Breeding Crystal Red Shrimp (Caridina Cantonensis Sp. Red) In The Aquarium

Location

This is breeding variant of freshwater shrimp Bee which comes from China.

Body description

There are a lot of multicolour variants this species e.g. black bee, blue bee, orange bee, white bee etc. Basic variant of this shrimp has transverse, convertible white and red-orange stripes. It has also black eyes. Basic variant is also classified due to its colour. Important is amount of red colour and white colour wherein the highest class, the most expensive and the most desirable is completely white variant (SSS). Classification Red Crystal shrimps includes following classes: C, B, A, S, SS, SSS. But we may only classify this species when it matured sexually. We should also know that colour of the body this species depends on its diet, stressed etc. We can recognize sex of the shrimp when it matured sexually. Then female is somewhat larger than male. She has laso larger scales of her carapace under her abdomen compared to male's scales. She has visible and dark "saddle" just behind her head.

Characteristics and temperament

This species prefers to live in group. This is peaceful and friendly species. Sometimes the shrimps can compete together for food but these "scuffles" aren't dangerous for their. This species molts in order to grow. Then it is apathetic, without appetite and it hides among plants for several days. This species can lose its colours when it is stressed (during the transport, when it lives with predators or very active fish in one aquarium, after rapid changes of water parameters etc.). This is a scavenger and we shouldn't overfeed its. We should feed this species once per day with ration of the food which it will be eaten to 2 hours. Occasional breaks in feeding - through one or two weeks - are beneficial for this crustaceans.

Aquarium decoration

We should let in this species only to chemically stable aquarium with crystalline clean water. It is sensitive to copper and nitrogen compounds. We should avoid any drugs with copper and aquariums when treatment with copper drugs was ever performed. This species is also sensitive to rapid changes of water parameters. We should regularly clean the bottom of the aquarium and we should systematic do a partial water changes. The water must be oxygen-rich. The tank should include soft and fine substrate (the best dark), lot of hiding-places among stones, roots, caves, coconut shells, pots, etc., lot of plants with fine leaves (e.g. mosses). We should have controlled amount of algae. We can also keep this species in a general aquarium with small fish and neocardina shrimps, without its natural predators or fast-moving fish. We shouldn't also keep this species with shrimps from Bee because they will be crossed together.

Breeding

Reproduce this species is easy task. Matured sexually shrimps form pairs in group. Male intensively circles around fertile female. Then he nears to her and he connects with female a brief moment (cross position). In this time male deposits his sperm and his role in reproduction ended but sometimes first approach is not effective and male tries again. Next female lays eggs one by one and she puts fertilized eggs under her abdomen in her pleopods until their hatching. Female fans the eggs her uropods and she shifts their in her pleopods all the time. Stressed, afraid or inexperienced female can leave the eggs. The eggs have pair of black dots (eyes) just before hatching. The eggs hatch after about 3-4 weeks and the young are independent. They immediately start feeding and they look like adults but they are very small - about 2 mm. Their internal organs aren't fully developed - especially reproductive organs. These organs will gradually develop during next metamorphosis (the incomplete matamorphosis). The aquarium for young shrimps should include lot of plants, a filter with protected outlet. The female is immediately ready for next reproduce after hatching. She can have eggs in her pleopods and she has visible "saddle" behind her head at the same time.