True or False: Male Red Cherry Shrimp tend to be larger and more colorful than the females?
The following is an extract from The Neocaridina Shrimp Handbook book https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com I think one of the reasons Neocaridina Shrimp have become so popular in recent years is the truly vast number of color variations available. At the time of writing, there are around 40 or more different color variations available, and it seems that number grows every year. Whilst the wild Neocaridina davidi shrimp is a gray to brown color, it seems it has the ability deep down inside to produce much brighter colors. Over the last 30 or 40 years, extremely talented and dedicated breeders have managed to take the wild, brown shrimp, and produce reds, blues, yellows, greens, oranges and even blacks. The red color strain is so popular, the common name, Red Cherry Shrimp has become synonymous with Neocaridina davidi. There are probably 10 or more variants of Red Cherry Shrimp, with the Bloody Mary Shrimp often being considered the pinnacle of Red Cherry Shrimp. Whilst we have not seen quite so many different color grades with the other color strains, the blues are certainly heading in a similar direction, and I would not be surprised to see the greens and yellows following along soon. One thing to bear in mind is that no matter which color of Neocaridina Davidi you go for, they are essentially the same shrimp. I sometimes hear people refer to the different colors as being different species. They are the same species, just different color variants. The care requirements of these shrimp are essentially the same no matter which color strain they are. With that said, however, some keepers do find certain color strains to be more fragile than others, although personally, I think that relates to their particular shrimp rather than every shrimp of that particular color. I frequently get comments on my YouTube videos asking “What grade of shrimp are they?” referring to whatever shrimp happens to be featured in that video. One aspect of shrimp grading that often escapes new hobbyists, is the fact that it doesn't really matter what grade you start with, unless you cull heavily, and remove EVERY shrimp from the colony that does not meet the grade, your colony will quickly breed itself to just a general grade. In other words, whilst I might spend a small fortune buying a colony of very high-grade Bloody Mary Shrimp, unless I am continually removing any baby shrimp that do not match the grade, the colony will quickly become a mixed bag of high, medium, and low-grade shrimp. Keeping an entire colony at high grade requires a lot of dedication and vigilance by the shrimp keeper. https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com
True or False: If female Cherry Shrimp feel threatened by predators they will abandon their eggs.
Have you checked out this shrimp room tour by @MarksShrimpTanks ?
The following is an extract from The Neocaridina Shrimp Handbook book https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com Anatomy of a Neocaridina Shrimp - Part 2 At the very front of the Neocaridina Shrimp, we have the rostrum (from the Latin rōstrum meaning “Beak”). The shrimp’s rostrum is a hard extension that extends forward of the eyes. The rostrum's primary job is to protect the eyes, however, it also helps keep the shrimp stable in the water when they shoot backward. At the end of their rostrums, Neocaridina Shrimp have Antennae (two long antennae) and Antennule (two short antennae). The long antennae are used by the shrimp to gather information about their immediate environment. They can sense vibrations in the water through these antennae. The short antennae are used to collect chemical information, kind of like smell and taste in humans. Neocaridina shrimp have a pair of eyes, which sit on either side of their rostrum. They can move each of their eyes independently thanks to their short eyestalks. Shrimp eyes are very good at detecting movement. The shrimp benefit from having panoramic vision, meaning they can see in all directions, which is especially important when you are as close to the bottom of the food chain as dwarf shrimp are. Internally, Neocaridina Shrimp are just as fascinating as they are externally. The vast majority of their internal organs are located in the head and chest area (known as the Cephalothorax). The intestine system is located in the abdomen. Neocaridina Shrimp have what is often known as an open circulatory system, meaning the entire abdominal cavity is filled with blood. The internal organs of the Neocaridina Shrimp are incredibly small, but they manage to pack everything they need into their tiny bodies. Just behind their eyes sits the shrimp's brain. The brain is connected to a nerve cord that runs the length of their body. Directly behind the brain is the shrimp's stomach. One of the fascinating parts of shrimp keeping is the stomach often turns the color of whatever they have been eating. This is especially prevalent in the light or clear-colored shrimp, such as the Snowballs. The shrimp's stomach is connected to their intestine, which also runs the length of their bodies, terminating at the anus, just beneath the tail. Next, it’s the heart, which lies just behind the stomach. The heart's job is to circulate blood around the body cavity, supplying the internal organs with oxygen and nutrients. Interestingly, Neocaridina Shrimp blood is actually a light blue color rather than red like our own. Shrimp blood is blue because they do not have hemoglobin in it, but rather hemolymph. Hemolymph contains hemocyanin, which contains two copper ions. Therefore, shrimp need a certain level of copper in their diets for proper blood circulation. Just below the heart, female Neocaridina Shrimp have their ovaries. This is where their eggs are produced. Lighter-colored shrimp are famed for their ability to show they are developing eggs inside their bodies. We hobbyists refer to female shrimp that have developing eggs inside their body cavities as being ‘saddled’. After mating with a male, the female starts moving the eggs (squeezing) from the ‘saddle' to the brood pouch. At that moment the eggs go through the sperm and become fertilized. The brood pouch itself is formed by the females’ pleopods. They hold the eggs until they are ready to hatch. We often refer to females who are holding eggs as being ‘berried’ https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com
True or False: Neocaridina Shrimp (Red Cherry Shrimp) are naturally occurring in parts of Japan?
The following is an extract from The Neocaridina Shrimp Handbook book https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com Anatomy of a Neocaridina Shrimp - Part 1 Basically speaking, the external anatomy of a Neocaridina Shrimp comprises a carapace (head), abdomen (which is divided into 6 segments), rostrum (nose), pereopods (walking legs), pleopods (swimming legs), maxillipeds (feeding arms), and a tail. Unlike mammals, or fish for that matter, Neocaridina Shrimp do not have a rigid internal skeleton, but rather an external skeleton, which is referred to as an exoskeleton. Their exoskeleton is essentially their shell. Whilst an exoskeleton is a great line of defence, much like a suit of armour was for a knight, it has the disadvantage that it does not grow as the shrimp grows. Rather, as the shrimp get bigger, the exoskeleton has to be shed (or molted) to allow the shrimp to grow. More on molting later in the book. The abdomen of the Neocaridina Shrimp is divided into 6 segments. Being divided into sections makes the shrimp incredibly flexible despite the rigid nature of the exoskeleton. At the end of the abdomen is the shrimp's tail, which is itself divided into a number of different segments. The shrimp uses its tail as its main form of propulsion to swim through the water. Shrimp can move surprisingly quickly over short distances. Swimming or darting away is a shrimp's main form of defence. Directly beneath the abdomen are the shrimps pleopods, or swimming legs. Neocaridina Shrimp have 5 pairs of pleopods, one pair under each of the first five segments of the abdomen. There are no pleopods under the sixth segment which is directly adjacent to the shrimp's tail. Neocaridina Shrimp use their pleopods to help them swim through the water, and female shrimp also use them to hold on to their eggs, suspending the developing young beneath their bodies. The pleopods are frequently also referred to as the shrimp’s swimmerets. In front of the shrimp's pleopods are its pereopods. Neocaridina Shrimp have 5 pairs of pereopods, 3 of which they use for walking, and 2 pairs they use for feeding and fighting (although they are not very good at fighting). The front 2 pairs of pereopods have small claws to help the shrimp hold on to food. Research has shown that the 3 pairs of walking legs are also used by the shrimp to sense the environment around it. In front of the pereopods, the shrimp have maxilliped, which are essentially feeding arms that the shrimp use to bring food to their mouths. Part 2 to follow tomorrow 🙂 https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com
True or False: Juvenile shrimp will molt more frequently than adult shrimp?
The following is an extract from The Neocaridina Shrimp Handbook book https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com "Over the last 15 to 20 years, the popularity of Neocaridina Shrimp in the aquarium hobby has rocketed. When I first started fish keeping in the 1990s, we rarely, if ever, came across shrimp. Occasionally we would see Ghost Shrimp for sale, but these were often sold as ‘feeder shrimp’. Unlike our friends in the marine fishkeeping hobby, which had a wide selection of invertebrates, we freshwater fish keepers had a poor selection of shrimp to choose from. In the 1980s, the late, great, Japanese aquascaper, Takashi Amano introduced the world to the wonderful algae-eating shrimp from his homeland that would later become known as the Amano Shrimp. It wasn’t until around 2003 that the first red color variants of the wild Neocaridina denticulata sinensis (later to be reclassified as Neocaridina davidi) were introduced to the hobby. In the early days, although certainly more colorful than Ghost Shrimp, these shrimp didn’t have anywhere near the vibrant red colors we see today. It is only through many years of selective breeding that we have ended up with the kaleidoscope of colorful shrimp we now find in aquariums around the world. I personally believe that the wide selection of colors available, matched with the shrimp's placid personality, and desire to eat algae and clean up uneaten food, is what has propelled the Neocaridina Shrimp's popularity to the point that many of us now keep dedicated shrimp only tanks. At the time of writing, I have 12 aquariums that contain just water, live aquatic plants, and shrimp. This would have seemed bizarre 30 years ago. When Neocaridina Shrimp first started to become a regular feature in local fish stores, they were primarily sold as ‘clean-up crew’, with their sole job being to eat the leftover fish food, decaying plant matter, and fish poop that can build up in an aquarium. These days, they are sold to be as much of the main display tank as the fish themselves. It’s incredible how far these tiny creatures have come in such a short space of time."
In tomorrow's video, I share 5 maintenance mistakes that could be killing your shrimp. The video is out on 12th May at 3:00 BST (10 am Eastern). Channel Members can watch the video now by heading over to the members area of the channel 🙂
One of the questions I get asked most frequently is 'Can a skittles tank work?' In this video, I answer that question 👇🏻
What's your approach when it comes to feeding and water changes? Rick from @shrimplyexplained takes a science-based approach to running a shrimp tank 👇🏻
The second episode of the podcast, featuring Rick from @shrimplyexplained is out tomorrow at 2 pm UK (9 am Eastern). Channel Members can head over to the members' area and watch the podcast now 😊
Hello friends, The FishKeepingAnswers Discord server now has almost 200 members. That’s 200 hobbyists sharing their knowledge and experience with people like you. Why not come and join the server today https://discord.gg/h2jzcuf9
Thank you so much to Rick from @shrimplyexplained who took time out of his day to join me on the podcast. Episode two will be out Wednesday 8th May. In the meantime, check out Ricks channel for great shrimp videos 👉🏻 @shrimplyexplained
Great News! Following popular demand, I have added PayPal as a payment option for buying the book. If you are one of those fine people who have been waiting for me to add PayPal, head over to the website today 😃 https://neocaridina-shrimp-handbook.com
