Tharsis' 10G Shrimp Tank ~4/6/12~ RIP

[tharsis]

Current FTS 1/31/12 LEDs added



FTS 1/11/12



FTS 1/4/12 - removed actinics



FTS 1/2/12 - snowday rescape!



FTS 11/6/11



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Got some shrimps today!! WOoohooOO! Some CRS and firereds from Alaizabelle.

I put them in a 10 gallon tank that has been cycling for a couple weeks.

Using a HOB filter stuffed with polyfil,

odyssea 20" 4 bulb fixture (2 x 10000K and 2 x actinics) that was used on a retired reef tank. I figured I will give it a try, the blue actinics took awhile to get used to.

Potting soil, capped with sand blasting sand.

Plants:
Hygro polysperma
Hygro difformis
Hygro angustifolia
Rotala rotundifolia
limno sessiflora
Blyxa Japonica
Brazilian pennywort
Fissidens Fontanus
Subwassertang (came with the shrimp)

Not happy with the scape yet, it is still a work in progress.

But the shrimp are already showing great coloring. Here are a ton of pics I just took.

[zachary908]

Nice to see you jump on the shrimp bandwagon, Tharsis! Nice photos, and great looking shrimp!

[tharsis]

Thanks!

I couldn't resist the lure of the shrimp, and I must say I am already amazed by them!

[PinoyBoy]

Great looking tank. The scape looks familiar, but it might just be deja vu. One of the few tanks that I think it looks good with white sand.

[tharsis]

Thanks! It is a fairly generic looking scape at the moment (IMO) so it is no surprise it looks familar

I need to spice it up a little to make it unique. I think I may take out the wood on the right and replace it with a different piece.

I have always been a fan of white sand although I must admit it is all I know since I have never used anything else. It is a pain to keep clean but I tend to think it makes for a more natural looking tank.

[Daximus]

Your tank looks great! Love the sand, love the shrimp! Makes me want to paint my ghost shrimp, lol. Hey, what plant is that down front, right side?

(I'm new, don't know my plants at all)

[tharsis]

Haha, time to get out the tiny paintbrushes, you should try for polkadots!

That plant is Brazilian Pennywort, it grows quite quickly. It is the 1st time I have tried it out and I like how it is growing, it sends out lots of offshoots, pretty neat plant.

[tharsis]

I just spent the last half hour trying to get some good pics of the shrimp.

ISO - 200
f-stop - 2.8
shutter speed - 1/100

Still kinda grainy but I think this is as good as it gets with this camera (Canon Powershot A710 IS)

If anyone has any other tips on getting better quality pics (other than getting a better camera) let me know



I discovered I have leaches in the substrate

[tharsis]

I was just sucking out some snails and look what I found!



Looks like I have a momma! That was quick
I am assuming that she is berried...

The shrimp are doing well. They seem to be quite happy picking away at the fissidens and the wood. As you can see I also have a MAJOR snail infestation. I have been putting in a zucchini every night and pulling it out in the morning completely covered in the little buggers. But the numbers a slowly dwindling.

Here is an FTS...not much change, the plants are growing very slow, no CO2 and no dosing. I still want to change out the piece of wood on the right, I would love to have a big rock pile or something.

[zachary908]

The pictures are great, man! Congrats on the berry as well. I too have a horde of snails in my shrimp tank, ha! I actually leave most of the big ones though, every now and then I net out the little ones.

I think I have some pictures that show my snails in my OEBT journal. :hihi

[tharsis]

Thanks! Yeah the snails are a real pain but I am leaving the big ones as well, probably a bad idea.

Gonna go check out your OEBT journal

[tharsis]

So I was just checking out the berried shrimp, She looked fine, picking away at the wood but the underside of her belly was spasming (this is the only way I can describe it...maybe rippling?), anyways is this normal?

[haddaj04]

It's probably her fanning the eggs. Btw, your tank looks awesome!

[zachary908]

Yeah, I agree. She is most likely just fanning her eggs, which is completely normal.

[jweis]

I have those darn leeches too. Mine look just like yours. The only thing I think they have killed are my mystery snails. Although it is possible that the mystery snails died for other reasons and the leeches were just feasting on their dead bodies. Yuk!

Your tank and shrimp look great.