When Shrimps Attack

[Dude]

i have recently bought 2 amano shrimps

and ever since then every night there seems to be a cardinal thats dead and half eaten

the only other fish i have in the tank are 2 guppies and ottos

i have lost 3 cardinals allready and i wanted to know what you think i should do cuz those cardinals are costy....

 

[paul_219]

It could your shrim is eating them at night when they down in the bottom to rest the shrimp will eat them. Dont put small fish with them.

 

[dave_gray2077]

That’s strange I am keeping cardinals and amano shrimp in the same tank and they do not bother each other. When the cardinals are out feeding the shrimp's come out to feed of the bits that hit the bottom.

From what I have observed with the cardinals they will not bottom feed at all but they will eat the food that is about 2 cm off the bottom.

When they [the cardinals] have brushed through the "whiskers/feelers" (not sure of the correct terminally) the shrimp are very quick to retreat into the plants at he back of the tank.

“It could your shrimp is eating them at night when they down in the bottom to rest the shrimp will eat them. Don’t put small fish with them.â€￾

I cannot see any amano shrimp of sub species having the strength to drag down and feed from a healthy Cardinal or any tetra for that matter. Although the tetras do dose, which is different of a full form of sleep the humans have they recover from this state very quickly when under attack and can move very quickly to the open water. Then the shrimp will quickly lose any advantage at has being heavier that water and will not be able to maintain a water lever height for more that a few seconds.

Form what I have seen in my own set up during feeding time one or 2 daring shrimp will try and get the fool as it enters the water just below the water level and all te manage to achieve is about 5 seconds off the button the retreat into the plants from exhaustion.

It may be worth checking your water to see if adding the shrimp has tipped your bio load over what you tank can handle. Unlikely has you have added just 2 of the but you never know.

It may also be worth viewing the tank at night under a torch with a red filter attached to observer the night time behaviour.

BTW what is your tank volume and water stats?

 

[Maximus]

It's definately the shrimp,
i lost a school of 10 neons to
8 shrimp in about 2 weeks.

I think the problem is they sleep
the floor where the shimp can get to them

It's only a matter of time before you catch
them in the act. i found them in the morning!


Little buggers!

Try moving them to another tank

 

[lordotterby]

Right, its not the shrimp. If it was I wouldn't have anything but the shrimp left in the tank, they stay well clear of the fish and have nothing to attack them with, let alone kill them.

 

[Dude]

yep its the shrimp
i saw it happening...

i guess shrimp can be aggressive ... they have a wide variety flake blend sinking pellets and a big load of algea but they are attacking them when they sleep.....

is there any other option other than taking them out ?

i need them for algea control .... / the ottos dont seem to do the job

 

[lordotterby]

I can't belive that, maybe if the fish were dead all ready, then yes i could. I know they can nasty towards each other, mine have been in my tank for about 5 months now and have never done anything like that.

There maybe something in your water that is making them do this, do you have a plant where they hide?

 

[celaeno]

There maybe something in your water that is making them do this

or maybe the voices in their heads are telling the shrimp to do it

 

[chrisdoesntmiss]

I have never heard of an amano doing that to cardinals. Cardinals are not the smallest of tetras and they are very skittish when approached so i dont think the shrimp really have a chance. Any possibility there is something in the water killing the cardinals and the shrimps are jsut eating the remnants??

 

[Dude]

There maybe something in your water that is making them do this

or maybe the voices in their heads are telling the shrimp to do it

hilarious lol .....

my tank is a fully planted tank with 50 % coverage

there are rocks and wood and plenty of places to hide...

at night the cardinals fall asleep on the bottom and then the shrimp who is nocternal (or at least thats what i remember reading) and they get them while thier still alive i saw it with my own 2 eyes...

 

[miniman]

I hope this isnt true - Ive seen my cardinals chase my shrimp but never the other way round!

 

[lordotterby]

I am starting to think that this is a April fools joke

 

[vancouver]

Amano shrimp claws are probably 2mm long.. not large enough to capture cardinals and kill them..

If this is an April fools joke, it sucks.

 

[MoonstruckMuse]

Erm, I doubt your LFS would do this, but... is it possible that you have Macrobrachiums, rather then Amano shrimp? Macros have long arms AND can be awfully aggressive, and if I remember correctly, there's a transparent-ish one that's mistaken for ghosts (and potentially amanos).
These shrimpies will also eat algae, but their front claws will be much bigger, sorta like what a lobster/crayfish would look like if he were shrimp-sized. Does your guy look like that?

Otherwiseeee, you have some mentally disturbed Amanos, I have no idea. I've never heard of them doing anything like that, haha.

 

[noshybabs]

Im certain most shrimp are filter feeders and eat only algea. and sleeping fish dont sleep on the bottom

Tetra desease?