Ignore the grammar mistakes, please
Long story short, I just received a small ecosphere as a Christmas present and after hearing about what horrible conditions the shrimp are in from my sister, I want to move them out and into a new tank. Since I only have 3 shrimp and plan on not getting more, I decided to get a 1/2 gallon glass bowl. Would that be too small or is that fine? Also, once I've cycled the tank for about 2-4 weeks, how would I go about properly moving my shrimp into the tank? I've already seen some videos on how to get the shrimp out of the sphere but from that point how do I move them into the tank? Would it be okay to afterwards just automatically pour them into the tank, mixing the water from the ecosphere with the tank? Or is there a better method like putting the shrimp/water from the ecosphere in a container first then scooping them with the spoon and gently putting them in the tank? Sounds pathetic, but I really don't know how to properly and safely move them from ecosphere to tank! Any tips/advice for an egg like me would be awesome. Thanks in advance!
Welcome! I just did this myself, so I can tell you at least from my experience.
1/2 gallon is the generally recommended minimum size for tanks around here (mine are a little smaller). You could have 10-20 shrimp in there comfortably.
Depending on how your ecosphere is set up, if you can safely dump them straight into the new tank that should be fine. But, if it looks like the gravel and decor might move around and crush them, you may want to remove as much of that as possible first. Otherwise, if you can get a small scooper of some kind in the sphere, that's an option. For the shrimp ordered from this site, I first dumped them in a wide, shallow ramekin. Then I used a 1/4 teaspoon to scoop them up and place them in my new tanks. Worked like a charm.
Fishnet with a handle works well, get the smallest size you can find. After I cycled my tank, I didn’t like introducing any outside water to it except for topping off. You just never know what stuff is hitchhiking in the water.
