Jump to content

What is the safe fish to keep with Red Cherry Shrimp


Dimos

Recommended Posts

Hi everyone,

I was wondering what fish is safe to keep in the same tank with shrimp. I have a fish tank with tetras and a red tail shark. Lately the shark has been chasing the tetras a lot and they keep staying at the top, to avoid getting closer to the shark. Do you think it is ok to move the tetras in the shrimp tank? Attached is a photo of them, the are 1 inch each.

Thanks,

Dimos

IMG_20160925_132815_.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The general rule of thumb is that if it's big enough to fit in their mouth it's going to get eaten. That said, I've kept my choc cherries with endlers without much issue in the past. They were breeding so much I probably didn't notice juvi's going missing. On the other hand, those same endlers chomped away at my sulas. AFAIK, the only shrimp safe fish is the otto.

I understand, in some cases having fish in the same tank is unavoidable. In those cases, you have do what you can to ensure the shrimp and the juvis have sufficient hiding places that the fish can't get in to. Looking at the size of those tetras, once they get the taste of shrimp, there won't be any going back.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have White Clouds, Neon Tetras and Oto's in with my red cherries. Of course, some babies and eggs will get eaten, but the population steadily grows and I am always find babies / mid sized shrimp who have grown up in the tank. 

Other small fish may also work - ember tetras, mosquito/chili rasoboras, drawf rasbora etc. I have generally found that fish that do not grow more than 3cm tend to leave the adults alone - so thats my general rule of thumb without any scientific evidence!

As @NoGi rightly points out, no fish/shrimp combination is 100% safe or foolproof, however the smaller and/or timid the fish, the less chances there probably are for them to all be eaten. 

Providing plenty of plants and stones/wood for the shrimp to hide in and around always help. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even fish under the 3cm range can be a danger, my Cherry Barbs do sometimes hunt the shrimp, which is kind of interesting behavior to observe but I wish they wouldn't. The shrimp are too big for the barbs to eat, but I'm pretty certain several of the smaller ones got taken shortly after they molted as the barbs tend to mob things once they figure out its edible. (I'm going to eventually make my current tank a shrimp only tank)

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, bluestarfish said:

Even fish under the 3cm range can be a danger, my Cherry Barbs do sometimes hunt the shrimp, which is kind of interesting behavior to observe but I wish they wouldn't. The shrimp are too big for the barbs to eat, but I'm pretty certain several of the smaller ones got taken shortly after they molted as the barbs tend to mob things once they figure out its edible. (I'm going to eventually make my current tank a shrimp only tank)

 

 

Then it looks like I have to find another place for my tetras, before they get eaten by the shark...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, or you could re-home the shark instead, they are notoriously aggressive and territorial fish and often won't tolerate others of their species (or conspecies) either.

 

Rehoming the shark seems like it'd be the easier solution anyway. How big is your tank again?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

29 minutes ago, bluestarfish said:

Yeah, or you could re-home the shark instead, they are notoriously aggressive and territorial fish and often won't tolerate others of their species (or conspecies) either.

 

Rehoming the shark seems like it'd be the easier solution anyway. How big is your tank again?

hmmm I also have a cichlid, which is the most peaceful cichlid you can get. Sometimes it chases the tetras, but not as much as the shark.

My tank is 20gallon and the shark is around 4 inches. Yes I heard you cannot have 2 red tail sharks in the same tank, it would be bad. So if I decide to rehome I will have to rehome both the shark and the cichlid, probably.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, that makes it easier, 20 gallons is too small for the shark, it's also too small for most any kind of cichlid that I know of, and definitely too small for the shark+cichlid+tetras all together.

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, bluestarfish said:

Well, that makes it easier, 20 gallons is too small for the shark, it's also too small for most any kind of cichlid that I know of, and definitely too small for the shark+cichlid+tetras all together.

 

 

 

 

 

But the rule of the thumb is 1 inch of fish per gallon of tank. So (given that my tetras are 1 inch each and the cichild 2 inches) I have:

4 + 2 + 5 * (1) = 11. I still have room for 9 inches of fish.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One inch of fish per gallon is a very outdated and poor metric for how much you can have in your tank. You need to take into consideration the fishes needs, not all fish are created equal when it comes to bio-load some are "messy" while others not so much, many fish need room to swim, being in too small a space is stressful.

 

Sharks for example need more than 20 gallons all by themselves, because they need room to cruise around, and they can grow up to 6 inches.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, bluestarfish said:

One inch of fish per gallon is a very outdated and poor metric for how much you can have in your tank. You need to take into consideration the fishes needs, not all fish are created equal when it comes to bio-load some are "messy" while others not so much, many fish need room to swim, being in too small a space is stressful.

 

Sharks for example need more than 20 gallons all by themselves, because they need room to cruise around, and they can grow up to 6 inches.

 

Yes, that's true! Recommended tank size for red tail sharks is bigger than 20 gallons. I guess I should be more careful on what fish to get next time... If you know someone with a pretty big tank that could take the shark please let me know. I live in the Boston area.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

sorry, but based on My experience, I must suggest no fish for shrimp aquarium, We can not only think about is this fish will eat the shrimps ?

but I suggest We must think about other too, like will the shrimp not disturbing by fish waste/ammonia, fish activity, the fish maybe vegetarian but the shrimps maybe can not understand that, they will have fear and no joy in aquarium for the shrimps, but have some fish can be important, sometime We can send few fish to shrimps aquariums if the aquariums have too many other little bugs which disturb the shrimps colony, after the task finished, We must take the fish back to their own dedicated aquarium, I think it's more naturally :)

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, Cleeon said:

sorry, but based on My experience, I must suggest no fish for shrimp aquarium, We can not only think about is this fish will eat the shrimps ?

but I suggest We must think about other too, like will the shrimp not disturbing by fish waste/ammonia, fish activity, the fish maybe vegetarian but the shrimps maybe can not understand that, they will have fear and no joy in aquarium for the shrimps, but have some fish can be important, sometime We can send few fish to shrimps aquariums if the aquariums have too many other little bugs which disturb the shrimps colony, after the task finished, We must take the fish back to their own dedicated aquarium, I think it's more naturally :)

I agree with that!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd like to chime in here. I've had very heavily planted tanks with fish up to 6-8cm in size with shrimps and the shrimps absolutely thrived..

However after a long period some fish must have discovered that shrimps were actuslly tasty snacks. Very soon all of the fish were munching on juveniles and babies and decimated hundreds of them!

[emoji111] [emoji173]
Will

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Dimos and Revolutionhope.

I am understand that many shrimp keeper want to have a beauty aquarium with ornamental fish and shrimp swim together with peace, I know, cause I did it past ago ?.

But, as i stated above, please be patient and never thing again about that if Your purpose not just to have shrimp in aquarium, but want to have peacefull colony of shrimps, in my experience, even otocinclus, must be really veggie fish, can disturb the shrimps, even can make shrimplets "shocked" become shy, hiding along the days (maybe cause fear). For now, I even thinking why I keep fish like otocinclus to my shrimp colony only to eat algae, cause the shrimp is algae eaters too :(

if You want keeping shrimp with snails, I don't see much problem with it, as long as not too much snails.

attention, sorry for My English :D

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Kaylenna said:

Has anyone tried/kept spotted rasboras with shrimp?  They're fairly tiny.

hmm not sure, but I agree with the previous comments. It is better to separate shrimp from fish. Even if the fish is vegetarian, shrimp might feel nervous when having fish around. Plus, fish might eat some of the baby shrimp.

Thanks,
Dimos

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wouldn't keep a slow breeding, pricey shrimp with fish, but if you're talking about Red Cherries...  Unless you have a good place to sell them, most people keeping them in good conditions will be overrun with Cherries eventually.  My cull cherries are multiplying surprisingly fast in the community tank with plenty of fish big enough to snack on babies.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Join Our Community!

    Register today, ask questions and share your shrimp and fish tank experiences with us!

  • Must Read SKF Articles

  • Posts

    • beanbag
      Update to say that after a few gravel vacs, front wall scrub, moss / floating plant trim, that the condition seems to have improved.  My current theory is that it is due to waste / debris management, where "stuff" like that brown mulm accumulates in the substrate and behind the HMF filters.  Maybe some tanks can somehow deal with it, but mine can't.  Also another experienced shrimper suggested that maybe those "shell bugs" don't just live on the shrimps but also in this debris.  Maybe this is the reason some tanks fail due to "old tank syndrome" where all they need is a good gravel vac? Also, I am guessing that plant trim helps too because now more of the nutrients and light go into growing algae instead of more plants? Well anyway for this tank I will try weekly water change and monthly gravel vac / plant trim.  For my next tank, I'm thinking of something like an under-gravel system where this mulm can fall down and I vac it out.
    • sdlTBfanUK
      Good to have an update and good to hear you are getting shrimplets, so hopefully your colony will continue and you may not get to the point where you have to cull some to stop over population. These type of shrimp only live 12 - 18 months so the adult deaths may be natural? If you have the time I would do weekly 25% water changes, adding the new water via a drip system and do some vacuuming clean of the substrate each week, even if only a different bit each week! See if that helps in a few months and if it does then stick with that regime? It should help reduce any build-ups that may be occuring!
    • beanbag
      Hello again, much belated update: The tank still has "cycles" of 1-2 month "good streaks" where everybody seems to be doing well, and then a bad streak where the short antenna problem shows up again, and a shrimp dies once every few days.  I am not sure what causes things to go bad, but usually over the course of a few days I will start to see more shrimp quietly standing on the HMF filter, and so I know something is wrong.  Since I am not "doing anything" besides the regular 1-2 week water changes, I just assume that something bad is building up.  Here's a list of things that I've tried that are supposed to be "can't hurt" but didn't prevent the problem either: Dose every other day with Shrimp Fit (very small dose, and the shrimp seem to like it) Sotching Oxydator Seachem Purigen to keep the nitrates lower Keeping the pH below 5.5 with peat Things that I don't do often, so could possibly "reset" the tank back to a good streak, are gravel vac and plant trim, so maybe time to try those again. One other problem I used to have was that sometimes a shrimp would suddenly stop eating with a full or partially full digestive tract that doesn't clear out, and then the shrimp will die within a few days.  I suspected it was one of the foods in my rotation - Shrimp Nature Infection, which contains a bunch of herbal plant things.  I've had this in my food rotation for a few years now and generally didn't seem to cause problems, but I removed it from the rotation anyway.  I don't have a lot of adult Golden Bees at this point so I can't really tell if it worked or not. Overall the tank is not too bad - during the good streaks occasionally a shrimp will get berried and hatch babies with a 33-50% survival rate.  So while there are fewer adults now, there are also a bunch of babies roaming around.  I guess this tank will stagger on, but I really do need to take the time to start up a new tank.  (or figure out the problem)
    • jayc
      If that is the offspring, then the parents are unlikely to be PRL. I tend to agree with you. There are very few PRLs in Australia. And any that claim to be needs to show proof. PRL genes have to start as PRL. CRS that breed true after x generations doesn't turn it into a PRL. Neither can a Taiwan bee shrimp turn into a PRL despite how ever many generations. I've never seen a PRL with that sort of red colour. I have on Red Wines and Red Shadows - Taiwan bee shrimps. So somewhere down the line one of your shrimp might have been mixed with Taiwan bees and is no longer PRL. It just tanks one shrimp to mess up the genes of a whole colony. 
    • sdlTBfanUK
      Sorry, missed this one somehow! The PRL look fantastic and the odd ones look part PRL and part Red wine/Red shadow in the colour. They are still very beautiful but ideally should be seperated to help keep the PRL clean if you can do that.  Nice clear photos!
×
×
  • Create New...