The aquarium hobby is crazy about Neocaridina cherry shrimp and for good reason too. They come in almost every color of the rainbow and are so small that they can fit in a 2-gallon nano tank. They are great for cleaning up because they eat algae and old fish food. Compared to other types of ornamental shrimp, they are easy for beginners to take care of and can live in a lot of different types of water. The last thing is that these cute animals are easy to breed and can be bought at fish stores and aquarium societies in your area. Learn all about the beautiful cherry shrimp and how to keep them healthy and happy.
Keeping shrimp as pets is becoming increasingly popular among aquarium hobbyists. Their colorful appearance and peaceful nature make them fun and relaxing to watch. However when first starting out, one common question is how many shrimp should be kept together?
The number of shrimp you can keep depends on several factors:
Shrimp Species
There are over 2,000 species of shrimp, ranging greatly in size Some species only grow to be an inch long while others can reach up to 5 inches
Small shrimp like Red Cherry Shrimp and Bee Shrimp only need 2-5 gallons per shrimp. On the other hand, larger shrimp like Vampire Shrimp need 10-15 gallons per shrimp.
When stocking your tank, make sure to choose shrimp that are compatible in size. Keeping very large and very small shrimp together risks the small shrimp being eaten.
Here are common aquarium shrimp and their recommended tank sizes:
- Red Cherry Shrimp: 2-5 gallons per shrimp
- Ghost Shrimp: 2-5 gallons per shrimp
- Bamboo Shrimp: 5-10 gallons per shrimp
- Vampire Shrimp: 10-15 gallons per shrimp
Tank Size
In general, the bigger the tank, the more shrimp you can add. Shrimp produce a bio-load from their waste that can pollute the water if there are too many shrimp for the tank size.
Small shrimp like Red Cherry Shrimp can be kept at a density of around 10 shrimp per gallon. For larger shrimp, aim for 1 shrimp per 5-10 gallons.
Make sure your tank is fully cycled before adding multiple shrimp. The beneficial bacteria need to be established to process the ammonia from shrimp waste. An uncycled tank risks dangerous ammonia spikes that can kill shrimp.
Perform regular water changes to keep nitrate levels low. 25-30% weekly is recommended for heavily stocked tanks. Use a gravel vacuum to remove debris and uneaten food that can decompose into ammonia.
Filtration
Effective filtration is key when keeping high densities of shrimp. Their waste production demands sufficient biological filtration to process ammonia and nitrite.
Canister filters and sump systems provide substantial biological filtration for heavy bioloads. Sponge filters also supply abundant surface area for beneficial bacteria to colonize.
Aim for a filtration capacity 3-5 times the water volume of your tank when housing many shrimp. Perform filter cleanings properly to avoid killing beneficial bacteria. Only rinse filter media in tank water rather than tap water.
Plants and Decor
Planted tanks and tanks with ample hiding spots can support a higher number of shrimp. Plants aid the nitrogen cycle by absorbing ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. They also provide biofilm on their leaves that shrimp graze on.
Shrimp feel more secure with dense plant coverage and decor like driftwood, rock caves, etc. This allows them to spread out their territories and reduces aggression between shrimp.
Floating plants are especially beneficial as they provide cover near the surface where shrimp tend to spend most of their time. They also block out excessive light that can stress shrimp.
Supplemental Feeding
With higher shrimp populations, more food resources are needed. Shrimp enjoy grazing on algae and biofilm but also need protein-rich foods to thrive.
Offer shrimp pellets, blanched vegetables, and foods high in calcium 1-2 times per day. Only feed as much as they can consume within a few hours to avoid fouling the water with rotting food debris.
Scattering powdered supplements over the substrate is an easy way to provide nutrients like calcium that shrimp need for molting. Just be careful not to overfeed.
Tank Maintenance
While shrimp have a relatively low bioload compared to fish, keeping high densities creates more waste accumulation and water pollution. Perform extra tank maintenance to compensate.
Aim to change 25-40% of the water 1-2 times per week in a heavily stocked shrimp tank. Use a gravel vacuum to remove solid wastes during water changes. Test water parameters like ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, GH, KH, and pH weekly.
Wipe down tank walls to remove algae buildup. Trim plants to stop them from overgrowing and rotting. Check equipment like filters to ensure they are running properly.
Water Parameters
Shrimp require specific water parameters to thrive:
- Temperature between 70-80°F
- pH between 6.5-7.5
- KH between 3-5° dKH
- GH between 6-8° dGH
- Ammonia and nitrites at 0 ppm
- Nitrates under 20 ppm
With a large shrimp population, maintaining these parameters can be challenging. Ammonia and nitrates creep up quickly from waste accumulation. GH and KH can swing with frequent water changes.
Use products like Seachem Stability and live plants to keep up the biological filtration. Dose Seachem Alkaline Buffer and Seachem Equilibrium at water changes to stabilize pH, KH, and GH.
Population Control
Too high of a population density risks shrimp health and water quality. It also leads to overbreeding, especially with prolific species like Red Cherry Shrimp.
Here are some options to control an exploding shrimp colony:
- Sell or give away excess shrimp. Most local fish stores will accept healthy shrimp. You can also ship shrimp to buyers.
- Introduce predators like dwarf crayfish or nano fish that will eat baby shrimp but not harm adults.
- Manually remove and destroy shrimp eggs to limit breeding. However this is time consuming.
- Transfer excess shrimp to separate tanks so they have more space.
Aim to keep shrimp populations at a level your tank size and filtration can support. While hundreds of shrimp may fit in a 10 gallon, they will be healthier and happier in appropriate groups.
Signs of Overcrowding
Watch for these signs that shrimp are too crowded:
- Increased aggression, like shrimp fighting over food
- Shrimp “jumping” out of the tank
- Mortalities with no obvious cause
- Ammonia or nitrite spikes
- Low oxygen levels
- Shrimp clinging to filter outflows to access more oxygen
Slow shrimp growth and lack of breeding can also indicate stressful conditions from overcrowding.
Other Considerations for Community Tanks
If housing shrimp with fish or other creatures, make sure they are:
- Peaceful species that won’t intentionally harm shrimp
- Unable to swallow adult shrimp as prey
- Fed appropriately to reduce chances of eating shrimp
Avoid housing shrimp with known shrimp predators like cichlids, loaches, and catfish. Crabs and crayfish may also attack shrimp.
Reduce shrimp numbers when adding to an established tank with other inhabitants. They will contribute to the overall bioload. Start with conservative shrimp densities and slowly increase over time.
Provide plenty of hiding spaces with plants, rocks, driftwood, etc. This allows shrimp to avoid aggressive tankmates. Shrimp may become stressed in open community tanks even with non-aggressive inhabitants.
Frequency of Entities:
how many shrimp should be kept together – 16
Red Cherry Shrimp – 6
Bee Shrimp – 2
Vampire Shrimp – 4
Ghost Shrimp – 2
Bamboo Shrimp – 2
tank size – 8
filtration – 7
plants – 5
water parameters – 5
population control – 3
overcrowding – 4
What do Cherry Shrimp Eat?
As detritivores, they are constantly scavenging for algae, decaying animal and plant matter, biofilm, and other edible organics. They will eat any kind of community fish food that is dropped into the tank, but make sure to also feed them shrimp food like Hikari Shrimp Cuisine and Xtreme Shrimpee Sinking Sticks, which are high in calcium and other minerals that help the shells shed. Long-term grazing is also good for repashy gel food and vegetables like blanched zucchini because they tend to stay water- stable for longer. Even though shrimp are thought to eat mostly algae and plants, make sure they get enough protein because the young ones need it to grow and the females need it to make eggs.
Baby shrimp don’t move around as much, especially when they are first born, so they can easily lose the food race. So, give the babies a range of powdered foods that will float to them, like Hikari First Bites, Easy Fry and Small Fish Food, and Bacter AE. Plants that grow in water, like catappa leaves and cholla wood, break down quickly and form a biofilm that shrimp, both young and old, love to eat. For more information, learn about our 7 favorite foods for freshwater shrimp.
Berried female blue dream shrimp grazing on sinking food
What are Cherry Shrimp?
Neocaridina davidi is native to China and Taiwan. Its body is clear with lots of brown spots that make it blend in with its surroundings. These days, you can buy a lot of different color morphs, like red, orange, yellow, green jade, blue dream, blue velvet, chocolate, black rose, and rili (or striped). The species is often called “cherry shrimp” or “red cherry shrimp” because red is their favorite color. A lot of companies like to give their RCS names like “Bloody Mary,” “Sakura Red,” “Fire Red,” and “Painted Fire Red,” but the quality level isn’t always clear. Pick out the shrimp that look the best to you at a fish store or breeder near you. This is the best way to tell what color they are.
How can you tell the difference between a male and a female cherry shrimp? Females are bigger than males and can grow up to 1 5 inches (4 cm), and display very bright and vivid colors. As an adult, the female either has a yellow saddle-shaped area on her back where unfertilized eggs are located in her ovaries or is “berried,” which means she has fertilized eggs in the swimmerets under her tail. Males are a bit smaller at 1–1. 25 inches (2. 5–3 cm), have a slimmer tail, and are more translucent in color. Juveniles are hard to sex since they all look slender and less colorful than the adults.
Male (top) and female (bottom) orange sakura shrimp
How Many Shrimp Should You Start With In Your Aquarium?
How many cherry shrimp should be kept together?
At least ten cherry shrimp should be kept together. If you intend to have a species tank with only cherry shrimp, ten is the minimum recommended amount. Keeping more shrimp together will limit aggressive and dominant behavior from the shrimp. Moreover, you’ll be able to see their natural behavior more clearly.
How many shrimp should I keep in my tank?
You should definitely keep at least 5-6 shrimp. Most species feel safer in larger numbers, and it is a higher chance, that they will reproduce, since both sexes will surely be present in a larger shrimp group. Will Shrimp Clean My Tank?
How many cherry shrimp can you keep in a tank?
You can keep up to five cherry shrimp per gallon of your aquarium water. The minimum tank size requirement for cherry shrimp is 2 gallons. How many cherry shrimp can I keep in a 30 litre tank? You can keep anywhere between 25 to 35 cherry shrimp in a 30 litre tank. How many shrimp can I keep in a 10 gallon tank?
How many shrimp can you put in a 10 gallon tank?
Here are some of the popular shrimp species and the number of shrimp you can keep in a 10 gallon tank. How many shrimp can I put in a 30 gallon tank? Depending on the species of shrimp, you can keep anywhere between 7 to 150 shrimp in a 30 gallon tank.