Ghost shrimp colony in tank

jharte · 10/18/2010, 10:52 AM

Hello all, I am new and glad to be apart of the forum. About two months ago, I added some ghost shrimp to my saltwater tank to see if any of my fish would eat them out of curiosity. Well my clownfish ate about three, but left the rest untouched. I figured the ghost shrimp would simply die due to the change from saltwater to freshwater but instead they lived and began cleaning the tank. There are now about twenty ghost shrimp currently living in my tank and have seem to be doing just fine. I am not sure whether or not to remove them. Thanks in advance for any advice...

lordofthereef · 10/18/2010, 11:29 AM

This is peculiar. I too would have thought that they would die. You sure they were freshwater ghost shrimp?

acpoweradapter · 10/18/2010, 02:26 PM

Interesting.. Do you have a picture?

allsps40 · 10/18/2010, 02:47 PM

Ghost shrimp are brackish so they will live in fresh or salt water. So will mollies, ever see a reef with a few cool mollies in it? Its kind of neat. The ghost shrimp will not hurt any corals so they are reef safe, but some fish may eat them. When I lived in Long Island you could net ghost shrimp by the hundreds. I worked for a LFS and we sold them as feeders. Kept them the the marine system. I serviced several reef tanks that would be fed the shrimp and many old live and do very well in the reef. You should post up some pics of your tank and the shrimp.

jharte · 10/18/2010, 05:03 PM

Ok I just home and took a quick picture with my phone on a few of them gathered in the corner of the tank. If you look closely you can see that two of them are pregnant which I would believe to be a sign of the shrimp doing well.

Whisperer · 10/18/2010, 05:51 PM

Ghost shrimps are tougher than what most people think. I catch them from my dock all the time and just toss them in the tank without acclimation and they do just fine. They get spooked easily and jump out. But yes, they can be kept in the sw tank without predators. Cardinals and wrasses love them.

zachfishman · 10/18/2010, 07:53 PM

Neato, just keep an eye on them to make sure they don't start picking on any corals like my peppermint shrimp did.

Kyuss · 04/17/2011, 10:11 PM

Mmmmm trigger snacks.

Moort82 · 04/18/2011, 01:02 AM

They do have a much shorter life expectancy in salt water but if your using them for food it won't really matter.

10/18/2010, 10:52 AM	#1
jharte Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Maine Posts: 52	Ghost shrimp colony in tank Hello all, I am new and glad to be apart of the forum. About two months ago, I added some ghost shrimp to my saltwater tank to see if any of my fish would eat them out of curiosity. Well my clownfish ate about three, but left the rest untouched. I figured the ghost shrimp would simply die due to the change from saltwater to freshwater but instead they lived and began cleaning the tank. There are now about twenty ghost shrimp currently living in my tank and have seem to be doing just fine. I am not sure whether or not to remove them. Thanks in advance for any advice...

10/18/2010, 11:29 AM	#2
lordofthereef One reef to rule them all Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Leominster, MA Posts: 5,299	This is peculiar. I too would have thought that they would die. You sure they were freshwater ghost shrimp? __________________ "A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself" ~ Josh Billings Visit My Home page for current build thread (click my user name and select "Visit LordoftheReef's Homepage" in the drop down menu!

10/18/2010, 05:51 PM	#6
Whisperer Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Punta Gorda, FL Posts: 4,020	Ghost shrimps are tougher than what most people think. I catch them from my dock all the time and just toss them in the tank without acclimation and they do just fine. They get spooked easily and jump out. But yes, they can be kept in the sw tank without predators. Cardinals and wrasses love them. __________________ The bitterness of poor quality lingers long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten. --------- No one is born with intellect and age guarantees wisdom to no one. Current Tank Info: 120G reef, 30G sump, 10G QT tank

10/18/2010, 07:53 PM	#7
zachfishman Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: St Petersburg, FL Posts: 3,577	Neato, just keep an eye on them to make sure they don't start picking on any corals like my peppermint shrimp did. __________________ Patience is a reefer's best tool. Secret Xenia lover. M.S. Marine Biology Staff - Marine Discovery Center, St. Petersburg FL Tampa Bay Reef Club BOD 2018 Current Tank Info: 34g modded Solana

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10/18/2010, 02:26 PM	#3
acpoweradapter Registered Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Alabama Posts: 527	Interesting.. Do you have a picture?

10/18/2010, 02:47 PM	#4
allsps40 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Arizona Posts: 4,627	Ghost shrimp are brackish so they will live in fresh or salt water. So will mollies, ever see a reef with a few cool mollies in it? Its kind of neat. The ghost shrimp will not hurt any corals so they are reef safe, but some fish may eat them. When I lived in Long Island you could net ghost shrimp by the hundreds. I worked for a LFS and we sold them as feeders. Kept them the the marine system. I serviced several reef tanks that would be fed the shrimp and many old live and do very well in the reef. You should post up some pics of your tank and the shrimp.

04/17/2011, 10:11 PM	#8
Kyuss Megistered Rember Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 470	Mmmmm trigger snacks.

04/18/2011, 01:02 AM	#9
Moort82 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Norfolk, England Posts: 1,576	They do have a much shorter life expectancy in salt water but if your using them for food it won't really matter.