[Jumbotummy]

Hi guys, I've been having some problems with my amano shrimp lately. I have a glass canopy over the whole tank, the only opening I have is for my filter, today when I got home, I found 2 amano shrimp dry on the floor... and last friday I found a dead amano, sitting next to my tank, dry...I don't know how these guys escaped, what else could I do to keep them in?
Have you ever had amano shrimp escape your tank?

tank specs:
standard 10 gallon tank
1 bag eco-complete gravel
pH: 7
ammonia and nitrites: 0
nitrates: 5

Thanks
-Jumbo

 

[Jumbotummy]

Oh yea forgot, they're the only fish in the 10 gallon tank right now, I had 5 of them, now only 2...

 

[csfish]

Hi Jumbo,
I have a mix of amano, ghost and other shrimp and haven't had any escape like yours. On the other hand, I've had ghost shrimp hitch rides on plants, driftwood, and rocks that I've taken out of tanks while I'm re-scaping. I usually find them in time on the kitchen table or the floor when I clean up, but a few, unfortunatley, have escaped unnoticed- I'll find a shrimp dust-ball on the floor nearby a few days later.
A few things might be useful to know about your tank... What's the temperature of your water? Is your water soft or hard? Do you use any plant fertilizers that contain copper or iron or have you used any medications in this tank previously that might affect shrimp? Is there enough algae in your tank or do you have to supplement their diet? Since nothing's preying on your shrimp, I can't think of much else that would make yours walk....

 

[hipchack]

hey jumbo,
sorry to hear about your amano. they can be some exspensive little buggers. To prevent more shrimp from jumping out though you could lower your water level to where the shrimp can't really reach the glass. I do not know how feasible this idea is with your setup. You can also use ceram wrap to seal up any leftover holes.

But to figure out why the shrimp are jumping in the first place, other than the questions previously asked, how old is your tank? The shrimp might feel uncomfortable with a new tank too. Although, my only experience is that they love planted tanks as compared to the lfs.

david

 

[unirdna]

Jumbo,

Don't know what to tell ya. My specs are similar to yours (although my tank is larger), and none of my shrimp make a run for the border. They have many potential escape places.....just don't use em. Given that it is not your water conditions that are making them want to leave, all I can think of is that your tank doesn't feel safe to them. Is it heavily planted?

 

[anonapersona]

Injecting CO2? they don't like it too high.

 

[Jumbotummy]

ok, I came home today and my last 2 shrimp are still in there. phew, no more suicides yet.

My 10 gallon tank is pretty planted, I have Java ferns, java moss, Ludwigia repens, some Rotala indica, anubias nana, water sprite, and hairgrass, which is slowly growing. I guess thats lot of plants.kH and gH are both at 5°, my temp set at 75° F. What test kits do I need? I have a Freshwater Master test Kit right now, and I got a nitrate test kit, from the same company. I don't add any fertilizers, yet cause I dont know what other test kits I need.Tank is about 1 month old, got my shrimp on march 27. these amano shrimp...

Hmm.. :?

 

[csfish]

Hi Jumbo,
Since your tank is relatively new, planted with little nitrates and not much bioload, you probably don't have much algae in there either.... Are you feeding your shrimp anything? Maybe an algae wafer now and then will keep your shrimp around and alive. You could probably start adding some fish- that will help feed your plants with their waste products and also help create "some" algae for your shrimp to chow on.

 

[Walter W]

To prevent the shrimp from getting out keep the water level a few inches away from the top of the aquarium. I have done this and haven't lost one for five months.

 

[Jumbotummy]

OK I'm guessing it probably is because I don't have algae in the tank.
tomrrow to the fish store I go!