Red Cherry Shrimp “Neocardinia davidi”, Breeding – Detailed Version
Over the past few years, there has been a great deal of interest in keeping dwarf shrimp in the home, usually planted, aquarium. It is rewarding, fun, and beneficial for the planted tank. However, you will soon find yourself wanting to explore more exotic and common varieties. The Red Cherry Shrimp, Neocardinia davidi, var., is a popular and inexpensive choice for beginners. red.
Red Cherry Shrimp Characteristics
Red Cherry Shrimp can reach a length of 4 cm (1.6 inches). They prefer clean water with a ph of 6.5-8.0, and a rough temperature of 14-30 degrees C (57-86), most comfortable at a moderate room temperature of about 72 degrees. They are omnivores, and live up to 1-2 years in optimal conditions. Make sure you keep copper-containing food, supplements, and chemicals out your shrimp tank.
Fortunately, Red Cherry shrimp adapt to a wide variety of conditions in the hobby aquarium. They can be kept in a desktop aquarium with as little as 2 gallons, but 8-12 gallons will allow for a more active colony, more breeding, and a livelier population. They love plants and hiding places, so it is important that you include frill plants to allow them to rest, groom, and feel secure. This is especially critical after molting, one of the most vulnerable times for the shrimp. They also love to eat the film of micro-organisms, algae, and plant leaves. This is why they spend hours grooming their favourites. Shrimp love to hide in mosses and groom them, whether they are in a clump, tied onto rocks or wood.
Red Cherry Shrimp in Different Grades
There are various grades of Red Cherry Shrimp, from deep dark red to paler colors. The most vibrant and colorful females are sensitive to background and substrate colors. They will turn pale or transparent if they live in a tank that has a light substrate. They will take on a deeper, more intense color if they are kept in a tank with a darker substrate. The quality of the food and water pH, as well as temperature and quality, will affect how intense the color will appear.
Great for planted tanks
Dwarf shrimp LOVE planted tanks. They love the hiding space, they love the food plants engender, and they love what plants do for water chemistry. It is important to determine what your goals are with Red Cherry Shrimp. Do you want to raise one colony of adult shrimps or increase the number? There are many nano fish that will coexist with adult shrimp, but will also eat newly hatched babies. Even smaller danios, rasbora or tetras might eat babies. For this reason, it is vital to have mosses and other hiding places; or even some of the cute bamboo shrimp hotels that can easily be covered with moss. Because they clean up the debris and don’t cause damage to shrimp, smaller snails can be a great addition to the shrimp tank. The best rule for fish is to keep only fish that get no larger than about 3/4 ” as adults (chili rasboras, etc.) Or none.
Red Cherry Shrimp are not aggressive and can be active at night and day. One can often spot them grazing on algae, looking for any detritus in gravel. The shrimp will occasionally shed its exoskeleton. This leaves a husk that drifts around the plant. This husk is vitally important as the shrimp will eat it and replenish their minerals. Red Cherry Shrimp females will hide in darkness when they get close to spawning and may abandon their eggs if provoked. The more hiding places and the safer the shrimp feels, the more likely they will lay a full clutch of eggs. The size and color of Red Cherry Shrimps can help you determine their gender. Males are usually smaller and more colorful. The yellowish saddles on the backs of females are eggs in development. The Juvenile Red Cherry Shrimp can be difficult to sex until they become larger and can show some color.
Breeding Red Cherry Shrimp
It is actually fairly simple to breed Red Cherry Shrimp in the home aquarium if one pays attention to three major steps: 1) Inducing breeding, 2) Ensuring health and comfort while carrying the eggs, and 3) Raising the young. Inducing breeding can be done by keeping the water conditions stable. Shrimp need a regular food source, with higher protein foods (Repashy, Shrimp Cuisine, Fish poo, etc.) fed regularly, but at a small amount. It takes shrimp about 3-5 month to start breeding. The males are most attracted to the female after molting. The female then hides in the water and releases pheromones that attract males to her. After breeding, the female will transport the eggs beneath her, fanning them and moving them around for about 30 day. Baby shrimp are exact duplicates of the adults, but very tiny. You need to make sure that there aren’t any predators in your tank as they will easily eat a newborn shrimp. Shrimp caves and live moss are great for helping baby shrimp find food and hiding places.
Red Cherry Shrimp Feeding
Easy to feed Red Cherry Shrimp. Like many omnivores, they love variety. They will eat most any aquarium food but love shrimp pellets, algae wafers, blanched vegetables (zucchini, carrots, etc. Or try one of the exotic foods available. It is also a good idea to use some Zoo Med Plankton Banquet blocks in the tank. This keeps the shrimp active and provides spirulina, calcium, and other essential minerals.
Cholla Wood, Catappa leaves, and Cholla Wood are also great sources of food. As bacteria breaks them down, the shrimp can eat the bacteria. A few shrimp enthusiasts believe that natural bee pollen can help improve breeding. Others love the Repashy Foods which is 45% protein and a great meal for shrimp, crab, crayfish, and snails. The key to feeding shrimp is MODERATION. It is easy for too many food to be put into the tank. The tank can become very polluted. Keep in mind that shrimp can only eat a small amount of food each day. Many shrimp keepers have found success by recommending that you only feed shrimp once a week or less. Depending on the amount of shrimp and snails you have, some recommend that you remove any food left behind after two to three hours.
There are many types of dwarf shrimp. Not all can be placed in the same tank, though due to interbreeding. It is easy to watch these tiny creatures go about their daily lives, hunting for food and tending to “their” plant gardens if you just follow a few steps.
