sexual characteristics of male cherry shrim

[fishgeek]

since i got my first 8 cherry's i have been searching for males

the local fish shop had some very small 1-1.5 cm cherry's in recently
i was hoping some experienced members would be able to aid me in learning to choose male shrimp

i understand that they have less colour, though so do small shrimp and so do recnelty moulted shrimp
i thought i had read somewhere that the shape of the ? pieces of exoskelton? along the bottom aspect of the tail are a different shape to females?
does anyone understand that ? can you clarify?

also they should be slimmer tailed

i also seem to notice that male shrimp have more anglular posture ie when looking at a profile they seem to have sharp corners rather than smooth curves , is this just me making things up now?

any tips greatly appreciated
andrew

oh and i was interested to read they dont like organics like tannin etc in the water , what about mulm and detritus n the bottom of the tank?
how do others get around cleaning away all that without inadvertently syphoning baby shrimp from the water?

thanks again

[badflash]

If they are that small, then they are probably tank bred. They will be a mix of males & females, so don't worry. Just get 10-15 and you will have both.

As to clean-up, if you feed so much there is crud at the bottom of the tank, you are over feeding. You should aalso have some snails to help out.

When I do water changes I give the tank a quick swish, and that stirs the bottom a little. The cloudy water gets siphoned out. Beyond that I don't do anything with sediment as it it loaded with beneficial bacteria.

You can put oak leaves in the water and they eat them. It doesn't hurt. Stuff like drift wood that puts off loads of red, I'd stay away from. Tanins are acidic and cherries like basic water, so tanins should be limited.

[Mustafa]

Look right here:

http://www.petshrimp.com/redcherryshrimp.html

There is an updated, much clearer picture of a male red cherry there. You should be able to clearly see the differences if you compare it to the females on that page.

[fishgeek]

thanks mustafa i think i have 1
now for the fun

[GunmetalBlue]

Hi Fishgeek, here's one more side-by-side comparison; male in background on left, female on right:



Yes, males are slimmer and has a "racy" appearance. With the female, note the fuller carapace that hangs down below the tail. It helps accommodate and protect her eggs when she has them.

Good to know you might have a male in there!

-GB