[Martin_G]

When my females drop newborns, I usually see little "white dots" swimming for a short while or immediately go into hiding.

Tonight while checking my shrimp out I noticed 2-3 critters (possibly shrimp) walking around on a rock I made into a shrimp cave .

These "things" are just too small to see with any detail so I don't know if they're baby shrimp or not. Instead of being white or translucent, they have a color thats noticeable on the rock and it might be grayish.

Size wise, they're about the size of the tip of a ballpoint pen. I have seen them once before, and I'd probably bet they're baby shrimp, but the babies I have seen before were swimmers. When any size shrimp approach them they just keep walking around.



Sound like anything to be concerned about?



Thanks,

Marty

 

[Newman]

if they are not shrimp then they are water mites.
in a few weeks you'll definitely know if your females released the babies. they'll be grow enough to comfortable see them by then.

 

[diwu13]

When you are feeding see if the little dots swim over to the food or crawl over. Baby shrimps are able to swim shortly after birth. Is the current in your tank on the strong side or barely any current? Stronger current makes babies crawl more.

 

[Newman]

newborn cherry shrimp are not dots btw, they have a distinct shrimp shape if you take a close look. white specks are water mites...

 

[Martin_G]

My tank has a little current from the "water return" from the filter. The larger shrimp, both adults and large juvies sometimes swim "through" the current as if playing some sort of game, however, I have noticed the smaller juvies and newborns mostly avoid it.

Last night after I wrote this post I got to thinking....this is only the second time I've seen them ,and it was within a couple hours of one of my females dropping young in the immediate area.

The first time was also right after a shrimp dropped young but I had forgotten about that part. I am going to keep a close eye on everything and see what happens and go from there!


BTW, how would I have gotten mites ? I do frequent WC's of about 45% to 55% each time (about 1 x 7 days), and I don't overfeed

How do I determine what kind they are and if they are harmful?

And is there a way to get rid of them?

Thanks,

Marty


PS: In all the years I've had aquariums I never had "unusual" critters like mites, although this is the first time I've ever kept shrimp.

 

[diwu13]

I think the shrimp themselves might carry the mites or something. Or they might be in a hardened form attached to plants. I randomly had a bunch of cyclops appear and ever since have not been able to get rid of them. When you keep fish with shrimp they will eat the cyclops and other small critters in your tank so that might be why you have never noticed them. To tell what you have you can use this great sticky: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/shrimp-other-invertebrates/40061-whats-bug-how-recognize-them.html

Also, I would not recommend doing repeated large water changes. If it is a shrimp only tank you will not have to worry about ammonia buildup from their poop alone as the plants will readily use it up. I see that most people on this forum do 10 to 20% a week. I will personally do around 7% twice a week. The large water changes will cause drastic changes in the temperature, pH, and hardness which may lead to deaths/less babies.

 

[Martin_G]

My tank was a fish only tank, then fish & shrimp (cardinal,neon tetras + CPD's) then went to shrimp only.

I know the shrimp eat snails in the tank. Will they eat these mites and are they harmful to the shrimp?


Unlike dogs I'm glad shrimp can't get fleas unless these are the freshwater version of them!

 

[diwu13]

My tank was a fish only tank, then fish & shrimp (cardinal,neon tetras + CPD's) then went to shrimp only.

I know the shrimp eat snails in the tank. Will they eat these mites and are they harmful to the shrimp?


Unlike dogs I'm glad shrimp can't get fleas unless these are the freshwater version of them!

I am pretty sure your fish was eating the little critters before so you couldn't see them. From what I know the shrimp will only eat dead snails. I guess if they were THAT hungry, but shrimp are scavengers and not hunters. They will not eat the mites/cyclops in the tank. The cyclops are definitely not harmful to the shrimp. If you are able to identify what the mites really are in the link I previously posted you would be able to find out if they are harmful or not. You could be lucky and the mites might just be baby shrimp

 

[Martin_G]

I was looking at the "dots" moving about as if I was half-nuts (by now 100% nuts LOL!) and I saw a larger "oval" looking critter moving about that was DEFINITELY NOT a shrimp!

Now,I wasn't able to see if it had any hairs or antennae hanging off it, plus it wasn't readily obvious which was the front or rear until it moved. I'm wondering if the smaller critters are this creature's babies.

I did look at the link you posted but I didn't recognize any pics.

 

[GeToChKn]

I was looking at the "dots" moving about as if I was half-nuts (by now 100% nuts LOL!) and I saw a larger "oval" looking critter moving about that was DEFINITELY NOT a shrimp!

Now,I wasn't able to see if it had any hairs or antennae hanging off it, plus it wasn't readily obvious which was the front or rear until it moved. I'm wondering if the smaller critters are this creature's babies.

I did look at the link you posted but I didn't recognize any pics.

Could be a scud? Looks sort of like a water potatoe bug? They are harmless to shrimp I believe rand actually related to them.

 

[Martin_G]

The smaller ones are harder to determine exactly what they are but I did see one larger critter about a 1/16" of an inch that looked exactly like the potato bugs we found as kids in rotten wood but are much smaller!

Are these "potato bug" critters dangerous to my shrimp? BTW, how did the tank get these "bugs" in the first place?


If I was leave the substrate in the tank and move everything to a new tank (plants, filter, shrimp & water) and add new substrate, would this get rid of the "pest critter" problems?

And since the filter has the good bio-critters in it, and the water is basically the same, as are the plants, does the tank have to go through the process of "stabilization" again?

 

[Newman]

the water mites are usually just detritivores and wont damage your shrimp so dont worry.
they kinda look like tiny opaque bubble-things, you cannot really see their legs or anything other than their body until you get them under the scope.

They often get introduced with plants just like snails do. they are just unsightly if there is a bloom of them, but that's about it. There are predatory mites that gang up on living animals and kill them but if yours were that kind, you would have had no shrimp in your tank to begin with.

 

[shrimpzoo]

The smaller ones are harder to determine exactly what they are but I did see one larger critter about a 1/16" of an inch that looked exactly like the potato bugs we found as kids in rotten wood but are much smaller!

Are these "potato bug" critters dangerous to my shrimp? BTW, how did the tank get these "bugs" in the first place?


If I was leave the substrate in the tank and move everything to a new tank (plants, filter, shrimp & water) and add new substrate, would this get rid of the "pest critter" problems?

And since the filter has the good bio-critters in it, and the water is basically the same, as are the plants, does the tank have to go through the process of "stabilization" again?

The only known critters/bugs/worms that would pose a threat to shrimp are Planaria and Hydra. Otherwise, you are perfectly safe.

I'd think of the things you have in your tank a potential food source of your future shrimplets.

 

[GeToChKn]

Any tanks with plants, if you watch long enough with a magnifying glass, you'll see something. lol.

 

[Newman]

some planaria are dangerous to shrimp? or all planaria will damage breeding shrimps? I would really like to know since i do get planaria in my shrimp bowl.

 

[Martin_G]

Just out of curiosity, would CPD's or boraras briggitae eat the mites but leave the shrimp alone including the shrimplets?

 

[diwu13]

some planaria are dangerous to shrimp? or all planaria will damage breeding shrimps? I would really like to know since i do get planaria in my shrimp bowl.

Planaria are not dangerous to shrimp. If you manage to squish it on the glass the shrimp will eat the dead body >. However, too many planaria look gross so you should think about treating your tank with Safeguard (dog dewormer) which is safe for shrimps.

 

[diwu13]

Just out of curiosity, would CPD's or boraras briggitae eat the mites but leave the shrimp alone including the shrimplets?

If a fish will actively eat the mites then they will also go after shrimplets. A fish will generally try to eat anything that can fit in their mouths.

 

[GeToChKn]

Planaria are not dangerous to shrimp. If you manage to squish it on the glass the shrimp will eat the dead body >. However, too many planaria look gross so you should think about treating your tank with Safeguard (dog dewormer) which is safe for shrimps.

You really have to squish them, because normally if you squish one, it turns into 20 planaria from the little pieces you squished. Hydra I think can more dangerous to shrimplets as they live in moss and plants like shrimplets and can actually sting. I recently dosed all my tanks with Safeguard and it killed all the planaria, hydra, and about a million other little worm thingys living in the tanks. lol.

 

[Martin_G]

I DO NOT have planaria, I have mites that resemble "potato bugs", and if I see too many I wanted to know if small fish like CPD's would do the trick.