Problem Amanos

[discuspro]

I just bought two Amano shrimp Yesterday and they are about 1" long. I'm keeping them in a 30 gallon high aquarium that is setup as a planted tank and there is some algae growing. I also have 5 German Blue Rams that are about 1.5-2" long. The Rams do not bother the shrimp, because I watched for a long time to see if they would. My problem is that the shrimp are always hiding behind a small submerged filter/pump. When they first were placed in the tank they were eating some algae but all they do now is hide and not even move. The two shrimp actually hide together. At the fish store the shrimp were eagerly eating and walking all over the tank. What's up? These are the tank parameters.

Ammonia=0
Nitrite=0
Nitrate=0
Temperature= 72 degrees F
Conductivity=365 Microsiemens
pH=8.42
Carbonate Hardness(KH)= 2.8 dH
General Hardness(GH)=4.48 dH

Is there something wrong with the water? The fish cannot be a problem because they look at the shrimp and then pass them by because the shrimp and Rams are almost the same size.

[Mustafa]

The behavior you are describing is that of stressed animals. The stress could have many reasons including water parameters (including things besides the commonly measured parameters), disease, fear of predation etc. If your shrimp keep bahaving like this, they will most likely die soon.

Do a partial water change and see if that works. If not, see if you can remove the rams and then observe any change in behavior in the shrimp. Also, observe if the shrimp are see throuhh or have milky coloring. If they are milky, they are sick. They are also sick if their intestines are not full and they refuse to eat.

Mustafa

[discuspro]

They are clear and I see some green matter inside their stomachs, which I'm guessing is food that they ate in the petstore. Are amanos usually very skittish? Otherwise if they are not usually skittish I'm thinking water is a problem. Also, do amanos need high oxygen content in their water?

[beckypyyeung]

I didn't know their being transparent indicates their health. I thought all shrimps were transparent. Nor did I know their intestines had to be full. Last time I observed a tiger when it was pooping. A black line of poo was coming out from somewhere under its tail and the black intestine became shorter and shorter. That's funny.

[Mustafa]

They are clear and I see some green matter inside their stomachs, which I'm guessing is food that they ate in the petstore. Are amanos usually very skittish? Otherwise if they are not usually skittish I'm thinking water is a problem. Also, do amanos need high oxygen content in their water?

C. japonica are usually pretty hardy and they don't need any higher oxygen content than any other shrimp. I am guessing that something is wrong with your water. By the way, their "intestinal tract" is the line on their "back" which usually filled with dark matter (=excrement).

Mustafa

[IndianaSam]

Temperature= 72 degrees F

This is off topic, but isn't that about 10F too cool for Rams? Just thought I'd interject that.