Breeding saltwater feeder shrimp - 5/3/08 WWM Crew Member, I have searched all over the internet to find info on breeding the Saltwater Feeder Shrimp, Penaeus sp after reading this on a seller's website: If kept in sufficient numbers and fed well (a mix of flake food, frozen Brine, and Spirulina should do fine), they may begin to breed. Females carrying eggs should be transferred to a different aquarium (or a partitioned section.) Basic fry food may be fed to the newborn shrimp. These tank-bred shrimp are USDA certified to be free from potential diseases and pathogens. Unfortunately, I can't find any more info than that or have found anyone that has tried or been successful with it. <Mmm, has been done many times, places... and the family (Panaeidae) are a HUGE fishery/aquacultured world-wide...> This is what I've been considering so far: 10 gal tank with air bubbler critter keeper or enclosed area for shrimp with eggs (not sure how to enclose area so water moves through, but fry do not) <See the site of Aquatic Ecosystems... for fabrication ideas or purchase of such...> I'm not sure about algae to keep with them or food for the fry. Would crushed flake, phytoplankton, rotifers, or Cyclopeeze work? <... likely so> I really appreciate you taking the time to answer. Thanks! Cher <Look for Frank Hoff's books, the new (fish aquaculture) one by Matt Wittenrich/Microcosm-TFH... There is much written on the topic of use... but, you can also employ trial and error... Bob Fenner>

Shrimp feeding question  - 03/09/07 Hello, <Hi Barry, Mich here.> I am sorry I do not have a camera to take a picture of the shrimp my school has in its tank.  I am an ESL teacher in South Korea; one of my students brought a shrimp to add to the fish tank. <What an awesome learning experience.> What is a concern is, whether the shrimp is getting enough to eat or not. <Are you offering it food?  Shrimp usually aren't too picky!> It seems to have taken to the tank well, always swimming around from one end to the other exploring its surroundings-- or is it swimming around so much because it is hungry and trying to find food.   <Probably exploring... and looking out for a tasty bit while out and about.> It appears to be putting something into its mouth, but I'm not sure.   <Likely micro fauna.> I read that shrimp require special food somewhere, so I wanted to make sure he's OK.   <Offer some bits of a variety of different types of seafood's.  Shrimp will even eat other shrimp!> He has been in the tank for about 2 weeks.  I think the tank is about 10 ft long by 10 in wide by a 1.5 ft high. <Oooo!  Nice size tank!> I have never taken care of fish before: the previous owner of my school took care of the tank when she was here, but she sold the school in Dec. 2006.  Now, I am the only one who seems to be interested in whether or not the fish survive. <Oh boy!  That's quite a responsibility to be placed on you not of your own choosing.  Is a lot to learn.  We are always here if you need any help.> Thanks for your help, <Gladly, Mich> Barry Knapp

Coocoo for copepods?  Peppermint shrimp... comp./fdg.  3/1/07 Hey crew! <Hi>    Quick question: do Peppermint Shrimp eat copepods?  <Yes, quite voraciously actually.>   I have set up a 6gal refugium, and has been going well. <Good.>  I'd begun to culture up my own copepods to aid a friends voracious Mandarin, and all was well. <Very kind of you.> 3 days ago I discovered a small Peppermint Shrimp in the 'fuge, and can only guessed that he hitched a ride in (which totally amazes me).  <Very nice, a little surprising though since they do so poorly after being exposed to air, must have found a nice spot for the trip.>  I did not have time to try to catch him, and left him alone for the last few days.  Yesterday I notice not a single copepod anywhere in the refugium.  I'm hoping that they were not gobbled! <A shrimp could make quite a dent, but I'm sure the population will rebound once you get a chance to remove him.>    BTW: 2 Catalina Goby fry are doing well!  One of the parents mysteriously passed, but my other 2 seem to be doing just fine! <Very nice, always good to see marine fish spawn in captivity and a tribute to your efforts in maintaining a healthy tank.  Do be aware that they are not a tropical species though, preferring cooler water, may be the cause of the parent.> <Chris>

Re: Hammer coral, starving shrimp 7/20/05 Hello, I forgot to tell you.  I read your (Bob and Anthony's) book in inverts, Reef Invertebrates.  Besides enjoying it greatly, it saved our shrimps' lives.  I didn't know I was supposed to feed them.  Thank you. Shrina <Real good. Bob Fenner> Feeding a cleaner shrimp Hey crew, I acquired a new specimen in kind of a hurry to help with a small ick outbreak.  fortunately, the ick seems to have cured itself, well at least no more white dots on the fish are visible. << Good news. >> But alas, I'm not sure what to feed the new guy?  Although the new cleaner shrimp tries to reach out to clean the fish in my tank (blue jaw trigger and a sailfin tang and some Chromis) none of the fish want to go near the shrimp. << That is okay.  Cleaner shrimp eat just about everything, and I wouldn't worry.  He will scavenge and find bits of food. >> also, when I feed, I don't see the shrimp going after the food, usually a combination of flakes, frozen form 1 or 2. << Cleaner shrimp are quite hardy and collect left over organics.  You may not see him eating, but he is always out picking over little items. >> Please advise, thanks. << Don't worry. >> <<  Blundell  >>

-Pistol shrimp hunger strike- Hello, I was reading your articles on Pistol Shrimps, and I wanted to ask what to do with my pistol shrimp.  As the story goes, I had just bought a Pistol Shrimp recently (about two days to be exact). Once the pistol shrimp was settled in I waited probably till the latter part of the day to feed it, I tried feeding it blood worms, brine shrimp & formula two but it just kept using it's claw to push it away. <As a rule, if a critter feeds on same day that they were introduced into your aquarium, that's just Jim dandy, but if they don't, that is also to be expected. These guys go through some serious stress just from being captured, bagged, and transported from your LFS, let alone their original collection. Give it time, heck, I wouldn't eat either.> (it was kinda cute to see its humanlike behavior of selectivity of pushing anything away from itself that it doesn't want) but I'm worried that it will get hungry & die...any suggestions on what to try feeding it? I NEED HELP  <Give it a few days, and in the mean time, kick back and enjoy his digging! -Kevin> =(

Crabs and shrimp not eating - 3/16/04 About 10 days ago, my inverts except for 3 snails started acting funny. <OK>  They have become exceptionally listless. <Strange>  I have 1 skunk cleaner shrimp, 1 blood shrimp and 9 small hermit crabs.  I also have 1 turbo snail, 1 bumblebee snail and 1 narcissus snail.  The only fish are 1 percula clown and 1 coral beauty. <OK> The snails and the fish seem perfectly fine, but the shrimp and crabs don't seem to move as much anymore. <Change foods?> The only thing I have done differently was upgrade the light to a 10,000K 65W Custom Sealife Retrofit kit. <From what? Most of the shrimp and crabs tend to be a bit more active at night (dusk and dawn) for safety>  The tank is a 29g, with Aragonite substrate.  The local fish store said maybe a electric current is going on, so I bought a titanium ground probe.  Did nothing. <Not necessarily but likely not the problem. I would keep the probe though> They do move around at night however. <Try different foods, but night activity is a little more "realistic" to their natural state> I have had each one for over a month now and up until 10 days ago, they were all active and doing fine. <Lighting change (intensity) likely scared them into a more realistic reef state. Also try different foods catered to their needs.> They used to be ravenous eaters, now I haven't seen them eat at all. <Food change and try feeding a bit at night after lights out> Maybe they eat at night. <Possible. If you are not target feeding them then maybe they have nothing left to eat?>  My params are SG 1.022, temp 80, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 15 ppm. <All fine as far as that goes. Could be other parameters out of normalcy> Have started doing top-offs with RO water <freshwater top off no saltwater mixed, right?> and am about to do a 5 gallon water change with RO water. <R/O with sea salt mixed in right?> What could be the problem? <detailed throughout the email> I did a 5 gallon water change a few hours before this appeared, but I had done a 7 gallon water change a week before.  Thanks. <Thanks for being part of it all ~Paul>

Crabs and shrimp not eating - 3/16/04 The snails and the fish seem perfectly fine, but the shrimp and crabs don't seem to move as much anymore. <Change foods?> Nope. <Don't be so sure> Alternate between Reef Plus frozen and an Angel Mix frozen, feeding every third day.  They would eat anything, especially the Reef Plus since it seemed to clump more and they could grab and hold on better. <Well, not sure what else to tell you. Let me know after the water change how things go. Maybe they are preparing to molt or have just molted> The only thing I have done differently was upgrade the light to a 10,000K 65W Custom Sealife Retrofit kit. <From what? Most of the shrimp and crabs tend to be a bit more active at night (dusk and dawn) for safety> From a standard 30 inch bulb that came with the tank originally from Wal-Mart. <Needed the upgrade> I understand about being more active at night, but this malady (if you can call it that) started at about noon, and 3 days after I upgraded the lighting. <Noon today? Either way they could be adjusting. Again, there may be something else going on. Nothing rings a bell though.> <Not necessarily but likely not the problem. I would keep the probe though> I thought that was odd, but still have it anyway. The only electrical appliance in the tank is the heater, and only the glass is in the water. Glass is an insulator. The other issue could be from the new light, but the connections are capped and their is a layer of glass between the hood and the water in the tank top, again insulating from stray current or spikes. <Not likely electricity> <Try different foods, but night activity is a little more "realistic" to their natural state> How long can they last without eating? <Not very long. Maybe a week or so> It's been almost 10 days since I've seen them eat. <Likely eating when you are not looking. This is understandable as they "go to town" initially and once food source is under control, they sort of slow down and graze>  And what would be a good food for them? <Try the sea veggies product. Strips of nori seaweed or something of that sort. Spirulina cubes or sinking pellets>  I know if I just put food in the tank, the angel and the clown will eat it. <True. Feed them first. Then why they are busy try feeding the others> I've seen the angel take food from a crab before. And how can I target the shrimp specifically?  Hand feeding?  I try not to put my hands in unless I need to. <Use a feeding apparatus or feeding tongs> <Lighting change (intensity) likely scared them into a more realistic reef state. Also try different foods catered to their needs.> See above.   <Possible. If you are not target feeding them then maybe they have nothing left to eat?> Also, having a bit of a bout with brown algae, diatoms? <Hmmmm> That didn't start until about a day after they first showed this behavior. <Strange> Could that be a problem? <Might be related but I don't think algae showing up in itself is an issue here> From what I have read in a book I have, on forums on the Internet and from the fish store, this is good, but the only creature that will eat diatoms are tangs, <Not necessarily. Read through our faqs and articles on algae control.> and my tank is too small. <Yes> Maybe if I could find a juvenile one, and trade him in when he gets bigger perhaps? <I wouldn't. Is this tank newly set up?> <All fine as far as that goes. Could be other> parameters out of normalcy> Those are all I can test for now. <Fine> <freshwater top off no saltwater mixed, right?> Right <Whew. Glad to hear. I thought otherwise but had to ask> <R/O with sea salt mixed in right?> Right.  Have an airstone in there now, SG is 1.022, same as tank, and before I actually remove water from tank, will bring temp 80 which is the same as the tank. All params tested fine too...oh, and my pH is 8.3. <Excellent, excellent, and excellent> Thank you so much for the prompt reply.  I wish I had found this site before now...oh well, I'm here now.  :)  Any other ideas?  Thanks again. John Gainesville FL

Iodine For Shrimp Health (12/24/2003) Hello, <Howdy. Steve Allen here.> After doing a Google search on the site, I can't quite seem to find the answer to this question.  I read somewhere (really wish I could remember where!) that shrimp cannot take iodine directly from the water and need to actually consume foods with iodine in them to take in this nutrient.  Is this true? <I cannot find this stated in any of 4 invert books I own or anywhere on a couple of dozen places I checked on the internet.>  What are some iodine-rich foods that I can give my shrimp (Skunk cleaner - L. amboinensis), <I am not aware of any iodine-rich foods. Giving a variety of foods is important.> or is it preferable to soak foods in an iodine solution and then feed them?  (and if that's the case, how do I keep from overdosing the iodine?) <a good reason not to do this. Perhaps some vitamins contain traces of iodine--check ingredients.> I do not yet dose iodine, as I am awaiting the arrival of an Iodine test kit first <best to test anything you are dosing> , but I know that it is vital to proper molting. <It appears to be important, yes. You might want to read the iodine FAQs> Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing your knowledge so that the rest of us can learn more about fish-keeping!! <We can all learn from the experiences of others.> Happy holidays! <Thanks, you too> **crossing my fingers that Santa read my list and will be leaving "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" under the tree!** <A great present!>

Target Feeding/Shrimp Compatibility Thanks, you guys are awesome.... have been a tremendous help. <really glad to hear that! That's why we're all here!> So how do you directly feed a fish in your tank...  for example, I am afraid of overfeeding my tank but some days- not enough food falls to my shrimp goby...  Should I just trust that he gets his food over time? How do I directly feed my mandarin goby this mysis shrimp without it being stolen from other critters??? <A great method to "target feed" these animals is to utilize a turkey baster to shoot a little food down there where he is. Also, you can "skewer" larger items, like krill, crab meat, or squid on a wooden kebob skewer, then carefully put the food in front of the fish's "nose". Do this at the same time that you are giving the other fishes in your tank food, to help eliminate some of the "competition" Even shy fishes will eventually learn to accept food this way.. Oh, you will be happy to hear that my Coral Banded Shrimp and Cleaner Shrimp are best buddies... ok, well not exactly.  I have seen the CBS take a swing at him once...  The Cleaner Shrimp seems to walk on water... he bounces off of everything and floats...  He was walking upside down underneath the top of the water level - if that makes sense. <Yep- a bizarre, entertaining behaviour! Glad to hear that they are getting along with a minimum of squabbling> It seems as though as long as the Cleaner stays outta the CBS's face, he is left alone. <Like with any animals, these guys have their own territories, and tend to display their bravado, so just keep an eye peeled to make sure that everyone stays intact! Take care! Regards, Scott F>

Candy stripe shrimp Is spirulina intended for marine fish a good food for mature candy stripe shrimp?   I am unable to purchase an invertebrate emulsion locally at the moment and need to substitute something else.  Thanks if you can help and thanks if you can't. <These darn things will eat just about anything! Do you have live rock? These guys will feed daily on critters they find on the rock. I frequently find my scarlet shrimp eating leftovers from the fish feeding. I wouldn't worry too much about this critter...> Carpe diem.  Hug your lawyer today. >^-^< <Yeah....Right!> <Uh Oh....The above information is the express written opinion of the author and Wetwebmedia and friends shall not be held liable for any intentional or accidental damages occurring from the use of this or other information found in this email. HA!  David Dowless> Dianne E. Thompson-Sheppard, QC

Harlequin Shrimp <Greets - JasonC here, at your service.> Do Harlequin Shrimp eat Cucumbers too? <not in my experience> I know that they eat Echinoderms but Cucumbers are somewhat different I think, even though they do have the 5 part mouth which is why they are an Echinoderm. <Actually, the phylum, Echinodermata, of which cukes and seastars are both members means 'spiny skinned' - you can check them both out on WWM: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/seastars.htm  http://www.wetwebmedia.com/seacukes.htm > I don't know that's why I am asking. Also, if I got a pair of Harlequin Shrimp, how often should I toss a starfish in the tank for them to consume. <I feed mine one chip every two to three weeks, give or take. It's not really an exact science. I have a single Hymenocera elegans, and this particular specimen is fairly large for a harlequin shrimp. She wastes absolutely no time getting to the Seastar and will usually do-in a 2.5" specimen in two to three weeks, and smaller stars can go quite quickly - nothing left but the chips. I usually then wait until the shrimp makes regular appearances around and about the tank before I drop the next meal, which is usually not much longer than a week or two. Did I mention that I don't see it very often?> (I will be getting some small Blue Linckias and Chocolate Chip Stars) Thanks, Tim