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Fish in KH0 CRS shrimp tank?


tlarsen

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I have RCS and CRS in a 10G tank that have been breeding well for about a year. I would like to introduce a few small fish - probably ember tetras and emerald rasboras. I keep the KH at 0 and the GH at about 5-6. Aside from possible predation of young shrimp (they have many hiding places), can these fish survive these rather strict parameters? Or should I select other more tolerant species? Also really like pygmy cories. Thanks

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I have neon tetras with rcs and vampire shrimp right now. Water just tested kh0 GH5 tds260 PH6.8 75F

 

I bet the fish would be fine but I plan to move mine when I can.  They coexist ok but they harass the shrimp and try to steal food at times.

 

I haven't witnessed a kill but the shrimplets don't hide like you think they should... I bet it happens.

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If you don't mind losing a few baby shrimp.   I was temporarily keeping some 3 week old Celestichtys Chopra fry with my shrimp and the shrimp were visibly bothered with having these fish in their tank, Like was also mentioned: the fish will out compete the shrimp for food, so unless it's Otocinclus I really cannot recommend keeping any fish with a breeding colony of shrimp.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I keep some Bloody Marys in a heavily planted 40 gallon breeder with otos, panda corys, cardinal tetras, threadfins, pseudomuguil gertrudae ARU IIs and a betta.  All small schooling fish.  Except for the beta and he's too lazy to bother anybody. I probably have several hundred shrimp in the tank and they breed and reproduce just fine.  I have lots of mosses for them to hide in as well as the plants.

 

That being said, the fish probably do get some of the babies (particularly the cardinals) but I have so many in there it doesn't matter.  The population gets so large I occasionally have to thin them by selling some.  I also have a second shrimp only tank with Bloody Marys.  So I'll never loose them all.

 

If you do, make sure the tank is heavily planted and that your colony is large enough that if you loose a few babies it won't have a large impact on your population.  Small schoolers are best as they'll take babies/juvies only (for the most part) and leave the adults alone.  Larger fish will easily take the adults as well.  Also, the more prolific the shrimp the better.  Neos breed much faster than Caridinias.  I wouldn't try it with the CRS unless you have a couple of hundred, and don't put them all in the tank with the fish in case it doesn't work out.

 

Softwater fish like Cardinals, Neons and Pandas, might do better in those parameters, but I think they'd really like a little KH in there, maybe a kH of 2?  I have a KH of 5 in that tank but I lower the pH with CO2.....  Might want to look at small schooling softwater fish and then check out the parameters that those fish need.

 

The adult shrimp I have in that tank don't seem to be psychologically bothered by the fish.  They swim out in the open and only hide when they'e babies or are berried.  And they fight with the pandas over the algae wafers...

 

:)

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Oto's are considered by many (some will argue) to be shrimp safe.  I've always wanted to try a small nano tank with shrimp and chili rasboras (also call mosquito rasboras).  They're very small but colorful little fish, and you could keep a good size school because of their size.  And they like really soft water.

 

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/boraras-brigittae/

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