HELP : Cherry shrimps darting around

[jpmel]

Hi all, my cherry shrimps have been darting around for a few hours ever since i put them into the tank.. is this considered normal?

Thanks

[Neonshrimp]

If this is a new tank you put them into then yes this is normal. Shrimp will swim around when they are not use to or don't like the water conditions.

[jpmel]

Oh thanks, is there anything i should do or lookout for if this continues? how long will it take before they get accustomed to the water?

[Neonshrimp]

Well if the shrimp seem to be doing well otherwise and the tank is clean and cycled you won't need to worry much. But if the shrimp stay near the surface of the water like they are trying to get out or if you see sick or dying shrimp then you know there is something wrong with the present conditions. At that point I would do a partial water change.

[jpmel]

Noticed a shrimp died today, realised that most of the shrimps are just sitting motionless? are they dying? did the water changes as advised but seems like they are still behaving the same way..

[Neonshrimp]

Please post more information about the shrimp and your tank. Are the shrimp newly purchased/shipped additions to the tank? Was your tank cycled and how? That is a bad sign when the shrimp are lathargic and not scavaging as usual

[shrimp_ocd]

Are you sure you dechlorinated the water correctly? Some conditioners have two differant dosages. One for chlorine and heavy metals (API brand: 3 drops per gallon) and another for chloramine (API brand: 6 drops per gallon). Chloramine has to go too! Use the maximum dose go get rid of all chemicals.

Take a sample of the water currently in the tank to a good LFS and have it tested!

Good luck,
Cinthia

[pixl8r]

The shrimp should be picking/eating every so often. It is normal to see them perch in a given location for a while though. FYI, when a female shrimp is fertile she emits a hormone that gets all of the adult male shrimp riled up. They will stalk her all around the tank, until she mates. Once that happens things calm down again.

It is possible that you still have a problem with your tank. I would recommend that you do regular water testing, as there could be other trace elements in your water that are toxic to shrimp. There are also multiple other causes for stress related deaths, poor handling during shipping, poor treatment by the vendor/breeder, fish 'scaring' the shrimp, or even something as simple as, there not being sufficient hiding places for the shrimp to feel comfortable.

The difficulty is in eliminating the variables. Check your water for everything (pH, KH, GH, nitrates/nitrites, ammonia, copper, kryptonite , etc...

Research the specific environmental needs of your shrimp, and try to meet all of their needs. If there are fish in the tank, relocate them, or the shrimp, to a different tank, if at all possible. Stop feeding. Do frequent low volume water changes, with clean healthy water. Limit the amount of strong light that the shrimp are subjected to each day. Don't go hog wild and do all of these changes at once, that can also cause stress to your shrimp. Start with one aspect and work from there.

The trick is finding what your shrimp need and recreate that environment for them. When you've successfully done that, you'll have more shrimp than you'll know what to do with!

Good luck

[jpmel]

Hi eeveryone, thanks for the valuable feedback and help you guys provided me. My shrimps are alright now! happily grazing away! Thanks Alot!