# In-breeding in shrimps?



## KeIgO86 (Jun 23, 2005)

Hi,

I'm just wondering will in breeding cause a problems for shrimps?. I have a shrimp tank which started off with 10 cherry shrimps. Now I think there's easily over a hundred of them hiding in a horrific mess of e tenellus. My guess is that there should be at least 7 or 8 generations in there. Will 1 day be that in breeding gets too serious and genes turn too bad and catastrophe?

Even now that I have so many shrimps, I only see about 1 or 2 really RED ones. The rest are pale red or even mostly transparent. Is this a sign of in breeding?


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## rishy21 (May 31, 2006)

In breeding is always a concern as you cannot have a beneficial variation.
You should try to exchange some shrimps from our fellow forumers.
It always a good idea to mix the gene pool.

Regarding the pale color shrimps ,, well i am not an expert but it can be related to in-breeding


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## John N. (Dec 11, 2005)

I believe the pale coloration is a result of inbreeding from my observations. After a couple of generations (7+) I also notice that some shrimp are more spotted and pale red then what they originally were. I often purchase a couple of shrimp here and there to mix up the gene pool. As a result there's are a fewer amount of pale/spotty red cherries.

Besides coloration, diversify the gene pool will ensure longevity of your shrimp with a constant supply of good/diverse genes. If allowed to inbreed without adding different stock, then you would run the risk of losing a specific gene in the population. That's why in nature preserves, biologists often fly in animals from different regions and stick them into the population. You'll only need a few shrimp/animals to add to the gene pool.

-John N.


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