Whte banded and Unidentified shrimp ?

[adimeatatime]

I would like to verify these are white banded shrimp or if not does anyone know what they are? Some of them are fairly large 3/4 to 1". I have several berried females in the group now. The bands on these shrimp is more tan than white though.

White Banded?

Not sure about what the green colored shrimp is.

WhiteBand4.JPG (58.65 KiB) Viewed 2000 times

WhiteBanded0.JPG (157.95 KiB) Viewed 2000 times

The smaller shrimp on the left is one of my original white banded.

WhiteBand1.JPG (62.86 KiB) Viewed 1998 times

Unidentified Shrimp? All of these shrimp are pretty small less than 1/2". Not sure if they are young or just a small shrimp.

Unknown8.JPG (50.43 KiB) Viewed 1998 times

Your help with this is appreciated.

[Mustafa]

The ones where the third stripe from below is extra long both ways are clearly whitebanded shrimp from India. The other shrimp in the pictures with the whitebanded (the ones that don't have that extra-long stripe) are either a variation of the same species or a very closely related species. They freely breed with the whitebanded shrimp.

The shrimp in the last picture are another species from India. They are the "non-striped" version of the indian zebra shrimp. Again, can't tell if they are the same species or a very closely related species but they freely interbreed. They can have very variable coloration and the if they have a stripe down their backs, it can be very variable in color and thickness, too. I'm going to prepare a species description for these guys at some point with various pictures where these variations will become evident.

[adimeatatime]

Thanks for the guidance Mustafa. I had wondered about the ones that don't have a distinct band. I know it is very difficult to tell what all of them are just looking at pictures, but your efforts are appreciated. I am trying to get them separated into tanks with like shrimp.

How are your white banded doing?

[Mustafa]

In this case, since I have/had these shrimp, it's really easy for me to tell from pictures what they are. Unfortunately, my whitebanded colony did not make it during the move from NYC to San Diego last year. That colony was in existence for many years. I'll have to try to establish a new colony at some point. I have a colony of the shrimp in the last picture and a colony of indian zebra shrimp, so it was a no-brainer for me to recognize the shrimp in the last picture.

[adimeatatime]

Hi Mustafa,

I now have 3 tanks with these shrimp in them to try and not have them mix anymore than they may have already done. I appreciate the information you provide. I am sorry to hear that your white banded colony didn't make it through the move.

Pat

[Mustafa]

Hey Pat,

Yeah, it's *extremely* important to separate different varieties of shrimp. Otherwise we'll all end up with mutts. I even separate different imports of the *same* species of shrimp, just because they may be different local variations altogether. As for the whitebanded...yeah, it's a pity, but I'll establish a colony of those guys again sooner or later. They are a very nice species of shrimp. Good luck with your shrimp!

[adimeatatime]

Hey Pat,

Yeah, it's *extremely* important to separate different varieties of shrimp. Otherwise we'll all end up with mutts. I even separate different imports of the *same* species of shrimp, just because they may be different local variations altogether.

That is a very good point. I will keep trying and am excited about the berried females I have in this group.