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Re: [APD] Bamboo shrimp requirements
Pete wrote:
Hello, been trying to find info on bamboo shrimps but it's hard to find
so thought I'd ask here. I'm always looking for the 'different' animal
look in my tank ;)
First I have a 90 gal with a med fish load (lots tetras and small fish),
lots of plants, CO2 inj.
- Eating requirements. Do they need any supplementary food or could
they fend for themselves? How many would the tank support?
They are a filter feeder. They will often position themselves to face
the current in the tank and hold their "fans" out waiting for food to
come to them. To support this feeding habit they need a fair amount of
water flow to bring the food to them. They can filter out very fine
particles such as OSI Micro-Food and Artemia food. They will also eat
larger items such as enriched Artemia nauplii, frozen cyclops and even
small pieces of flake food. In addition to straining the water they
will also walk along the bottom picking up bits of food that have
reached the substrate. I have never seen them eat healthy plants, but
they will eat decaying plant matter; had to add a plant connection
somewhere :). The way to know if your bamboo shrimp is getting enough
to eat is to look for its droppings. They look like little rounded
cubes and there should be a lot of them.
- Colours? I saw them at the store a while ago (unlabeled as new
delivery) but didn't get any as I wanted to research them first, these
were a nice deep brown colour. But now the ones I see at the store are
called African Wood Shrimp and they are a dull yellow colour, not nearly
as nice. Was it the Singapore one I saw before.
There are several different species that get labeled as bamboo shrimp.
The Singapore shrimp (Atyopsis moluccensis), AKA Wood shrimp, AKA Flower
shrimp is from Singapore and has a nice brown color; the males have a
white strip down their back. The Cameroon armored shrimp (Atyopsis
gabonensis) is from Africa is more reddish brown and looks dangerous
although it is harmless. I expect there are other species I am not
familiar with, but the all need similar conditions and food.
- Are they jumpers? Currently running without a glass top on my tank for
more light.
They don't really jump, but they do crawl around so driftwood decor that
leads out of the water might not be good. I have mine in an open top
tank and never had one escape.
- What's the usual cost. Store has them at $19cdn which is the most
I've ever seen for any type of shrimp. Don't know if that's standard or
a premium for a new 'exotic'
Arizona Aquatic Gardens (http://www.azgardens.com/shrimpfactory.php) has
them for $6.99 each. Frank's Aquarium
(http://www.franksaquarium.com/freshwatershrimpfarm.htm) sometimes has
them for a similar price, but is out at the moment. Both places offer
several other shrimp species if you are interested in getting something
different for your tank. They are both located in the USA, I don't know
if they can ship to Canada.
- Any other special requirements, hiding places etc. I have good water
flow which I guess they would need.
Many thanks
Pete.
They need some hiding places to feel comfortable. They also need a
secure hiding spot (a cave works well) for when they shed their
exoskeleton. They need some Calcium in the water to form their shell.
Also their is anecdotal evidence that adding a little iodine can help
with their shedding process. I just add a drop of iodine with each
water change. You can use the same iodine that is used for marine tanks.
Later,
Bill Wells
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