# cherry red shrimp magically vanishing..



## jack-rythm (1 Oct 2012)

Hi everyone.. before I start I wanna tell everyone that they ARE NOT in my filter.. 

I seem to be loosing shrimp as now I will be lucky to see more than 3 at once.. I have about 10 shrimp in a 27l nano tank. I found one not moving on the bottom of the tank beginning to turn whiter and whiter.. I looked just now and he is almost white.. He is dead unfortunately but I dont know why? Im now wndering if this is happeneing to all my shrimp?? 

I dose with a small amount of ei fertz and but half a capful of fluval shrimp safe in each water change.. I have a substrate built up of irish peat moss, john innes no3 compost and akadama bonsai soil, I have riccia and plants that are flourishing wonderfully. I have no heater as my room temp is always 22 degrees no questions. I have tiger endlers and 2 ottos so nothing that may be eating them...

can anyone help?


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## nry (1 Oct 2012)

That's shrimp for you...how long have you had them?


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## jack-rythm (1 Oct 2012)

about 2 weeks?


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## Gary Nelson (1 Oct 2012)

Is your tank open topped? if so they can jump!


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## Ady34 (1 Oct 2012)

if they are turning white and dying they are not happy with the water for some reason.
are you using c02?
If not im no expert but it could be tds swings due to peat moss and john innes...especially in such a small volume of water....troi may be able to help with his knowledge on these substrates as to whether they drastically effect water chemistry as im sure ive read somewhere that some types increase hardness. I dont know anything about them and maybe your peat moss is to prevent this effect but its just a thought. Also how much water are you changing and what is the water chemistry compared with your tank water, could it be vastly different due to the effects of your substrate?
Cheerio
Ady
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## Alastair (1 Oct 2012)

Ady has a valid point regarding substrate as John innes does raise gh in your tank a fair amount depending on how much you've used but cherries are usually fairly hardy. 
I use a little of the John innes in my tank but it has no ill effect on my cherries and big toms bucket of mud had high gh and ph caused by the John innes but his shrimp were fine!! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## jack-rythm (1 Oct 2012)

well i dont use co2 at all as its a low tech tank and I do 30% water change every sunday, I only used a small amount of john innes and peat moss, most of it was akadama.. my fish seem to be ok.. I dont know they are slowly dying because last night one was fine and through out the day today he has died...  sad really.. it would be interesting to know if it is te john innes and peat moss... does anyone else know anything about this mixture? I read that this would be ideal for my low tech nano but obviously didn't think about shrimp..


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## geoffbark (2 Oct 2012)

Hummm...

Are you sure that they are dying and not hiding! Only if the dead shrimp is white, it may be a molt. When a shrimp dies it normally goes pink same colour as a cooked prawn!


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## jack-rythm (2 Oct 2012)

Yeah very sure.. I mentioned earlier in the post that I watched one turn pink and die the turn white when it saw dead. They turn white when dead just like fish tend to do.. Really unsure, it's not my lighting, it's not my, water meters and it's,not my tap water or Fertz so it must be my substrate?


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## Ady34 (2 Oct 2012)

are there any aerosols used nearby, air freshners hairsprays deodorants etc or any new plants?


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## basil (2 Oct 2012)

Cloudy shrimp turning white almost certainly a bacterial outbreak. Need to treat quickly.


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## jack-rythm (2 Oct 2012)

nothing is cloudy? my tank is crystal clear. Definitely not a bacterial outbreak. i have under the recommended amount of fish. and has been in cycle for 6-8 weeks. I have experienced bacterial blooms before and this unfortunately isint.. as for spray cans or things like that, this is also a no no Its in my lounge so nothing like this goes on.. 

still a mystery ?


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## basil (2 Oct 2012)

Sorry mate, I meant bacterial infection of your shrimp. If the shrimp turn milky coloured this is normally the cause.


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## jack-rythm (2 Oct 2012)

what do you sugest?


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## basil (2 Oct 2012)

If you are happy to spend a few quid, I'd certainly suggest investing in a bottle of seachem para guard and treating with this immediately. In the mean time, add almond leaves and drop an air stone in the increase oxygen as this will help to counter bacteria.


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## basil (2 Oct 2012)

If you need some almond leaves, I can send you a few tomorrow 1st class? Let me have your address if you'd like them mate. Cheers mike


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## somethingfishy (2 Oct 2012)

Sorry to jump in I have had similar shrimp deaths maybe one a week .. are almond leaves really good then?


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## basil (2 Oct 2012)

somethingfishy said:
			
		

> Sorry to jump in I have had similar shrimp deaths maybe one a week .. are almond leaves really good then?



That certainly sounds like a classic bacterial problem. Suppose it's hard to say categorically yes that they make a difference but a lot of top breeders swear by them along with banana leaves to help combat and prevent bacterial problems. I use them in all my shrimp tanks.........


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## somethingfishy (2 Oct 2012)

Cheers Basil will get some ordered off ebay


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## basil (2 Oct 2012)

Winezita on eBay does some good stuff!!


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## billy boy (2 Oct 2012)

You could also start adding some Beta glucan  to your tank to help fight any infections, I use  Mosura Tonic Pro which is also a food supplement, It's a little bit on the pricey side but worth it. IMO

Or you could try beta-G which has some good reports.


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genchem-Beta- ... f62&_uhb=1


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## jack-rythm (2 Oct 2012)

Excellent thanks!


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## geoffbark (3 Oct 2012)

jackrythm said:
			
		

> Yeah very sure.. I mentioned earlier in the post that I watched one turn pink and die the turn white when it saw dead. They turn white when dead just like fish tend to do.. Really unsure, it's not my lighting, it's not my, water meters and it's,not my tap water or Fertz so it must be my substrate?




Sorry i must have missed the post where you said that they turned pink!

How long have you had the tank setup, they don't really like newish tanks!

Cherry's are really hardy, they don't need heaters, mine survive and breed even at 15 deg.

Try one of the products the others have mentioned for bacteria problems, but i'm not convinced 

Have you phisically removed the dead shrimp or can you just not find them?


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## jack-rythm (3 Oct 2012)

Some I remove, others I cannot find. The tank is 6-7 weeks old


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