Shrimp

Yesterday I’ve put in three Amano shrimp/Cardina Japonica.





One of ‘em is fairly large, around 4 cm. Close to adult size I guess.

Another one is relatively small 1.5 cm, and the other one is just in between.

Since it was a warm day yesterday I kept the acclimatizing time real short. Just a few minutes.
I had the three shrimp in one bag with two Otos, so that just causes unnecessary stress.

The large one went straight to work, the other one took a minute to look around first, and the third one looked sort of in shock. Probably due to the transportation.

Glad to say this morning they al seamed to be in perfect health.

Species information found on petshrimp.com

Common Name:	Amano Shrimp, Algae Eating Shrimp, Yamato Shrimp, Japonica
Scientific Name:	Caridina japonica (Recently Caridina multidentata has been proposed as an older synonym).
Size:	usually around 4-5cm
Temperature:	will tolerate a wide range of temperatures, but best kept at 70°F-78°F
Water Parameters:	has a wide ph and hardness range from soft and slightly acidic to hard and alkaline
Food:	Algae, fish food (flake, pellets etc)
Origin:	Japan, Taiwan, may be introduced elsewhere
Larval Development Type:	Normal: larvae go through several planktonic stages before metamorphosing into post-larvae (miniature shrimp) and assuming a benthic lifestyle. For this process they need brackish water to full strength saltwater.

The Amano Shrimp is the "Granddaddy" of the shrimp hobby. It was because Takashi Amano featured these shrimp in his book about planted aquaria that people got interested in this very efficient algae eating shrimp. This shrimp is very useful in eliminating all types of algae and is an all around interesting creature. In fact, there are very few shrimp that can match its skills as an efficient algae eater. It gets quite a bit bigger than other algae eating shrimp and is a joy to watch.

I want to stress that this shrimp can only be propagated if its larvae are transferred into saltwater/brackish water and back into freshwater when the larvae develop into postlarvae (i.e. mini-shrimp).. There are some dubious reports on the internet (one with a picture of an amphipod/scud claiming to be a "baby amano") purporting the "breeding" of this shrimp in total freshwater, but these "reports" are not to be trusted.

Similar to the Red Cherry Shrimp the Amano Shrimp can tolerate a wide range of temperatures and can be kept outside in garden ponds in frost free areas.

Bought at: Het Natuurhuis
Price €: 8,85 (2,95 each)