Then I decided to remove my hornwort from that tank since some people have found it can tear a betta's fins. Many of the hornwort's leaves (or whatever they are) were left all over the tank.
I didn't want to have all that debris polluting the water, so I netted the shrimp and put them in a jar of tank water while I emptied out the tank and got rid of all the hornwort debris. 3 of the shrimp jumped out of the net onto dry land, and I was only able to find 2.
I also got rid of some of the gravel--I originally had about an inch but later read on various sites there should be only 1/4 inch.
I refilled the tank and put the 4 surviving shrimp back in. (The betta is in a hospital tank now undergoing treatment for fin rot.)
The tank parms are the same as before I cleaned the tank--ph 7.5, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 0. Temperature 79 F. Using tap water treated with Amquel+ and Novaqua.
Since the move, the shrimp have been MUCH less active. They are not eating nearly as much, hardly moving (although the neighbourhood kids saw one of them eating an empty exoskeleton). Yesterday I found one of them dead -- its body was white and soft.
I read that this (dying after shedding exoskeleton, soft white body) could be due to iodine deficiency, so I got some Kent's Marine Iodine and added 1/2 the amount recommended on the label (as suggested at this other site).
I am very concerned about the remaining 3 shrimp. What did I do wrong, and how can I help them recover?
Thanks in advance.