Hi there, newbe here! I recently added some RCS to my 29-gallon, moderately to densely planted community tank and they’re doing quite well. Other then the shrimp there are Snails, Danios, Rasbora, Oto and Cory cats; 15 fish in all. Today I noticed that one of my shrimp is ripe with eggs.
Question; if the eggs hatch will any survive by hiding in the plants or will they all be devoured?
I don't have a second tank available and probably couldn’t cycle it in time anyway. I considered a breeding net to quarantine the female and hold the shrimplets until they get larger.
Obviously, this is not a breeding tank but I would like some of the shrimplets to make it. What is my best option?
Good to hear that you are excited about keeping RCS. Let's get to your question. Was the female already carrying or is this a newly berried female? The female will carry the eggs from 3 to 4 weeks before they hatch, that is plenty of time to cycle another tank in case you are thinking about it.
We will not know how many babies will make it in your community tank until they hatch. It could be most of them or none at all depending on factors such as the type and amount of plants/hiding places available. Also, the behavior off the tank mates, are they well fed and are they aggressive.
All said and done it is always better to keep shrimp in a shrimp only tank, but this is not always possible. You might want to try a breeding net and let us know how that goes. Best wishes
