How to Keep Ghost Shrimp Alive: The Complete Care Guide

Ghost shrimp, also known as glass shrimp, are a popular freshwater shrimp for aquarium hobbyists. Their transparent bodies make them unique, and they serve many purposes like being excellent tank cleaners, live food for predatory fish, and peaceful pets. However, their lifespans are short, averaging about 1 year, so keeping them alive and healthy requires proper care. This article will provide a complete guide on how to successfully keep ghost shrimp alive.

Getting Started: Tank Setup and Water Parameters

The first step to keeping ghost shrimp alive is setting up an appropriate tank environment. Here are some key factors:

• Tank Size A minimum 5-gallon tank is recommended, but larger is always better. Aim for 3-4 shrimp per gallon.

• Substrate: Fine sand is best, as ghost shrimp are bottom dwellers and will sift through sand. Avoid large gravel that can damage their exoskeletons.

• Plants: Live plants like Java moss and hornwort provide hiding spots and food source.

• Decor Rocks, driftwood, plastic decor create more hiding places to help shy shrimp feel secure

• Temperature Keep water between 65-82°F Warmer temperatures within this range are ideal

• pH: Maintain a pH between 7.0-8.0. Ghost shrimp prefer neutral to slightly alkaline conditions.

• Water Hardness: Aim for 3.72-6.75 KH. Slightly hard water is suitable.

• Filtration: A simple sponge filter provides adequate filtration for ghost shrimp.

• Lighting: Standard aquarium lighting works fine. No special shrimp-specific lighting needed.

Maintaining high water quality is also crucial. Perform regular testing and water changes to keep ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates within safe levels (0-20 ppm). Also avoid copper, which is toxic to ghost shrimp. Overall, stable, warm, clean water promotes healthy ghost shrimp.

Feeding Ghost Shrimp Properly

In the wild, ghost shrimp are scavengers eating debris and algae. In an aquarium, they will eat similar foods:

• Fish flakes/pellets that sink to the bottom

• Biofilm growing on surfaces

• Algae within the tank

• Decomposing plant matter

• Fish waste and uneaten food particles

Feed only a small amount once or twice daily. Overfeeding can pollute the water. Alternatively, many ghost shrimp can subsist on naturally occurring algae and biofilm alone, without extra feeding.

Supplement their diet with calcium-rich foods like spinach or blanched veggies 1-2 times per week. This fortifies their shells. Avoid copper-containing foods like shrimp pellets. Vary their diet for optimal nutrition.

Keeping Them Safe: Tank Mates

Ghost shrimp fare best in peaceful community tanks with similarly sized, non-aggressive tank mates such as:

• Small tetra species like neon or cardinal tetra

• Small rasboras like harlequin rasbora

• Corydoras catfish and otocinclus catfish

• Snails like nerite snail or mystery snail

• Other shrimp like cherry shrimp or amano shrimp

Avoid housing ghost shrimp with aggressive fish like bettas, cichlids, goldfish, or any large predatory species that may attack, nip at, or eat the shrimp.

Ensure ghost shrimp have plenty of hiding spots amongst plants and decor to retreat if needed. Dense vegetation and driftwood offer the most security.

Optimizing Water Parameters for Molting

Ghost shrimp frequently molt, shedding their exoskeleton as they grow. But molting makes them vulnerable until their new shell hardens. Optimizing water parameters can help minimize molting issues:

• Maintain pH between 7.0-7.5 to prevent shell decay

• Keep calcium levels around 20-40 ppm to help harden new shells

• Add mineral supplements like Seachem Equilibrium if calcium is low

• Do regular water changes and filter maintenance to remove pollutants

• Keep ammonia and nitrites at 0 ppm, nitrates under 20 ppm

• Maintain ideal temperature range of 70-80°F

• Use aquarium salt or other electrolyte additives to stabilize osmotic pressure

• Provide hiding spots so shrimp can safely molt without threats

Molting issues can quickly turn fatal, so optimizing water quality and diet is key. Immediately remove any dead shrimp to prevent spreading disease.

Common Illnesses and How to Treat Them

Ghost shrimp can fall victim to some common freshwater shrimp diseases and parasites:

• Vorticella: A protozoan infection causing white fuzzy patches on shells. Treat with salt baths.

• Bacterial infections: Visible as pink/red swollen spots on body. Often fatal – isolate sick shrimp.

• Planaria: Microscopic flatworms that attach to shrimp. Use treatment like No-Planaria to kill them.

• Scutariella: Parasitic copepod that feeds on shrimp blood. Remove with tweezers or treat with Levamisole.

• Chlorine/Chloramine poisoning: Causes lethargy and death. Use water conditioner to remove chlorine/chloramine.

• Copper poisoning: Copper medications can be lethal. Avoid these if housing ghost shrimp.

Quarantine new shrimp for at least 30 days before adding to the main tank to prevent introducing pathogens. Maintaining excellent water quality is the best disease prevention. Promptly treat any issues observed before they spread.

Breeding Ghost Shrimp

Ghost shrimp will readily breed in captivity if provided proper conditions:

• Sexing: Females have green ovaries visible through the shell when mature. Males haveslimmer, more muscular tails.

• Mating: No special steps needed. Males will fertilize the female’s eggs as they are laid.

• Spawning: Females carry 20-30 green eggs on their underside legs for 3+ weeks until hatching.

• Raising fry: Move hatched larvae to a separate rearing tank with lots of plants and biofilm to feed on.

• Growth: Larvae resemble mini adults and take about 3 months reach maturity.

Successful ghost shrimp breeding relies on optimal water quality and adequate microorganism food sources for fry. Separating adults and juveniles prevents cannibalism. Within several months, you’ll have a self-sustaining ghost shrimp colony!

While ghost shrimp are inexpensive and short-lived, giving them proper housing, nutrition, tank mates, and care lets them thrive during their lifetime. Test water frequently, feed a varied diet, use salt and supplements to support molting, and quarantine new shrimp. Addressing illnesses rapidly and providing good conditions for breeding can keep your ghost shrimp population going strong. Follow this guide, and you’ll be rewarded with healthy, active ghost shrimp to enjoy for about a year or longer.