# Shrimpkeepers: What drew you to shrimp and why do you enjoy keeping them?



## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

I think shrimp seem so industrious -- algae eating shrimp in particular -- always running their little legs looking for bits of food. They don't seem to just 'hang out' too much, but seem busy most of the time. 

Why do you like shrimp?


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## John P. (Nov 24, 2004)

I was drawn to them for their algae-eating nature, and because there really haven't been inverts available to the freshwater hobby that were all that interesting until the Caridina sp.s hit the hobby. I find them more entertaining to watch than my Tetras, Rasboras, and Otos for sure.


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## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

Yep, they're very entertaining -- I forgot to mention as well that many of my fish hide from me, but not the shrimp. The shrimp are front and center all the time  I like that!


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## amber2461 (Jun 15, 2004)

I find them fascinating ... literally busy busy little worker shrimps.


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## richy (Nov 8, 2004)

John P. said:


> I was drawn to them for their algae-eating nature, and because there really haven't been inverts available to the freshwater hobby that were all that interesting until the Caridina sp.s hit the hobby. I find them more entertaining to watch than my Tetras, Rasboras, and Otos for sure.


Ditto. They have so much more character than my fish. I keep fish cuz they fill the spaces in the middle. The shrimp cover the rest of the areas, mostly the bottom, but other stratum of the tank as well. They bumble around from plant leaf to plant leaf, come out to feed when I have something special, etc.

Not only that, they are way easier to breed given acceptable conditions (it doesn't even have to be perfect). Just feed 'em and leave 'em! With fish, you gotta have the perfect conditions AND simulate their natural habitat. Not as fun.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

I mainly got my first shrimp (Amanos) for eating algae and never knew there was so many different species to choose from. But now I just find them really cool to watch and they do a dang good job at cleaning up. I can't walk by my shrimp tank without stopping and looking for those shrimpy's.


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## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

It does indeed seem like a lot of us first look at the shrimp for algae-eating purposes, and then realize how interesting they are to watch.


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## Plattykins (Apr 3, 2005)

I picked up Ghost shrimp for two reasons. One is because I was looking for something to keep the bottom cleaned up when I really had no room for bottom feeding fish. The other reason is because I was just looking for something different than fish. The Ghost shrimp are not all that easy to keep track of in the tank. As for other shrimp, I don't think I have enough algae to keep them happy.


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

They run, they swim, they pick things up and chew on them - they're little aquatic puppy dogs..... :smile:


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## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

I also got them for their algae eating abilities at first. Now, I love the fact that it adds to the bio-diversity of the tanks. The other night I was looking at the clump of Hemianthus and realized there must have been at least 10 babies mixed in with it!


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## cjloong (Mar 5, 2005)

I think shrimps makes the aquascape more interesting in a sense when people drawn to a aquascape, when they look closer, "Hey... there are shrimps in here, cool" effect.

Kind of like when people look from far, the aquascape is beautiful (the fish and overall plants). When they look closer, there are other nice little things around.


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## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

> I think shrimps makes the aquascape more interesting in a sense when people drawn to a aquascape, when they look closer, "Hey... there are shrimps in here, cool" effect.


That's a very interesting point!


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## gnatster (Mar 6, 2004)

It all started for me 29 years ago, wow I am getting old, when I set up my very first SW tank and saw a Cleaner Shrimp at the LFS. Fascinated by the niche this invert has in nature I saved my allowance for weeks to buy one. Once home in my 55 full of bleached dead coral, Lionfish, Yellow Tang and Eyelash Blenny it quickly went to work keeping all my SW denizens parasite free. That started a love affair that ultimately lead me to study Marine Sciences at U Miami (Fla). Fast Forward to 1987 when I found reef tanks and all the incredible invert life that came crawling off that wild collected Fla Live rock. Most folks back then didn't care much for keeping the crabs, shrimp and copepods alive and well, but I did, in a separate tank plumbed in line with the main tank and sump was a calm tank filled with macro algae and inverts. A refugium before we know what a refugium was. I've kept all kinds of marine inverts since then always fascinated more by them then the fish. FW shrimp and now my breeding operation is a logical extension of my love of wet bugs.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

As with others, the "cleaner" aspect came first. But then... I realized once I started getting up close to the shrimp that they were like little extraterrestrials. In fact, when I was still keeping the giant FW shrimp, someone once commented that "It's like you have a pet Facehugger."

Well, now I will _never_ stop keeping them. If I can ever get a 55/75FW open for FOWFP (*F*ish*O*nly*W*ith*F*ake*P*lants, my lil' take on FOWLR), I will get another Macrobrahim sp. for a pet. They're just amazing.


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## John N. (Dec 11, 2005)

The ease of keeping cherry shrimp drew me in! Then came the other varieties, and testing my hand at them. 

-John N.


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## dhavoc (Mar 17, 2006)

originally bought them as feeders for my oscars and other cichlids and threw a bunch in a planted community tank as well (this was over 20 years ago). this was before the concept of a "planted tank" even existed and i just pretty much filled a 29 adn 45 with whatever plant caught my eye at the lfs. amazingly, i still have that 45 running at my parents house (never broken down since high school). and the Nth generation of those feeders (i think they are rainbows) is still breeding by the hundreds in there. i just move a few to whatever new tank or outdoor water garden i set up. never thought of actually breeding them as they seemed to just propogate on their own regardless of conditons. only got into the more exotic varieties in the last year (CRS, cherry, opae ula, etc) and i agree they are more interesting to watch than my tetras or rasboras. though my dwarf puffers and dojos are still more fun to watch also due to their "personallity. still looking for a reliable source of neon greens shrimp, got some from that place in no one wants to mention (state next to Nevada) and the soup/rotten flesh wasnt very pretty. they almost seem harder to come by than CRS.


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## Shrimp&Snails (Mar 27, 2006)

I bought three amanos almost three years ago now and became transfixed by them. I love the way they tap 'intruders' with their antenna and pick up food with their tiny pinchers and stuff their faces.  

Early this year I was finally able to get hold of some dwarf shrimp and now I have shrimplets i'm even more hooked....when it's feeding time they all go crazy and swarm over the tasties. 

I also have a bamboo shrimp called Bob who is an utterly amazing fella....when I show people pics of him filtering they think he's either scary or an alien.:lol:


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## PlantsAndMe (Apr 3, 2005)

The ease of keeping cherry reds, their beautiful red color, their ability to eat algae, and they're really really entertaining to watch


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## Piscesgirl (Feb 25, 2004)

I'm glad to see this thread is still 'alive'!


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## John N. (Dec 11, 2005)

Yup, just going back and letting people get a chance to add their shrimp addiction story in this great thread. Each day I see lots of new shrimp and invert keepers spreading their experience on APC! 

-John N.


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