Question regarding Triops in a planted tank  1/29/07
Hi Crew,
<Emma>
Just recently I discovered the absolutely bizarre but strangely adorable Triops
<http://www.triops.com/what.htm>
and I would love to keep them in one of my planted tanks. All the information I have found on them seems to be rather scant or contradictory - some sources say they will eat all your plants, some don't even mention it. I have also heard that they love to dig - which could be a problem as I have a topsoil underlay.
<Mmm, will dig a little... do eat soft parts of many types of plants>
Also many gallons does a fully grown Triops need? I'm talking about the smaller (2 - 4 inches, I believe) American variety.
<Please see the link above>
Is it possible to keep them with goldfish, or will they harm them?
<The larval forms will likely be consumed by the goldfish>
Thank you for all your help,
Emma
<Bob Fenner>

Crustacean for a Community Tank - 05/21/2006
Hello folks,
<Hello, Doug.>
I've been reading your articles with interest but I still am unsure about what I should do with regard to finding a suitable crustacean for my community tank.
<Someday we'll have a shrimp article up....  just (finally) wrote the thing.>
This is a freshwater tank, 20 Gallons, 2+ years old, nice and stable. Right now I have 5 Rasbora tetras, 6 cardinal tetra's and one fairly large Chinese golden algae eater (5" long). We added the Cardinals a month or so back and they are doing fine. We wanted to get some kind of crustacean to complete our community but are not sure what would be best after reading about predation of tank mates. What do you think might work in this situation?
<LOTS and LOTS of options....  Any shrimp from genera Atya, Atyopsis, Caridina, or Neocaridina....>
I had thought of a Hammers cobalt blue lobster but after reading more about it realized that it would probably be the sole tank occupant in short order.
<It would.  Stay away from any crayfish/"lobsters".  If you want something big and beefy, for a 20g tank, maybe look for Atyopsis moluccensis, the "bamboo" or "wood" shrimp.  A 20g tank is suitable for a male and a few females.  Or if you want something bright and tiny, look for "cherry" shrimp (Neocaridina denticulata sinensis v. red), "Rudolph"/"red-fronted" shrimp (Caridina gracilirostrus), or maybe "crystal red" shrimp, (Caridina sp.).  There are plenty of other small shrimp species that are less colorful, and most any would be of use here.  I do hope you are able to find a fun and pleasing pet to add!>
Thanks for your advice.  -Doug
<Glad to be of service!  Wishing you well,  -Sabrina>

Crayfish, Claws, and Complications - 04/20/2006
Hello.
<Hi.>
I am hoping this is the email I send my FAQ's to.  
<It is.>
If not, please help me figure out where I do ask the questions. :-D
<Right here, matey.>
Anyways...I have a red freshwater crayfish.  
<Probably Procambarus clarkii, if you're in the US.  These are common at pet shops, and make awesome pets.>
He is in a 55 gallon tank with: 7 guppies, 2 five inch long feeder fish, and 3 hatchet fish.  
<Do please be aware that any of these fish *might* become midnight snacks - but hopefully are "fast" enough not to get snatched up.>
I was reading through the other FAQ's to find some info on crayfish not molting.  When I got my crayfish, he molted instantly. In the process of molting, he pulled off his own claw.  
<Ouch!>
His claw then began to grow back again.  Then he/she molted again and pulled the newly grown claw off AGAIN.  
<Disconcerting....>
Now he hasn't molted for a couple months, and its claw is not growing back.  
<VERY disconcerting....>
You requested others with the same problem to add iodine to the water.
<Yes.  Urgent.>
Would that affect my other fish that are in the tank?  
<Nope.  Just use the rule of thumb I usually recommend - one drop of Kent marine iodine per ten gallons weekly.  Note that this is NOT the marine dose printed on the bottle.  In this fellow's case, for the first couple/few weeks that you do this, I'd use two drops per ten gallons, then in a few weeks, go to one drop per ten.  This won't affect your fish.>
I also don't really feed the crayfish.  
<A problem....  especially since if he's hungry, those guppies are going to start looking very tasty to him....>
He just eats the extra fish food that floats to the bottom.  
<That's good.  Also offer him bits of frozen (then thawed) raw human-consumption shrimp, preferably the tails.>
I tried feeding him uncooked bacon strips, but the guppies would eat it and keep the crayfish away.
<Don't offer any land mammal or poultry meats - not only are these bad for the Cray, but bad for the fish, too.>
Could a bad eating diet be keeping him from growing his claw too?  
<Yes.>
He sometimes eats the fish that die, but my fish don't die too frequently.  
<Probably only once, I imagine!  Dead fish are pretty much "okay" for him to eat, just not so okay to leave in the tank.>
If I should be feeding the crayfish something healthier than left over fish food, what do you recommend?  
<As above, shrimp is good, also frozen/thawed human consumption fish meats, or sinking meaty foods.  You can give him these things just after you turn the lights out so he'll have a better chance at finding it than the fish.>
How would I keep my other fish from eating the food that is meant for the crayfish?
<Whups, I jumped the gun.  Feed him just after lights-out on the tank.>
Oh yeah, just something to add in real quick.  My fish had ick recently, so I added "Kordon Rid Ich+."   Is it unhealthy for my crayfish to be in the tank when I am treating the fish for ick?  
<Yes, VERY.>
The crayfish is still alive, and the crayfish has been in the tank every time I have treated the fish for ick, so I cant imagine it being TOO harmful for the crayfish.
<It is *very* harmful for him, and may be part of the reason he's not molting well for you.  Please, please read on WWM regarding quarantine tanks - please quarantine any new livestock for two weeks minimum *before* adding them to your tank; this will keep your other fish safe from ich and you should not have to ever treat ich in your main tank again.>
Have a nice day
<You as well, thanks.>
*A crayfish owner needing help.
<-Sabrina>

More FW crustacean stocking, Shrimp  - 04/20/2006
Hello WWM Crew!!
<Hello, Don!!>
I've been reading (and enjoying) the copious information on your website and I'm very grateful that there are people such as yourselves that take the time to further (and better) the aquarium keeping hobby.  
<Thank you very, very much for these kind words.>
Now that I've gotten the accolades out of the way, on to the questions.  First off, Hi!  I'm Don!  
<Hi!  I'm Sabrina!>
My partner, Richard and I, are in the process of losing our freshwater, planted aquarium-keeping virginity.  
<Oooooh, exciting!>
So.... we have a 37 gallon, bow-front, acrylic tank that currently houses:
6 fancy guppies
6 Rasbora tetras
6 Penguin tetras
10 Neon Tetras
6 freshwater clams (I suppose they're there, I've never seen them!)
<These actually fare very, very poorly in aquariums....  They need copious amounts of free-floating algae and other micro foods to stay alive....  if they're not gone now, they will be soon, I'm afraid.  I heartily advise against getting these again.>
2 Flower Shrimp (one passed)
<Sorry to hear this!  Shrimp are my fave....>
3 (I think, but I've only seen 2 as of late) Cherry Shrimp
<The third's probably in there somewhere.>
3 Japonica shrimp
6 Otocinclus catfish (they've been miracle workers when it comes to clearing out all algae growth in our tank!!)
and various snails (I believe there are 3 Ramshorns, 3 black mystery and 6 zebra)
we have 2 medium sized pieces of natural driftwood, adorned with java moss (that has yet to take root but has been tied/anchored with peat moss)
and many many live plants.
<So far, so good, aside from that shrimp....>
Our water has a pH of 7.6 out of the tap, and in the last few days we have had a measurable ammonia concentration of approx. .25 ppm.   
<Disconcerting, but not "deadly" as yet....  do please try to bring this to zero.>
Nitrates and Nitrites remain at 0.
<Yikes!  Still cycling??>
Herein lies the issue.  I've learned from reading on this site about the cycling process that  
one should endure when setting up a new system.  We have not followed those guidelines, unfortunately, and are now likely experiencing the fallout from such rash behavior.  
<Yup.  But you're learning....  and I'm very happy for that.>
Needless to say, we have overstocked our tank (a sign of our eagerness to house and grow live  
aquaria)
<Mm, I wouldn't say you're overstocked, but stocked too much too quickly.>
and after becoming attached to our inhabitants, are doing our best to ensure their ongoing well-being.  So here's where I need a little guidance in the process.  Since the damage is pretty much done and we've overstocked our new, un-cycled tank, what measures are required to keep the aquaria we're currently  
housing, relatively healthy and un-dead, for lack of better terminology.  From what I've read on this wonderful site, water changes are pretty much par for the course and we're doing those (approx. 5 gallons a day, sometimes twice a day depending on the ammonia concentration) to keep our inhabitants as happy and healthy (not to mention un-dead) as possible.
<Perfect.>
We have also used Marineland Bio-Spira (last weekend) and are currently using Fritz-zyme Turbo 700 to hasten the cycling process and as a stop gag measure to stave off any further loss of life.
<Perfect again.>
We had a blue crawfish (Procambarus sp.)
<Yeeeeeee-ikes!  Not with the shrimp, please, nor with any slow-moving or bottom-dwelling fish - they'll all become snacks.>
and one of our japonica shrimp recently pass on (not sure if this was due to the un-cycled-ness of our tank or the trauma suffered during shipping).
<I hate to say it, but be glad for the lack of the Cray.  Crays are GREAT, but really ought to be with critters that they can't or won't hurt.  The shrimp and Otos are not in this category.>
So I suppose my formal question is:  Should we be doing as many/as frequent water changes as we are doing, in lieu of the cycling process not being completed, even though we've used the previously  
mentioned products (Bio-Spira/Fritz-Zyme Turbo Start)?
<I would, yes.>
I guess I could/should make that a little clearer...  Are we doing more harm than good by changing the water so often, or should we allow the ammonia to build to a level, just shy of tolerable for our  
tank inhabitants in order to promote bacterial growth, or should we continue with the water changes to keep the ammonia concentration at a less-than-lethal level for our overly stocked tank?  
<Though it will prolong the cycling process, keep up with the water changes....  The cycle will establish, it'll just take a little longer.>
Other issues we're grappling with are whether or not the 3" fluorite substrate has a negative affect on our invertebrate aquaria (after-all we did lose 2, I've read about copper being adverse to their livelihood and I'm not sure if fluorite is detrimental to their well-being)
<If it helps any, I've used fluorite in plenty of shrimp-containing tanks with no apparent negative results.  I would not be concerned here.  In all honesty, freshwater shrimp are not always cared for properly at stores and wholesalers; these animals may have been doomed prior to purchase.  When you buy shrimps and Crays, you should look for a certain quality of "clarity"....  Hard to describe, but once you've seen/recognized what I mean, you'll understand.  "Cloudy" shrimp should be avoided.  This "clear" vs. "cloudy" can be seen even in totally colored shrimp, like wood/fan/Singapore shrimp.... again, it's tough to explain.>
and does iodine (added as a supplement to aide our invertebrates) have any affect on the fish we're keeping?  
<Nope, not a problem at all - and of vital importance to the inverts.>
We do plan on getting another blue crayfish (Procambarus sp.) to replace our recently deceased
<I recommend strongly against this.>
and we'd like to add a few more fish (probably compatible tetras or another species you'd recommend that's compatible with the above mentioned, currently housed aquaria and more shrimp (they're too cute to resist)).  
<I bet you'd really delight in the antics of a handful of small Corydoras cats, or if you fear outbreaks of undesirable snails, a few Botia striata....>
Thanks in advance for your informative response
<Glad to be of service!>
and sincere thanks for providing a forum for all of the unlearned yet eager novices (such as myself) new to the 'trade'.
<And again, thank you VERY much for these kind words.>
Don Anderson
<All the best to you, Richard, and your new tank!  -Sabrina Fullhart>

Java fern and wood shrimp... where's that Sabrina?    1/19/06
Wow, and double wow with regards to the, very, useful forum at Wet Web Media.  In a 30 gallon tank  (pH 7.4, KH 4, no nitrates, nor ammonia).  Four month old,
natural sponge filter on a powerhead, producing decent current and bubbles. Good fluorescent light. Substrate and gravel bottom, 26 degrees Celsius. It is a fresh
water setup for, now, two wood (or flower) shrimp. Stuff seems to thrive, like Daphnia, hydra and some plants (some grass and a well established lotus that can't be stopped, cut from another tank setup).
<Neat>
  This is a second tank, because the first ten gallon has a very mean skunk loach (didn't know they come equipped with knives along the gills which to stab at Chinese
algae eater and others attempting to share space under bogwood), so now it gets it's own tank.  The first shrimp, a larger one died, but the two much smaller
ones seem to be doing fine once I started to hand feed them with microalgae via eyedropper injected into the current they filter from.
<Good technique>
They have settled, not looking for the exit, even at night.  From the many
unorganized questions about aquarium habitats, two are pressing.  I have some Java Fern and Java moss in this
tank.  Not much salt and rather soft water. Will the fern do ok in the tank -- not brackish?
<Yes, likely so. Once established, is tolerant to a broad range of conditions/environment... just a slow grower>
They look fair now, darker green, some black spots, and some
bearded algae did show up.  The second question, a more depressing situation.  That I have read up on,
including aquaculture perspectives from overseas; no one has had luck in getting these shrimp to thrive in
a closed systems.  Have you heard different? If not, why on earth are they sealing them as pets?
Mark
<Am going to send your question to Sabrina Fullhart, who knows most re this group... I do think that some of the Europeans, especially German aquarists have done better and better here. Bob Fenner>

Java fern and wood shrimp... where's that Sabrina?   1/22/06
<<In and out, hopefully mostly in for a while....>>
Wow, and double wow with regards to the, very, useful forum at Wet Web Media.  In a 30 gallon tank  (pH 7.4,
KH 4, no nitrates, nor ammonia).  Four month old, natural sponge filter on a powerhead, producing decent
current and bubbles. Good fluorescent light. Substrate and gravel bottom, 26 degrees Celsius. It is a fresh
water setup for, now, two wood (or flower) shrimp. Stuff seems to thrive, like daphnia, hydra and some
plants (some grass and a well established lotus that can't be stopped, cut from another tank setup).
<Neat>
  This is a second tank, because the first ten gallon has a very mean skunk loach (didn't know they come equipped
with knives along the gills which to stab at Chinese algae eater and others attempting to share space under
bogwood), so now it gets it's own tank.  The first shrimp, a larger one died, but the two much smaller
ones seem to be doing fine once I started to hand feed them with microalgae via eyedropper injected into the current they filter from.
<Good technique>
<<To be quite honest with you, I have only once seen truly healthy wood shrimp in an aquarium store....  And that was at Ocean Aquarium in San Francisco - Justin's tanks are nicer than any of mine will ever be.  Happy shrimp.  Uhh, the point I'm trying to make here is that it is VERY hit-or-miss whether you can rehabilitate newly purchased wood shrimp....  I would say you have a 50/50 chance of your newly-purchased Atyopsis living past a week.  If you can get 'em past their first moult and they end up with a less "foggy" look, you're probably in the clear.  I urge you to quickly get some sinking food that breaks into a "powder" in a short time after sinking - any/all freshwater filter-feeding shrimp will dip their "fans" into this powdered food and gobble it greedily.>>
They have settled, not looking for the exit, even at night.  From the many
unorganized questions about aquarium habitats, two are pressing.  I have some Java Fern and Java moss in this
tank.  Not much salt and rather soft water. Will the fern do ok in the tank -- not brackish?
<Yes, likely so. Once established, is tolerant to a broad range of conditions/environment... just a slow grower>
They look fair now, darker green, some black spots, and some bearded algae did show up.  The second question, a
more depressing situation.  That I have read up on, including aquaculture perspectives from overseas; no
one has had luck in getting these shrimp to thrive in a closed systems.  Have you heard different? If not,
why on earth are they sealing them as pets?
Mark
<Am going to send your question to Sabrina Fullhart, who knows most re this group... I do think that some of the Europeans, especially German aquarists have done better and better here. Bob Fenner>
<<These are very easy animals to care for if you observe a few key points - iodine, food, hidey-holes, and "clear" or "uncluttered" space.  Unless you do VERY frequent water changes, I recommend you add iodine to the aquarium - I use Kent marine iodine, at a rate of one drop per ten gallons every week - notice that this is NOT the marine dose!!  Regarding food....  Most folks are duped by the term "filter" feeder into thinking that these animals will get what they need right out of the water of our aquaria.  Not so, as you obviously know!  Feeding with microalgae, though certainly helpful, is likely not enough for them, unless it's constantly in the water in a high volume....  They really need a lot of food.  I've had a single wood shrimp completely clear a 70 gallon aquarium in which everything was covered by a fluffy diatom algae - in just a few days.  You could literally see the paths in the algae left by the animal.  Crazy.  Tetra makes a sinking tablet food that breaks into a fine dust; this is a very useful food item for them.  Larger wood shrimps or their giant African Atya cousins (A. gabonensis, A. "camarunensis"....) will be delighted with the smallest forms of the Marineland foods or Hikari's micro-pellets.  Do keep in mind that some of these animals are very secretive and like to be hidden.  Make sure there are plenty of spaces where they can pile up on or near each other in close confines.  A pile of driftwood or a piece of slate leaned against the back wall in the corner of an aquarium will please these guys.  And uncluttered space....  I sometimes think these beautiful fan-handed lovelies are as dumb as stumps.  They can really get "freaked out" by a lot of plant cover or just "stuff" in general that gets in their way.  They'll grow accustomed to it eventually, but try to let the bumbling beasties have some empty space to roam around, and try to feed them in that space.  It'd be nice if that space opened out right in front of their hidey-hole(s).  All in all, they can live for quite some time - my Atyas stuck around for some years, even carried eggs (though I never found young).  They're really quite interesting to watch, especially in groups.  A couple males to a handful of females is perhaps best.  One male will grow very large and display dominance - it's funny to see them "battle"; with no weapons, two sparring shrimp will "face-off" by walking headlong into one another and trying to climb each other.  Whoever gets bored and wanders off loses; the other is the winner.  They make excellent and fascinating aquarium pets, as long as their needs are met.  Wishing you well,  -Sabrina>>

    Dear sir,
I realize that you have done good work on aquarium prawns and shrimps.     1/22/06
I also have some interest in this area.  Would you please share your information on the prawns and shrimps in aquarium trade.  How far this venture is successful?
<Mmm, for ornamentals? Am sending your query to Sabrina Fullhart, who is most learned re this field amongst us. Cheers, Bob Fenner>
  <<For what it's worth, I have seen much growing interest in freshwater aquarium shrimp....  From tiny Neocaridina and Caridina to the largest Macrobrachium, these guys are really "taking off" in the US.  Macrobrachium
rosenbergii, which we tend to buy pre-killed by the pound for eating, can be purchased in pet-fish stores for ten to fifteen dollars for an individual. Other species (perhaps a dozen or two species of about six genera) sell from a dollar or so apiece up to perhaps twenty dollars each, depending upon how "common" and "desirable" they are in the US aquarium trade.  In Europe, I believe there are many more species available.  A handful of years back, there were maybe only two or three shrimp species available in the US, so interest has definitely grown....  and hopefully will continue to do so.  
There are so very many incredible animals out there that haven't even made their way to the US yet - even some US natives (Macrobrachium ohione, for one - what a beauty!) that nobody has yet brought to the pet-fish trade
here.  I hope to see this interest (and demand for more and more interesting species) continue to grow.  All the best to you,  -Sabrina>>
    thank you very much,
    sincerely,
    Dr. k v  Jayachandran
    college of fisheries, Kerala agricultural university
    cochin 682 506, Kerala State, India

FW Shrimp culture  1/17/06
   Dear sir,
   I realize that you have done good work on aquarium prawns and shrimps.  I also have some interest in this area.  Would you please share your information on the prawns and shrimps in aquarium trade.  How far this venture is successful?
<Mmm, for ornamentals? Am sending your query to Sabrina Fullhart, who is most learned re this field amongst us. Cheers, Bob Fenner>
   thank you very much,
   sincerely,
   Dr. k v  Jayachandran
   college of fisheries, Kerala agricultural university
   cochin 682 506, Kerala State, India

Compatibility of FW crustaceans with fishes  12/30/2005
Hello I have a couple of questions First I have a 40 gallon freshwater fish tank setup and it has been running for about a month. I have in the
tank a red tail shark, 8 tiger barbs, 1 clown Pleco, 3 golden barbs and 3 blue coral Gourami dwarf . I don't want to add any more fish but I was thinking I wanted to add a couple Singapore Flower Shrimp and may be a Hammer Cobalt Blue Lobster. So my questions are A) will the shrimp be safe with the fish that I have?
<Likely so, yes... as long as it has some hiding spaces... dense plants, rock caves... to get out of the way during molts>
B) If I was to get the lobster would my fish be safe with the lobster?
<Not if the lobster is hungry... if kept well-fed, perhaps. Bob Fenner>