New shrimp owner, what do I need to know?

[SkrimpScampi]

I recently purchased some opae'ula in a "self sustaining eco-system" from a holiday craft fair. The woman said they wouldn't need to be fed and their tank was so small I couldn't help but take them home. I've come to the sudden realization that I have very little knowledge of what kind of care these shrimp need. I have a shite load of questions. Do they like algae balls? How much space do they need (there are only four but I'm pretty sure that at least one is a male)? Is the spirulina from the brand "shrimp bubble" ok to feed them? Do they eat algae wafers/pads? I have heard of someone feeding them chiclid pellets, is that safe for them? Is artificial light ok for them or do they need like some kind of shrimp parasol? Does their water need to be changed and how often? How can I adjust them to new water without killing them from shock? How much should be brackish water and how much should be distilled? Is regular aquarium gravel safe for them? I feel like a new parent of quadruplets and I'm kind of nervous? Their tank is very small and I kinda want to move them but I don't have any water or sand or other aquarium supplies. Do the tanks need filters? Will they become stressed if their tank is too small? Answers and any other advice would be much appreciated. I also want to buy some other colors of the shrimp but I want to wait until I know more about these little creatures.

[SuperProofer]

Hi Scampi,

I'm new to all this myself, but I'll answer what I can and others can correct me if I'm wrong.

First and foremost, all this information I am about to spew at you I learned in just under 3 months – and mostly here from this site, so as you will see, there is a wealth of knowledge out there that can take anyone from beginner to pro in no time.

You can read more on the statics and scientific info in others' posts or Google it, but long story short: The ecosphere conditions are not conducive to a healthy environment. They cut down the typically long life span of these shrimps - regularly reported to being up to 20+ years – drastically, to maybe 1 or 2 years if they are lucky.

That said, it's a very viable solution to move them to a bigger, better tank! I'm in the process of doing this myself. Any kind glass, acrylic or plastic container/tank can be used – doesn’t have to be specifically an aquarium, but those obviously work as well – but just make sure, if it has seams, it’s made to hold water without leaking. I prefer glass as I worry about acrylic or plastic etching with the salty water over time (I could be wrong about that though). Right now, I am using decorative glass jars. Mine are very small. It’s recommended on this site to go with ½ gallon or larger which is good for 10-20 shrimp. They will reproduce under the right conditions, but will not overpopulate their space. They are pretty self-regulating. So you shouldn't have to worry about them being stressed due to numbers.

Any type of substrate (meaning the sand/gravel you use as a base) that's intended for aquarium use will be fine. There are differing opinions here about whether you should use live sand or not; Mustafa says he doesn't recommend it (again, you can research why in others' posts). And don’t go too deep, usually about 1 to 1.5 inches is good. They will also need some sort of calcium carbonate item(s) – i.e., coral, sea shells or even eggshells – to help soak up the PH in the water and something about helping the shrimp’s exoskeleton. I’ll admit, I’m not completely understanding of the calcium requirement – I just made sure to follow it. LOL. I just threw some shells in my tank.

Decoration or “aquascape” can also be anything that is labeled as safe for aquariums (don't think it needs to specify "salt water" as most do not make this distinction that I've seen). Avoid metals and certain plastics as they may leech toxic chemicals into the water. Glass (like sea glass chunks or decorative rocks) is inert so perfectly safe – just make sure it’s not painted glass. I think painted anything is generally a no-no unless it specifically says “safe for aquariums”. Lava Rock or “holey” rock always looks nice and provides lots of nooks and crannies for them to hide in – which they like when they are molting or reproducing. You can do a Google search or look at other posts here to get some ideas.

Filter – not necessary. In fact, not preferred. Their natural environment is a very still pool, the motion may upset them. Also, if the filter is too large, they can get sucked up into it.

**All of the above items should be rinsed/boiled with straight water before being put into the tank (and rinse the tank first, too). Avoid using any chemicals/soaps on anything that will go into the tank, even tools used in its maintenance, if any.**

Water – Do NOT use table salt or aquarium salt. Use something that says it’s for “marine” or reef”. I used the Instant Ocean Reef salt to make my brackish water. Just mix half the recommended amount on the package with distilled or reverse osmosis (RO) water – NEVER use tap water (again, science reasons). I used distilled with mine. You can buy it at any grocery store. There’s no “part brackish/part distilled” when filling the tank. It’s all brackish, you just top off the tank with distilled from time to time as it will evaporate with no lid (which is preferred for oxygen exchange). The salt does not evaporate, so there’s never a need to replenish it. And, unless something goes catastrophically wrong, the water should NEVER need to be changed.

Light – I’m less expert on this as I do not use one, so have no recommendations. I just keep my tanks in a room near a window so they get plenty of indirect sunlight throughout the day. Typically a 12-hour on/12-hour off cycle is what works best according to my reading here.

Food – there are differing opinions on this topic as well, but the general rule of thumb is “do not overfeed”. They should get plenty of food in the biofilm/algae that naturally grows in the tank. If you want to feed them something, do it maybe once every 4-6 weeks and be sure to remove any food that goes uneaten as it can start to decay and cause the water to have too much ammonia. And a very small amount of any fish flake food, shrimp pellets or spirulina powder will do. I’ll let others speak to the moss ball question as I did not use them. Personal note: My ecosphere shrimp is 8 years old – I’ve never given him a spec of food.

As for physically relocating them from one tank to another, I don’t know. I am going to have to do this myself here before too long, but I have not done it just yet. I guess it really depends on what size tank you get. If it’s large enough, just dump the whole ecosphere into the tank (remove the decorations first if you can or be very careful when pouring so the shrimp don’t get crushed). Or, you may have to find something small enough to get in there and scoop them out. There are several videos online demonstrating various methods.

If you decide to make your own tank, be sure to read up on the cycling process so you know when the tank is ready for shrimp.

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress. Pictures are always appreciated.

[SkrimpScampi]

I would love to post photos of them, but I don’t know how to :<

Follow up question: brackish salt is what should be used for their water, right? I’ve heard of others using marine or reef salt as well. Is there a “proper” salt to use for them?

[SuperProofer]

Yes, as stated above - reef salt will work. There's no such thing as "brackish" salt. Brackish is the condition of the water just like "fresh water" and "salt water". Brackish is between those 2. Just don't use table salt (like you eat) or aquarium salt.

[SkrimpScampi]

Another update (kinda old but I thought this forum was only for opae oops)- I went to petco about a week and a half ago and purchased two nerite snails which turned out to be dead. I didn’t bother them for three days and they still weren’t moving (MAJOR bummer. Not to mention the water was getting cloudy and they r e e k e d.) we took them back and I ended up swapping them out for what I THOUGHT was a very large Snow White shrimp or a very large ghost shrimp. Turns out what I bought isn’t a shrimp at all. She’s a vanilla lobster (which isn’t even a lobster! It’s a kind of crayfish!)! She’s in a tank that’s too small for her and isn’t very happy about it. There’s no filter on it because I bought it with the thought of the nerite snails and my opae (since they don’t need a filter and would do just fine without one). It was labeled as a “Betta tank” and to be completely honest, it’s a piece of shit. She’s such a messy eater I’ve done two water changes since I’ve got her. I’m pretty sure the tank isn’t even one gallon, as far as I remember it’s .7 gallons. This is only an emergency temporary tank for her and i’ll be getting a 5 gallon for her for the holidays. My questions so far- I want to put sails and other algae eaters/messy eater cleanup crew. I’ve read that crayfish can be aggressive and sometimes even eat the snails or other fish if they’re slow enough for them to catch. I’m thinking of maybe getting some mollies, Siamese Algae Eaters, or something, but I think it would be best to put in some apple snails for her. They get bigger than she will which will probably mean that even if she does attack the snails, it won’t hurt them by much. I’m also looking for a colored sand substrate, preferably in a wine/berry color. Know of any brands that sell colored aquarium sand? I’m spewing at this point, here’s what I need to know. What kind of algae eaters can I put with her without her eating them? I need something fast that will clean up the food that she spits out. I also need to know brands that sell colored aquarium sand in colors other than black or blue. Do I use water conditioner or dechlorinator?

[Varanus]

A large nerite snail would clean algae (as would mystery snails) and might be safe from that kind of crayfish, but I don't think there are any guarantees. Further, if its the kind of crayfish I think it is then you're going to end up needing a bigger tank, at least ten gallons (they grow several inches long and grow fast). And if you want the tank to look nice then a filter, regular water changes (every week or two weeks) and removing uneaten food will simply have to be part of your routine. Siamese algae eaters grow to six inches and are recommended for tanks of at least twenty gallons. There are simply not a lot of things you can keep in a small tank with a crayfish that will be completely safe.

Supershrimp require much less maintenance.