[JJ09]

Here's how my shrimp jar looked last week:

Then I dropped in some elodea pieces the shrimps have been picking over-

there's lots of shells from snails Laddie has eaten. I always thought my water was plenty hard enough, but funny I saw the first molted shrimp exoskeletons after I started dropping in ramshorn shells.

Um, I added a few pieces of parrot's feather. it's real nice to see feathery green foliage filling the bowl- and happy shrimps crawling all over it- but maybe a bit alarming how fast it grows. This piece on the left with folded up top, unfurled and shot taller than the nearby mermaid weed in one day.

I'm torn between loving its ferny appearance and vigor, and fearing I will regret having bought it, haha.

Topside- last week:

few days ago:

now:

 

[Streetwise]

Beautiful tank! For some reason, I want sashimi now.

Cheers

 

[JJ09]

I took the tiny sponge filter out of my shrimp bowl to drop in the tetras' QT which is unfortunately still in mini-cycle. And then while I was at it took all the plants out (putting the shrimps in a container with all the floaters and some subwassertang meanwhile) and rearranged everything.

My idea was to have the largest plants grouped center on and around rocks, with subwassertang tucked in a ring around the edges, so that which ever way I rotate the bowl (to keep the plants in there from leaning all one direction) there's something interesting as focal point.

One side has the mermaid weed and parrot's feather

The biggest rock has buce on it-

Some new tiny leaves grew! but look a bit pale. I need to cut off that lower leaf- looks like BBA started to edge

I think the anubias has grown quite a lot-

Replanting the rotala stems made them so short they kinda got lost in the subwassertang-

Final touch was tucking a few leaves in

Topside:

I was a bit concerned how the shrimps would do without a filter running- and they hid for the first few hours after reintroduction so it's hard to tell. But now are out and about again, look just fine. Some of the plants were even pearling.

I feel like the jar has a more wild (or cluttered) look to it now

I'm not perfectly happy with it though. I'd rather see the smaller stems more, and I think the extra rock and sponge pieces take up too much space- I kept them in there to avoid loosing bacteria and drop into a cycle. Might rescape again and pull more things out, but I'll wait and see how the parrot's feather and mermaid weed do after more time, first . . .

 

[Discusluv]

Nice-- I like it alot!

 

[JJ09]

Thank you!

 

[JJ09]

Relocated my shrimp bowl upstairs to the bedroom. Its spot was needed by QT tank, and I kind of miss having a tank in my room. Easiest tank move ever- I just picked the whole thing up and carried it. Didn't need to remove any water or livestock!

Upstairs is a few degrees warmer in winter, which will be good for the shrimps too. It's always fun to see them crawling around upsidedown on the duckweed root hairs! I think this jar must be rather old- the glass is thick and a bit hazy.

Not sure how the light exposure here compares to the spot it was in before- it's indirect bright light as well but could be different enough- have to wait and see how the plants do.

For a while it was completely no tech (the miniature sponge filter being used in QT). Everything was still alive, however the shrimps very lethargic. They'd wave a feeler, pick at food- but as if in slow motion. So I put in an airstone, with a valve to keep the flow gentle (and it's quiet enough doesn't disturb my sleep).

Immediately the shrimps became lively and active again. Here's one under an anubias leaf.

Another on the pink buce rock-

Both in the same shot-

Another benefit of moving the shrimp jar- all the other tanks are on the same floor but this one, so I'm less likely to overfeed, more likely to leave them to pick at algae and debris. Which is better overall for the jar, I think.

 

[JJ09]

Um, since the last post I've rearranged my shrimp jar twice. First it was like this for a while:

The centerpiece rock with buce was sitting on top of two pieces of sponge. Elodea- started to grow out of stem bits I had dropped in to feed the shrimps, so I stuck them in the substrate.

Still had some pieces of mermaid weed and parrot's feather (faltering):

Rotalas were grown up just enough to be more visible-

Week or so ago I trimmed back the lower part of my arrowhead stems - these have lived in a jar of water for a long time- part of my houseplant collection- and cut a hole in a strip of plastic, and put the bunch over the shrimp jar.

Then I rearranged stuff again. Had prepped ten pounds of safe-t-sorb to refresh substrates; after I used it in the other aquariums the small amount left over went in here. I lifted out everything, caught the shrimps put them in a glass box with their sponges and leaf litter and loose things, scattered in the substrate, replanted a few stems, resituated everything and returned the shrimps.

I mostly wanted to put the buce rock on top of a few other rocks, instead of on the sponges. It stays higher in the jar, and makes a little cave space underneath. I think the shrimps appreciate- they were fighting over the cave soon as I returned them to the jar! At least, I saw two go under, then a flurry of little shrimp legs in the shadow, then one scurried out and crept under a leaf. I've taken out the parrot's feather but there are still a few pieces of mermaid weed doing okay:

I can see my shrimps better now! The substrate was lower than the upper curve of the base before, so usually walking around on the bottom they were kinda hidden. Now the substrate is a bit higher, just at the curve, so I can watch them poking around-

My kid came in and saw the tray of stuff I hadn't put away yet, and I showed her the new rock cave in the shrimp jar. She said "nooo, the shrimps need their spongie! You have to give them back their spongies! It's so funny to see them crawl on it floating and fall down." I laughed and shrugged and showed her how they can still cling to duckweed or elodea bits at surface and float down. They do that often and it's always amusing.

 

[JJ09]

shrimp on buce on rock

Almost got this photo in focus-

and then the shrimp started to crawl away

 

[JJ09]

My one-and-a-half gallon planted shrimp bowl is still in the bedroom. Some plants didn't make it through winter- java fern died and the little sprigs of rotala look pathetic. Elodea even worse. I pulled them out. Instead, put in some bolbitis tied onto bits of wood and stone, from my window tank (where it was ready for a trim!)

Bolbitis does fine in my kid's unheated snail bowl in the other room, so I figured would do okay in here, too.

Still have a few stems of mermaid weed- they don't look great, but not dead yet.

Anubias has been very happy in here. It's grown so much I need to shift the rock stack/ shrimp cave over,

as some of the anubias leaves press against the glass-

Buce is really happy too (photo not at the best angle though). I ought to try a few more buce in here.

Ramshorn snails have started multiplying-

There's some very tiny ones-

And I still have four amano shrimp- although they scurried around with such excitement when I added something new- the bolbitis- that I could hardly get a picture.

I really thought the rotalas and elodea would grow tall and the subwassertang fill in spaces with green fluff. I think the rotalas and java fern suffered because of low nutrients, but I wonder if the subwassertang and elodea got picked apart by the shrimps? Thinking to try a few of the small crypts in here, see how they do.

 

[JJ09]

Gave my shrimps each a flake.

This one perched in the bolbitis fern eating its share for quite a while.

 

[JJ09]

I had to move my shrimp jar

Slept very well one night, and woke up to notice the room was very quiet. The little usb pump quit working. My first thought was to run downstairs and check that the other usb pumps were still running- just fine, sponge filters bubbling away on all the front room tanks. Only this one died. I think it burned out because I had a valve on to throttle most of the airflow and didn't have a bleed on it. So moved the jar to the plant bench next to my 45 and ran it off the large pump that powers the bigger tank, with a splitter.

Shrimps are just fine. Easy move again- just scooped out three-fourths of the water into a bucket, picked up and carried the jar with all its inhabitants and plants, then poured the water back in over my hand.

Funny to have my smallest tank next to my largest! It's not in a good spot for viewing, though. Not enjoying looking at it, can't really admire the antics of the shrimps. They blend in so well, hard to see when it's in this spot.

I want to put it back on the coffee table by the window where the 20H is, but only after that one's done being used...

 

[JJ09]

Moved the shrimps out earlier this week. Two each in larger tanks- 10g and 33L. See the other threads. Now this jar just has snails, for the time being.

 

[JJ09]

prepare for many photos as I was happy to take them:

Tore down my 20H the other day (all black skirt tetras finally got re-homed) and then relocated my 1.5 gallon jar back to the front room into the vacated spot. It's much better admired here.

From straight side view it looks rather sparse-

(but can see the greater duckweed has longer roots! It really does prefer motionless water)

As I usually look down on it at this angle, don't mind much-

but also hope now it's in better light again, the bolbitis might grow more- there's a new fiddlehead in center if you look close

I had to retie the buces which didn't hold well onto the rock- most are with fishing line now. So their profile is lower again

the anubias is doing great- I even had to trim out some leaves

The small crypts I planted in here just to see- they did okay

but there's only one stem of mermaid weed and that still small

Plenty of snails in here- mostly ramshorns, lately I've been picking out the few trumpet snails I still find-

and they're (of course) reproducing- here's a tiny baby

a barely visible curl

 

[JJ09]

I think I forgot to mention, this bowl had been sans shrimps for a while. Just snails. It's been kinda boring. Nothing tall but that one piece of mermaid weed.

Then recently (several weeks ago) I moved two amanos back in. They seem to do fine so far without an airline.

Of the plants- Anubias is doing great-

has a new leaf shoot

Small crypts I planted in here are doing well, too

What's not is the bolbitis fern (against my expectations). And I'd rather have more tall, ferny stuff like the mermaid weed. So I pulled out a piece of the bolbitis on wood, and planted in here a few stems of the scraggly parrot's feather, taken out of the 33L. This pic before that- a bit of duckweed stuck in the mermaid weed. Thinking of composting all the greater duckweed and trying frogbit as floaters, instead.

Due a bit of a rescape, maybe- mostly just to keep me interested- which would just be shifting the rock that has buce on it, to clear out the cave space for the shrimps, and pulling more bolbitis to make room in the center for more parrot's feather or mermaid weed stems. As those aren't doing great in the 33L anyway, and removing them from there will make room for the temple compacta, which is nicely coloring up now, I've been trimming/replanting its tops...

another view of the bowl-

 

[JJ09]

Time for a few updates- from 03 May 2021-
Added some pieces of parrot's feather from the 33L

and bits of buces that weren't doing well in the other tanks (after I cut the algae-spotted leaves off)

Trimmed and re-tied buce 'selena' where it was trailing off this rock

which I just realized looks rather like a potato in there (haha)

On the other side, anubias is still the focal point

- 17 May 2021-
Added a sprig of creeping jenny in the middle. Just to see how it does.

Still just two shrimps in here- but I just got a second bowl! found the exact same gallon-and-a-half bowl/vase/whatever at a thrift shop. Now I'm thinking of soaking safe-t-sorb with ferts again, divvying up the plants between the two bowls with obviously a rescape in this one- and moving the other pair of amanos out of my ten gallon into the new bowl. Trying to picture in my head which combinations of the plants would look nicest in each bowl- thinking to have fewer species in each, with a better arrangement. Less is more?

 

[JJ09]

Here's my second jar. Right now it's just got prepped safe-t-sorb substrate, a piece of dragon stone and some plants- anubias, a few small buces, a scrap of parrot's feather and elodea stem that came loose in the other jar. I dropped a handful of snails in there, and thought they were doing fine because I see them crawling around. But then I found two dried up out on the bench. Tested the water few days ago- sure glad I did. It's not cycled. High nitrite, a bit of ammonia at 0.25 ppm and over 40 nitrates. Tested again daily, Nitrite is dropping but not clear yet. I can't put shrimp in there now. I'll add more plants (maybe that clump of vallisneria in the vase next to it) and bits of food for the snails that are toughing it out (kind of amazing what those pond snails can withstand), but the shrimps have to wait.

 

[JJ09]

Second jar finally cycled. I planted the vals in there. Funny, I don't really like how these vals look in my main aquarium, but I find them interesting in the small jar.

From above:

I have them both on the same table in main room downstairs, now. First jar on the left, new one on the right.

First one hasn't changed much:

Each jar has just two amano shrimp now (and there are none in my aquariums with fish).

Camera didn't want to focus on this one

They're also kind of my snail reservoir. First jar has ramshorn snails, second one has the pond snails. (I do see trumpet snails reappearing in my angelfish tank now the festivums are gone, but the snail numbers are quickly dropping in the 33L- paradise fish has yes, been eating them. As expected. More algae on the back glass, fewer snails visible, plenty of empty white shells littering the substrate).

 

[JJ09]

My planted jars have been doing okay- even though somewhat ignored lately. I am down to only two amano shrimp now

and they're in the second jar, which has somehow become my favorite. It looks like this now.

Buces are doing well in here, but ugh, I need to trim off some of those older anubias leaves

I hadn't noticed until just recently, that my little patch of corkscrew vals is getting thin. Some of it's been dying off. I think I need to add a few more shrimp to make waste, or put plant food in (haven't done that in a long time)

Mermaid weed is scrawny too. Wavy in this picture from the old thick glass.

Same with the bitty snail pic!

My other jar (the first one) only has snails living in it now. I like the overhead view. Crypts, buces, and one anubias.

From the side it's rather boring-

I am dithering over whether to keep this one going or not