Nuthatch Posted November 29, 2015 Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 So am I in a position to help my shrimp? Or do I just wait until the CPDs have passed away? I have a 9 gallon Aquastyle tank (12x12x14). It has an upright chunk of wood, one large rock & various small stones as structure. There are various plants whose names escape me- I know there are a few stems (repens?) that grown to the top; there is a red crypt (?) that goes about half way up; dwarf lettuce floaters that cover at least half the surface; a few little blyxa japonica and lots of moss. I consider it to be pretty well planted. Living in this tank are 7 CPDs (Celestial Pearl Danios), 2 otos, a decreasing number of snails, and 6 struggling neo shrimp. Three of the shrimp are full grown females and at least as large as the CPDs. The other 3 are a 1/2 inch or so long and brand new to the tank. Over the past 6 months or so I have had more than 12 shrimp added to the tank, with only the 3 large ones managing to stay alive. I have come to the realization that the CPDs must be killing them off. What do you think? My water tests out good at the LFS. PH is only 6.5-6.8 though. Kh is 3 & Gh is 6. The shrimp, when I see them, are usually on the moss although the 3 large girls venture out & about on occasion. I have never seen them bothered. I have caught sight of the 3 new ones only occasionally since I put them in on Wednesday. The CPDs spend a majority of their time hiding in the back corner in part of the moss. I have also seen one or two ghosting through the bottom of the other section of moss. There seem to be 3 bold ones that cruise the open spaces of the tank. So there's the situation. I have no place for another small tank for the shrimp or else I would do that. I feel terrible that I created a situation that may be inherently deadly for the shrimp (even though I have never seen them bothered by the fish). Can anyone think of something I can do to increase the odds of the shrimps' survival? I've thought maybe a rocky cave-ish area, or even just piling in more moss. But the fish can pretty much go wherever the shrimp can go! Does anyone have any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimp Life Posted November 29, 2015 Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 Shrimp are very vulnerable while moulting and after moulting so perhaps your fish are picking on them at this time, this is something I caught fish doing to shrimp when I first started out..Atleast now you know for next time that to fully enjoy shrimp and to watch them flourish and not stress them out its best to keep them in a shrimp only tank. Only thing you can do is create alot more places to hide like dense moss where the fish can;t get through, but the shrimp can...Good Luck! Nuthatch and Louie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wygglz Posted November 29, 2015 Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 I did this with a betta tank. My fish left the shrimp completey alone but I noticed one by one they disappeared. I realized my sweet betta was just waiting til the shrimp molted then snacking. I felt horrible but we all make mistakes, especially in the beginning. Louie and Shrimp Life 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuthatch Posted November 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 One of the frustrating parts is that the CPDs are so small! The mouths on those fish are tiny, and I really didn't think anything but baby shrimp would be in danger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jem_xxiii Posted November 29, 2015 Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 One of the frustrating parts is that the CPDs are so small! The mouths on those fish are tiny, and I really didn't think anything but baby shrimp would be in danger. Yep, you tend to hear about these shrimps being eaten stories by CPDs all the time. Such timid fish, with a sweet tooth for molting shrimp. Really any fish would like to snack on live food (except otos). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomCruise Posted November 29, 2015 Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 I have a communal tank with Neo's and many different types of fish. The key is to have lots of hiding places. Lot's of plants etc. The fish eat them occasionally, but the shrimp breed faster than they get eaten. The cycle of life, ya know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuthatch Posted November 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2015 Speaking of the cycle of life, I just spotted a baby fish in the tank! I had no idea that was happening...but I figure the chances of any reaching maturity are mighty slim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuthatch Posted November 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2015 I don't currently have any caves or leaves. I'm thinking about cholla wood. Would shrimp be safe from CPDs in there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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