Questions About Red Cherry Shrimp...

[wei0204]

I have questions about Red cherry shrimps as below,

1) Is this true? A female RCS will carry eggs first then will mate with male? If not true then what is the correct process?

2) I have some RCS shrimplets in my planted tank, they are living there "happily" but I am a bit worry about their safety as in the tank have some fishes. What are the fishes below are harmful to my shrimplets? (Harlequin rasbora, flying fox, lampeye, neon tetra, molly fry, oto, adult RCS and amano shrimp)

Appreciated if you could help...

 

[~T~]

1)Cant help but I would also like to know this as I have saddled cherrys but no males.

2)I think out of them all only the ottos and adult cherrys are 100% shimplet safe.

 

[wei0204]

Thank you ~T~.

Anymore info from others?

 

[Liam]

As far as I know the eggs develop and can be seen in the ‘saddle’ of the not very intensely coloured females, they then moult and mate face to face with the male, the sperm is held by the female and the eggs pass through it and get fertilized, she then holds and aerates them on the swimmettes until they are ready to hatch, about thirty days depending on temperature.

As T says the only fish you have that are shrimplet safe are the ottos, basically anything that can eat daphnia can eat a shrimplet, they are tiny when they are born, they are usually a few days old and have grown before I can spot them even then they make a small snack for just about any fish. In your well planted tank hopefully a few survive.

 

[wei0204]

Thank you LIAM.

I just spotted some shrimplets recently, they are really cute (my first time having them).

Hope some of them can survive...

 

[eschaton]

Another thing to do is make sure you have a sponge filter. Adult RCS have no problem fighting the current of a filter, but small ones are liable to get sucked in.

I'd say it's not incredibly likely that a lot of your fish will eat the shrimplets though. Most shrimplets stay to the bottom of the tank even more than RCS. If you had cories or loaches I'd be more worried. The flying fox is the major one I'd have concerns with.

 

[wei0204]

Thank you eschaton.

I think the shrimplets are quite safe till today, I still see them in the tank. But I think you are right, flying fox could be the hunter for them but hope some could survive...

I have another question about RCS, I have a few RCS (adult) but non of them lay egg before. Why?

 

[wei0204]

I Have found the answer and wanted to share...

How do shrimp reproduce?

Shrimp reproduce via eggs. Eggs are produced in the ovaries of the female, which may or may not show up (depending on coloration of species) as a light or dark patch right behind the head area of the female. After the female molts, the male mates with the female (facing each other) depositing his sperm at the opening of the female genital opening. Shortly after, the eggs migrate from the female's ovaries through her genital opening to the abdomen. As the eggs pass through the female genital opening, they are fertilized by the sperm that had been deposited there by the male earlier. The eggs rest in the pleopod ("swimmerettes", swimming legs) area of the female. She carries them around wherever she goes. Depending on species, it may take anywhere between 2 weeks to 2 months for the young to hatch. Most dwarf shrimp species take 3-4 weeks to hatch. The hatchlings are tiny, barely visible and only a few millimeters long. Some shrimp species produce fully developed young, whereas others produce free-floating larvae that usually need a special saltwater/brackish water setup to be reared to the postlarval (i.e. benthic mini-shrimp) stage, at which point they can be acclimated to freshwater. Time until hatching depends on temperature. The higher the temperature (within reason of course) the shorter the time until hatching. The young hatch directly from among the pleopods. The female does not deposit the eggs anywhere.

But I still wish to know the below,
I have a few RCS (adult) but non of them lay egg before. Why?

 

[RESGuy]

I Have found the answer and wanted to share...

How do shrimp reproduce?

Shrimp reproduce via eggs. Eggs are produced in the ovaries of the female, which may or may not show up (depending on coloration of species) as a light or dark patch right behind the head area of the female. After the female molts, the male mates with the female (facing each other) depositing his sperm at the opening of the female genital opening. Shortly after, the eggs migrate from the female's ovaries through her genital opening to the abdomen. As the eggs pass through the female genital opening, they are fertilized by the sperm that had been deposited there by the male earlier. The eggs rest in the pleopod ("swimmerettes", swimming legs) area of the female. She carries them around wherever she goes. Depending on species, it may take anywhere between 2 weeks to 2 months for the young to hatch. Most dwarf shrimp species take 3-4 weeks to hatch. The hatchlings are tiny, barely visible and only a few millimeters long. Some shrimp species produce fully developed young, whereas others produce free-floating larvae that usually need a special saltwater/brackish water setup to be reared to the postlarval (i.e. benthic mini-shrimp) stage, at which point they can be acclimated to freshwater. Time until hatching depends on temperature. The higher the temperature (within reason of course) the shorter the time until hatching. The young hatch directly from among the pleopods. The female does not deposit the eggs anywhere.

But I still wish to know the below,
I have a few RCS (adult) but non of them lay egg before. Why?

Well, RCS don't lay eggs, they carry them until they hatch and become tiny versions of the adults.
The reason your RCS are dropping their eggs or not carrying any could be due to bad water quality, or maybe the water is too cold?

 

[wei0204]

Well, RCS don't lay eggs, they carry them until they hatch and become tiny versions of the adults.
The reason your RCS are dropping their eggs or not carrying any could be due to bad water quality, or maybe the water is too cold?

Opsss, sorry, I meant carry eggs instead of lay eggs.

It couldn't be too cold as i am in malaysia.

I think i know the reason, I am not good in diffrentiate male and female, so in my tank might has no male...

I will get some soon, hopefully this is the cause of females not carrying eggs...

 

[Liam]

It took me a while to figure out that that was why my cherries were not breeding, I then picked out the dullest looking ones in the lfs and bingo got a couple of males now they are producing at an alarming rate.

 

[RESGuy]

That's right, I didn't think of that. A lot of people have that problem lol Usually that happens because they don't know how to tell the sex of RCS and so they choose the reddest ones and get all female

Either way, what is the temperature in your tank?

 

[wei0204]

I have no meter to measure the temperature, but it is about 27 to 28 guess. I bought a female carrying eggs recently and it successfully hatched the eggs...

I have bought 2 more shrimps and in hoping that there is a male there...

It is really hard to tell is it a male or female....

 

[RESGuy]

I have no meter to measure the temperature, but it is about 27 to 28 guess. I bought a female carrying eggs recently and it successfully hatched the eggs...

I have bought 2 more shrimps and in hoping that there is a male there...

It is really hard to tell is it a male or female....

Congrats on the hatched eggs

IMO it is pretty easy to tell RCS sex. The really red ones are usually females and those with hardly any coloration are the males.

 

[wei0204]

Yeah, but in LFS they normally look pale, that's why very hard to choose a male. When I brought them back, the next day they will turn very red ... haa...