My success story

[jonesinfershrimp]

This is an amazing thread tooth! absolutely astonishing :p i love the pictures and the information is invaluable.


if you ever need to cull some of the shrimp out someday im always looking for new "children" to care for. im making 2 diy plywood tanks and looking for some inhabitants for them.

[Mustafa]

Awesome...as always! Again...a testament to the my method of keeping and breeding these shrimp...although this is an extreme version given that they are not fed at all what will soon be *years*...LOL

[tooth]

Thanks jones and Mustafa. The banded female began releasing larvae a couple of days ago (small clutch, about 10), and the older larvae (from the first of the month, the first 2 shrimp to berry) are now benthic. It seems eggs hatch and the larvae develop quicker with the warmer temperatures of summer. Room temps in the winter are 65 to 70 F, and in the summer are 72 to 80 F. I haven't kept exact track, but things move along about a week or so quicker, it appears.
Mustafa has it right--these little guys need hardly any fussing at all.

[tooth]

Needed correction: The larvae I see are older, just not quite benthic. The banded female has dropped most of her eggs, with only two or three remaining. I've had other females drop. Don't know what causes it in every case. The fourth female is still carrying her full complement, as far as I can see.

[tooth]

The banded female still has 3 eggs, which seem to be developing. The other berried female has not dropped any eggs, as far as I can tell.
I have one male who, once in a while, likes to chase the others around the tank. He gets in a swimming frenzy and bumps into his tank mates, sometimes pursuing them for a while. He'll then find another to torment. He's done this a few times over the months. Has anyone else seen this behavior with their shrimp?

[jonesinfershrimp]

i see it occasionally with my ghost shrimp, but only at feeding time or after a moult possibly. otherwise they are quite docile. (and yes, they are ghost shrimp, not macros)

[tooth]

The banded female had 4 eggs remaining, as there are 4 larvae head-hanging this morning. The fourth and last berried female seems to be about a week or so out.
I've not noticed if the male is hyperactive after a molt. His exoskeleton would be difficult to see on the substrate. But that is an interesting observation. I'll pay more attention.
How does one tell if a shrimp has just molted, if the actual molting is not observed?

[Mech]

nice updates, if you dont mind me asking, what SG is your tank sat at?

[jonesinfershrimp]

How does one tell if a shrimp has just molted, if the actual molting is not observed?

body shape. the high arch on the back will become much more shallow as the soft inside is "freed". also there will be the shell(?) on the ground, or potentially being consumed.

[tooth]

nice updates, if you dont mind me asking, what SG is your tank sat at?

Hi Mech,
I've never measured SG. When I set up the tank I added one-half the salt recommended for a typical salt water tank (as per the instructions on the salt package, and Mustafa's method). As I had to syphon off water to remove ammonia during tank maturation, I would replace it with the one-half concentration. I no longer have my hydrometer.
On another note, the fourth female began dropping larvae today, a little earlier than I expected. It appears she will produce 11.
Another berried female showed up this morning, also.

[tooth]

How does one tell if a shrimp has just molted, if the actual molting is not observed?

body shape. the high arch on the back will become much more shallow as the soft inside is "freed". also there will be the shell(?) on the ground, or potentially being consumed.

Thanks jones. Good info. I've noticed only a few exoskeletons in the past. My substrate (light in color, covered with algae) makes it difficult to see them unless they are right in front of the tank.

[jonesinfershrimp]

youre welcome, also the color will be lighter until its back to full strength

[tooth]

Sorry I wasn't clear: I meant the exoskeletons are difficult to see due to their transparency.

[Mustafa]

body shape. the high arch on the back will become much more shallow as the soft inside is "freed". also there will be the shell(?) on the ground, or potentially being consumed.

The shed "shell" or "exoskeleton" is usually called "exuviae" (plural, but also used in the singular) or even "exuvia" lately in the singular:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exuvia

[tooth]

It is good to know the correct terminology--thank you.
We were out of town last week. The last berried female released her larvae while we were gone. They are 17 in number.
I see no berried females at present, but one is 'saddled'.