Tropical Fish Forum

Tropical Fish Keeping => Invertebrates - Shrimps and Snails => Topic started by: Trish on August 31, 2016, 01:28:25 PM

Title: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Trish on August 31, 2016, 01:28:25 PM
Hi All,

Just a few questions before I get some Amano shrimps.

I assume that they will need supplementary feeding, if so, is there a special pellet and how often would I need to feed them?

I am a bit concerned about them getting trapped into the filter.

The filter media, heater and water pump are  hidden behind a divider.
The divider has slits on the top, middle and bottom, through which the pump draws in water, which then gets drawn through the media.

The top slits are like a weir and have the widest slits, I have managed to cover them with a cut up filter bag.

The other slits look too small for the shrimps to get into, and I can't see how I could cover these slits up.

Can these shrimps squeeze into really small spaces?

Having never kept shrimps before, any advice and tips would be appreciated.



Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Littlefish on August 31, 2016, 03:23:07 PM
Hi Trish,
I have amano shrimp in 3 of my tanks, although I've only had them for a couple of months.
I have Aqua internal filters in the tanks, and have not had any problems. I also feed the shrimp on JBL Novo Prawn, and I'm sure that there are a few different brands of shrimp food available. My lot also take the fish flakes and cory pellets, as well as trimming the plants, etc, so they don't seem to go hungry.
You can also buy various sized amano shrimp, perhaps it would be worth considering getting some more mature ones rather than the tiny ones if you are worried about the filter. The first few I got for my temperate tanks have grown quite a bit since I've had them, and have moulted at least once a month each.
I think that @Sue and @Fiona have a lot more experience with shrimp, so I'm sure that they can give you more specific advice.
Best of luck with your shrimp, I'm quite fond of mine.  :)
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Trish on August 31, 2016, 03:50:05 PM
Thanks Donna,
Good idea about getting the large ones, I'm off to P@H tomorrow and see what they have got.
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Fiona on August 31, 2016, 04:06:57 PM
Donna's given the same advice that I would. How large are the gaps?

I used to feed special shrimp food to the cherry shrimp but I didn't buy anymore when it ran out. They seem to do ok with whatever I feed the pygmy cories. I do still use Bacter AE everyday though and beta G once a week, before I used them I really struggled to get a colony going, I'm slightly over successful now and probably have something like 200 red cherry shrimps atm, I'm taking a bag full to MA next time I go as I'm a bit worried over the tank being overstocked.

The amanos in the 200l generally come out at feeding time and grab a piece of sinking pellet or some defrosted frozen food and carry it off to a hidey hole to eat it in peace. I let the other variety of shrimp in there pretty much fend for themselves
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Trish on August 31, 2016, 04:25:00 PM
Hi Fiona,

The gaps are approx, 3mm wide.

I already have some catfish pellets and Hikari algae wafers, so I'll see how they get on with them.
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Sue on August 31, 2016, 04:47:57 PM
My shrimps eat fish food. When I had amanos, they did too. My tanks always have algae though so that would have helped. You can buy shrimps food eg Hikari shrimp cuisine but the fish will eat that as well as their own food and the shrimps will also eat both. Be careful about shrimp food as a lot labelled as shrimp pellets etc are actually fish food made from shrimps.

My last amano was 5 years old when it died. That was due to the medication I used for camallanus worm - I just couldn't catch the shrimp to put it in another tank. The females were just about the biggest things in the tank (compared to apistogramma males and dwarf chain loaches)
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Trish on September 01, 2016, 12:02:52 AM
Thanks for the info, Sue.

Crikey.....I didn't realise that they got as big as that.
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Sue on September 01, 2016, 09:27:54 AM
That was just older females, males are a lot smaller  :) And they tend to be smaller when you buy them. These shrimps are wild caught and the really big ones would be elderly by shrimp standards.

Amano shrimps can't bred in our tanks, though they do mate and the females carry eggs under their abdomens in typical shrimp fashion. Like nerite snails, amano eggs hatch into a larval stage which are washed down to sea. The larvae grow and metamorphose into adults which then make their way back up the river into fresh water. The larvae must reach salt water very quickly or they die. Presumably the eggs hatch in our tanks but the larvae are very quickly eaten by the fish or die from lack of salt.
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Fiona on September 02, 2016, 02:36:15 PM
I've got 1 female and 2 males, they were in with the cherry shrimp for a while but they looked far too big in there and I think they bullied the cherries a little. I had thought they'd been eaten in the 200l but they're still there and the female is pretty big. I must confess she creeps me out a bit  :-[ too spider-like for my liking
Title: Re: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Trish on September 03, 2016, 12:44:46 PM
Yes, I know what you mean about the big ones being a little bit creepy, lol.

I'm still pondering as to whether to get any or not.
I do my water changes tomorrow and I thought it best to wait until that is done, then if I do decide to get some, I won't have to disturb them for a week.

Another question I've thought of......
Do you acclimate them just the same as usual, i.e. Float for 15 or 20mins, adding a bit of tank water every few mins,or does it take a bit longer?

Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Sue on September 03, 2016, 02:50:25 PM
That's all I do with my shrimps if I get them from a very local shop. From further afield with different water, or by post, drip acclimatisation is better. Empty the bag into a bucket and slowly siphon water into the bucket from the tank with airline tubing. Tie a knot in the tubing and tighten it till it drips once every few seconds. Once the water in the bucket is 2 to 3 times more than came in the bag, net the shrimps out. In warm weather you won't need a heater.

If the shop just puts them in an empty bag, add a bit of something to the bag during acclimatisation - anything from a leaf to a bit of moss to even a bit of filter wool. Shrimps like to stand on things, and something to stand on in the bag/bucket will reduce the stress on them.


A few more things about shrimps in case you haven't read this yet. Shrimps have to shed their skins to grow and while the new skin hardens they are very vulnerable. Make sure they have somewhere to hide during this process - an ornament, a thick plant etc. And the shed skin will lie on the bottom of the tank looking for all the word like a hollow shrimp. Don't panic when you see one, if it's hollow it's not a dead shrimp.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 04, 2016, 12:49:50 AM
Thanks Sue,
Great advice....as always  :)
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 05, 2016, 01:38:03 PM
I put 4 shrimps in about 10 o'clock this morning. Looks like 2 males and 2 females.
I expected them to hide for at least a couple of days, but they were out and about within a few minutes, nibbling away at microscopic stuff.

All seemed well, until the Cardinals started taking too much interest in them. Some seem to be following them and collecting loose bits that are breaking free, but I'm almost certain that a couple of them are actually nipping the shrimps..... Oh Joy!

I've kept the lights off, and I hope that the shrimps will be OK, and that eventually, the Cardinals will get used to them and leave them alone.  :(


Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Sue on September 05, 2016, 01:46:48 PM
Fish seem to investigate new things in the tank to decide if they can eat it, mate with it or need to run away from it. Once they've decided which, they usually ignore the newcomer. Wait a few days and they should all get along OK. In the mean time, shrimps are experts at hiding. Don't worry about them unless you find a dead one.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 05, 2016, 01:57:10 PM
Thanks for the reassurance, Sue,

I Hope that they will be OK.

I must say, they are fascinating to watch, and if this lot don't get eaten, I will probably buy another 4.

Fingers crossed!
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Littlefish on September 05, 2016, 06:30:12 PM
I have shrimp in my South American tank, which is the one I had to remove my bristlenose plec from because the tetras were nipping him. The shrimp, both sizes, are doing fine.
I hope that your shrimp settle in well and the cardinals get used to them quickly.  :)
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 05, 2016, 10:54:37 PM
Thanks Donna,

I've been out this evening, so I don't know what's gone on in the tank.
I got the torch out and had a quick peek, but couldn't see any shrimps, and the cardinals were in their pyjamas  :).

Hopefully, the shrimp are OK, and have found a place to bed down for the night.

All will be revealed tomorrow. ( I think I'll be up early :()
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Littlefish on September 06, 2016, 06:24:52 AM
You would be amazed at how easily shrimp can tuck themselves away in safe places.
I would expect that your shrimp were fine and also in their pyjamas and settled for the night.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 06, 2016, 10:39:18 AM
I couldn't see any shrimps this morning.

I've just fed the fish, as usual, and dropped in a small pellet for the shrimp.
After a few minutes, 2 of the little males crawled out from under the moss balls and tried grazing on the pellet.
However, the gannets, (aka  Cardinals), soon got a whiff of the pellet. One of them dashed off with it, all the rest got in a frenzy, and followed him as he dashed around the tank. :vcross:

Anyway, I know that 2 shrimp are still there  :)

When I got the shrimp yesterday, I acclimated them in the usual way, then, put the net in the bag, and from there put the shrimp in the tank, discarding the old water down the sink.
After a few minutes, 3 of the shrimp came out to explore. And so far, that is all I've ever seen......just the three.
I'm now beginning to wonder if I left one in the bag and then poured it down the sink :yikes:

Oh the trials and tribulations of fishkeeping!

I was wondering if It would be better to drop a pellet in at night, before I go to bed?

I wish the Cardinals would read the books and stay in the middle of the tank, instead of foraging along the bottom like Corys.
I don't have this trouble with the Harlequins, lol.


Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Sue on September 06, 2016, 10:49:03 AM
In the years I've had shrimps I have never seen all of them at once. They are such experts at hiding from view that some people reckon you can never see more than 50% at one time.

Do you feed flake to the tank in addition to the pellets? If you do, scrunch a couple of flakes to dust. The shrimps will get some of that as such fine bits drift into tiny places and it will take a while for the cardinals to find them all.


And if you have any algae in the tank, the shrimps will eat that together with micro-organisms living on the biofilm all over the tank.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 06, 2016, 11:21:38 AM
Good idea about the flakes, Sue, thanks.

I'll try that out tomorrow.

To think that I was worried about the Honey Gouramies, going after the shrimp. (They have completely ignored them).
 It never occurred to me that the Cardinals would be the problem
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 09, 2016, 02:11:06 PM
Hi All,

I've just seen 3 shrimps today :D  They were all hiding together, under a log.........Still no sign of the fourth one  :(

I found a pink, translucent shell and I don't know if this is the skin shedding that Sue mentioned, or it's the 4th one, and it  has been eaten!



Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Sue on September 09, 2016, 02:20:33 PM
Shrimps often go pink when they die but usually they are opaque. They look just like a cooked prawn only with legs still attached.

But if yours was transparent and hollow, it is more likely to be a moulted skin. Dead shrimps are not hollow and are opaque. I have never known anything eat the body of shrimp and leave the skin intact - fish, shrimps, snails etc start at the outside and eat inwards.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 09, 2016, 02:31:20 PM
Thanks for that,  Sue, that's good to know.

It was definitely hollow, so presumably, one has moulted.

I wish I could see the fourth one, it would set my mind at rest. At the moment, I don't see any of them very often.

Would they be out and about more often if there were more of them?

Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Sue on September 09, 2016, 02:40:01 PM
Not really. I have an unknown number of cherry shrimps in my 50 litre tank; I once counted 40 but there will be more than that. When I clean the tank I lift the wood with plants attached into a bucket so I can see the bottom of the tank. Despite my attempts to remove any shrimps in the plants (I dunk the plant & wood up and down in the water several times) there are always shrimps in the bottom of the bucket when I put the plants back. You will probably never see all 4 of your shrimps at once. The ones you can see will be on or in some piece of decor where you can't see them.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 09, 2016, 02:43:51 PM
Thanks again,Sue.

I'll see how this lot get on, then, decide whether to get more, or not.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Littlefish on September 09, 2016, 04:54:58 PM
I have 3 large amano in my 70L tank that I often see. These are the ones that will happily take on a peppered cory for a pellet. The 3 in my 50L tank don't all appear together or at the same time. I put 3 in and have only ever pulled out moulted cases, so I'm guessing I still have 3. I put 3 medium ones and 4 small ones into the 125L tank. They have a pile of wood at the back that they hang around in, and I only ever see a couple of them around the tank, but I'm guessing that they are all still there.
The elusive world of shrimp.  :)
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 10, 2016, 12:02:34 AM
Yes, I think I shall have to be a bit more laid back, hope for the best, and let them get on with it.    :)

   

Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Fiona on September 10, 2016, 12:06:23 PM
If the shell you found was pink and not white it's probably the remains of a dead shrimp I'm afraid, I found the same in my shrimpery 2 days ago at the back. It doesn't take a shrimp long to decompose in warm water and the shell as the hardest bit is the last piece to deteriorate.
Title: Re: Doing my homework
Post by: Trish on September 10, 2016, 12:21:20 PM
Hi Fiona,

Yes, it definitely was a light pink colour.

I think it must be the carcass of the 4th shrimp, that I have never seen. Although, when I first put them in the tank, a large female clung to the intake of the filter for a long time, and I thought that she didn't look quite right. But, having no experience of shrimp, I wasn't too sure.

Fingers crossed that the other 3 are OK.

I put in half a pea, earlier this morning, and one of them dragged under their log and was grazing on it.
Title: RE: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Sue on September 10, 2016, 07:24:48 PM
I don't know if this is any help to you or not, but a few years ago I had trouble keeping cherry shrimps alive. After several purchases I was down to the last shrimp and about to give up. But this last shrimp was a female carrying eggs - and unlike amanos, cherries can breed in fresh water. I moved the female to my quarantine tank and found her dead a couple of days later. Then I realised there were baby shrimps in the tank. Most of these survived and I now have a thriving colony of cherry shrimps. And I've bought more to widen the gene pool.

My advice is persevere  :)
Title: RE: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Trish on September 10, 2016, 11:56:06 PM
Thanks for the encouragement,Sue.

Much appreciated.
Title: RE: Amano shrimps - doing my homework/research pre-buying
Post by: Fiona on September 11, 2016, 11:42:08 AM
My advice is persevere  :)

I'll second that advice, as I struggled to get a colony going too, well worth the effort though.