Shrimp Tank - other inhabitants?

[SamandAnne]

Hi,

I have a 3 gallon eclipse tank with a little heater for a red cherry shrimp tank. I have a moss-bottom, java fern, and small pieces of driftwood in the tank. The shrimp tend to stay in the moss and are on the surface just some of the time; you have to stand and wait and watch. And while I am enjoying it, I am wondering if there are other inhabitants I might add...or some other setup...that would either get the shrimp a little more active or add another critter to liven things up?

I have a friend who bred bettas but I think I know the answer to that question! There is definitely room for more....there's about 3-4 shrimp in there now that I see...maybe more that I don't...and a couple of them look berried.

Thanks for any ideas!DSC01569.jpg

[korith]

Maybe 6 or so microrasboras. Look up these names boraras maculatus, boraras merah, and boraras brigittae. Nice colorful fish, and the best thing is they all stay under 3/4" in size. Very little bioload. I have them in my red cherry shrimp tank and they coexist peacefully. The adult shrimps are actually about the same size as these fish.

By the way you could change the look of the tank a lot by just adding a black or dark background to the tank. A piece of dark plastic or paper taped onto back of the tank, would 'hide' the filter and cords. Visually would help the tank contents to pop more.

[KingFisher]

I agree about adding a background. Another idea for more inhabitants are nerite snails. They will not multiply in fresh water and their shells come in many interesting patterns. Another benefit is that they eat algae and help keep the glass clean.

[talldutchie]

Maybe 6 or so microrasboras. Look up these names boraras maculatus, boraras merah, and boraras brigittae. Nice colorful fish, and the best thing is they all stay under 3/4" in size. Very little bioload. I have them in my red cherry shrimp tank and they coexist peacefully. The adult shrimps are actually about the same size as these fish.

Bioload yes but these fish like to swim and a 3 gallon is not going to provide any swimming space. Also these fish do best in blackwater conditions which this tank does not have.

I know it's controversial but in my opinion a 3 gallon is not suitable for any fish long term. To grow out fry yes, as a quarentine for something small, sure but long term accomodations. No. Get a few horned nerites and watch your shrimp population grow would be my advice.

[SamandAnne]

Thanks for the feedback! For the background...thanks...actually, this is a little bit of an older photo...I actually have a black background now already. :) So it was nice to get the feedback that maybe I made a good aesthetic decision there. It does make the plants stand out more and hide the equipment, though the entire "look" is a little darker now.

It has been setup for over a year, and generally in that time I don't see the shrimp much. I have used it to grow out fry, too, which is why it was originally setup. I don't really like the look of snails, which is why I didn't add any of those. On a recent cleaning, there's probably a lot more shrimp in there than the three or so I usually see. In that case, now I am kinda wondering if there is something that will make them stand out (or be more comfortable coming out), or something to help the shirmp populations grow, like you said, if there aren't any fish suitable for long-term living, so that there's more going on with this tank. Right now it mostly looks like plants! I will check those fish out, too, though I guess it's up in the air whether they would live in there long term?

Thanks!

[Strider199]

Quote by SamandAnne, "It has been setup for over a year, and generally in that time I don't see the shrimp much."


I would add more shrimp. 15 to 20 more should fill that tank out nicely. They may make their presence know more in numbers.

[SamandAnne]

Ah, I see. There has not been that many in there for sure. I'll have to see if there's any local sources that aren't way too expensive and see about adding maybe at least 10 more. I'll keep looking into those smaller fish, too. Thanks for the help :)

[Strider199]

The local stores around me are expensive when it comes to shrimp. I started looking on-line for private shrimp sales in my area and found a gentleman in a near by city how sold great cherry shrimp for next to nothing. I paid $20.00 for around 30 of them. They were and are bright red and the colony is still thriving. Check out the local aquarium society if there is one. They have auctions were members sell equipment and stock for reasonable prices.
The lfs rip us off when it comes to shrimp. $3.99 a piece is way too much in my opinion.

[richberstler]

I never had problems with my RCS and various neon tetras since they don't usually get big enough to hassle adult RCS. They do eat the babies, but you have places for them to hide. Never really had shrimp hide, but they will stay in the moss to eat. If you want to see some action thrown in a shrimp pellet or algae wafer. I suggest the shrimp pellets because they are omnivores and will appreciate the treat. Just make sure it falls somewhere in the open... plus it would draw them out so you might get a better handle how well they've been breeding.

One other thing I learned over the years is the shrimp need calcium to make their shells, so I always tried to leave in dead shrimp shells for them to snack on. In a bigger tank I also use a calcium additive (I also keep snails in it). But for you the shrimp pellet snacks might provide that calcium in such a small tank. I can't remember for sure but I believe i read the shells are ground up as part of the treat.

[Strider199]

If the tank was larger than 3 gallons, small tetras would be my choice as well. Tetras need a little more room then a 3 gallon tank.