrimp look healthy after delivery, they will die after 2 weeks or so in your tank if they weren't packed properly or the water quality wasn't ace when they were packing it.

I'm skinned from these shrimp at the moment. First time importing from taiwan cost me 250 quid and all died! So changes to RO water and made another order. Second order cost me 150 quid and still all died! The next batch ideally will be placed in a sterile 50 gallon tank with just RO water remineralised with Ca, Mg with no nitrate and no plants! That is if I can find any place to fit a 50gallon in my place.


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## LondonDragon (18 Jun 2008)

Thanks for all the info Daniel, my local LFS sell them for Â£3 each, low grade off course, some close to grade A. 
So I will be trying with some of those when I start to get the hang of things first.


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## Wolfenrook (18 Jun 2008)

daniel19831123 said:
			
		

> Well to be honest I haven't have much luck in these shrimp myself. don't know whether I should be blaming the water in stoke on trent of something that I'm doing wrong. There is too many variable in the equation.
> 
> Postulated theory of why my shrimp die
> 
> ...



I'd put money on it NOT been the water Daniel.  I get my water from the same company and source, and it is pretty similar to the water used by many hobbyists that have succesfully kept and bred CRS from reading around.

Sorry to say, I would firmly point the finger at the EI dosing.  The trace powder alone most likely contains quite high levels (compared to say TPN or TPN+) of copper, throw in high quantities of nitrate (which at high levels these shrimp are sensitive to) and I think you have your guilty party.  Add onto the that the stress of the journey and you have dead shrimp.

I actually looked into sourcing some shrimp from closer, in france in fact, but the breeder flat refused stating that he had tried exporting shrimp to the UK and it had failed.  A real shame as they had a LOT more varieties than I have been able to find in the UK, including snowball shrimp etc.  So I am still searching for a good european source with more variety than the UK staple varieties.

Ade


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## JamesM (19 Jun 2008)

I dose Garden Direct's Trace in my cherry shrimp tank, no deaths and all females are carrying eggs. Some small shrimplets have now been released also  

Crystals can be way fussier than Cherry's though...

ShrimpNow! Are great for advice on shrimp


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## Wolfenrook (19 Jun 2008)

JAmesM said:
			
		

> Crystals can be way fussier than Cherry's though...



Most other species of shrimp are fussier than cherry shrimp.  One of the reasons I went back down to 5mls a day TPN+ from 9mls a day was because the increased dosing wiped out my entire population of macrobrachium assamensis.  I know it was the increased dosing as from the very first day my macros started behaving strangely, including flipping over onto their backs and struggling to get back up again, and it wasn't moulting.  After about 2 weeks at 9mls a day I lost the lot of them.

Cherry shrimp and amano shrimp seem to do ok with dosing (so long as the levels aren't really high, as even my cherrys were unhappy with the 9msl a day), but there are many species that will kick the bucket pretty fast.  When I get my nano shrimp colony going it's going to be aimed at the wellbeing of the SHRIMP, with only easy to keep mosses and the like, with NO dosing at all.  I don't see the sense of setting up a shrimp colony, and then focusing on the plants.

Ade


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