# Killer shrimp?



## bcdudley (Nov 18, 2009)

I have 4 shrimp in my tank. When I purchased them, they were sold as ghost shrimp. They were all around 1/2" when I got them about 3-4 months ago. They have grown very fast. One of them is around 4" long, not including legs and feelers and other appendages. Two others are 2.5"-3" long. Another is about 2" long. They are all voracious eaters often stealing food out from under the mouths of my Cory's. In the last week, I have lost 5 out of my 7 Neon Tetra's with no trace. I also have a Betta and 2 Panda Cory's that are fine but seem to be much more stressed lately. The Betta stays at the top of the tank where he used to be a mid level swimmer. The Cory's now hang out on top of my magnetic glass scraper. The two neon tetra's I have left seem to be fine.

The shrimp seem to be pretty agressive and I am planning on taking them out tommorow. The water conditions are fine, actually, excellent, so I cannot think of what else would cause 5 fish to disappear within 3 nights that have been in a stable tank for over 2 years now. 

If it is not the shrimp, I would like to know because they do a very good job at keeping my tank spotless, but I do not want to lose anything else.

Thank you.


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## Gobies et al (Jun 7, 2008)

Check out my thread on Crustaforum: http://www.crustaforum.com/board/showthread.php?t=1272

Maybe you have a similar species to what I had.


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## anastasisariel (Oct 4, 2009)

Hmmm.. I'm sure you could find someone on this forum that would want those shrimp. I'm actually kind of interested myself but I'm getting cherries. At least you didn't have to worry about your fish harrassing your shrimp.  Got pictures?


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## RcScRs (Oct 22, 2009)

This is a common mis-labeled shrimp. The shrimp in the pictures is a Macro sp. and should be removed immediately. This shrimp is very aggressive and will eat the rest of your fish eventually. Your LFS might buy them though, they look like very nice shrimp...

Cheers,
Justin


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## bcdudley (Nov 18, 2009)

Ok, I got them out. They are temporarily residing in a large Rubbermaid bowl. They will be going to the lfs tonight. From what I read, they are somewhat of a rarity in the U.S., but they are often sold as juveniles with ghost shrimp. They are aggressive and will kill small fish. It does appear to be the same thing you had Gobies et al. The Macro SP. was also a big help in identifying it. 
They were very difficult to get out of my tank. It took me a good 45 minutes and I had to pretty much destroy everything in my tank to get them.
If anyone wants them, let me know in the next few minutes. Otherwise, I will be taking them up to Dallas North Aquarium tonight. I am currently in Duncanville, TX, but I will be heading towards Carrollton, TX shortly. After that, DNA. Wherever they wind up, I am sure it will be a good home where they will hopefully be welcome. There are 3 of them. Call me at (deletd. shrimp are gone now.)


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Shoot, I wish I had a tank for them! They're fabulous!

Look like a really cool prawn. I like their claws!


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## F22 (Sep 21, 2008)

its a blue tint prawn, or at least thats what it is referred to as in my shop... aggrssive hunter, can get up to 3.25" cool for a species system though


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## bcdudley (Nov 18, 2009)

The shrimp have found a home with one of the guys at the lfs. He has a tank that they should do pretty good in at his house.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

bcdudley said:


> The shrimp have found a home with one of the guys at the lfs. He has a tank that they should do pretty good in at his house.


That's a happy ending!

I still wish I had a tank for some...


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## F22 (Sep 21, 2008)

i may get a few of these to keep with my australian blue lobsters... hmmmm any ideas?


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

I'd guess one may end up eating the other... but doesn't hurt to try if you don't mind the risk.


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## F22 (Sep 21, 2008)

well im sure they wont kill the lobsters....
and those were pricey, so worst case they get a different meal then pellets


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## Veneer (Jan 18, 2005)

F22 said:


> its a blue tint prawn, or at least thats what it is referred to as in my shop... aggrssive hunter, can get up to 3.25" cool for a species system though


It looks like a juvenile _Macrobrachium rosenbergii_ (for some reason, possibly the presence of a regional aquaculture source, they're frequently sold as "ghost shrimp" in parts of Texas) and can get quite a bit larger than that. A shot of one male _M. rosenbergii_'s claw-bearing arms:










According to a contact in Australia, fully-grown adults enjoy eating redclaw crayfish.


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## F22 (Sep 21, 2008)

i dunno if you are right about that, may be different species


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## Veneer (Jan 18, 2005)

F22 said:


> i dunno if you are right about that, may be different species


Well, the shrimp in the OP are young _M. rosenbergii_*, but your "blue tint" shrimp could be _M. amazonicum_, which stays smaller but bears some resemblance to juveniles. 

* - Actually _M. dacqueti_ -- or maybe not: see case 3428


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## F22 (Sep 21, 2008)

yeah, maybe juvies look alike


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