# Cherry Red Shrimp Dead After 24hrs



## jslmsca (Jun 24, 2011)

I did a fishless cycle on my 20g tank for two weeks. I started getting some snails and from my testing, the environment seemed good. Temp was stable at 72-74F, pH was 7.4-7.6, there was 0 ammonia. 

I bought six CRS this weekend and slowly over an hour acclimatized them to my tank. Two were somewhat pale in comparison to the others and I didn't know if that's because those were female or due to stress. However, when I popped in an algae wafer later in the day, everyone seemed to be eating fine.

I woke up today and couldn't see the two that were paler. I think I've found the carcasses under some driftwood. The other four seem okay.

I'm not sure what it could be so I did a check for nitrite and while it seemed okay, it may have been a bit on the high side so I added some Nutrifin cycle to hopefully speed up the conversion. The bottle suggested adding some with the introduction of any new 'fish'.

Not sure what else it could be. The LFS has a solid reputation and provides great, knowledgeable service. None of their animals appear to be in distress.

I hate the fact that I introduced them to their deaths after trying to make sure it was a suitable environment for them.

P.S. Do I need to remove the carcasses? It's not in an easy to get to location and I'll have to remove the driftwood first.


----------



## NeonFlux (Apr 10, 2008)

Hi jslmsca, what are your nitrite levels in the tank? 

Nitrites have to be at 0 too. Cycle your tank more until you see Ammonia and Nitrite both at 0 and Nitrate about 0.5 or 10.

Nutrifin cycle could be expired or not working.. There are a lot of mixed bad and good reviews (mostly bad) about the product claiming what it can do. I have had bad luck with it.

You could remove the carcasses if you wish. Doesn't make much difference.


Good luck!

-Will


----------



## GeToChKn (Apr 15, 2011)

Ya, nitrites need to be 0 too for a fully cycled tank and cherries are pretty hardy shrimp, so if they died, your tank probably isn't cycled. Keep up with water changes for now to keep the levels down until the filter can fully cycle and keep testing daily and hopefully you won't have any more losses.


----------



## mordalphus (Jun 23, 2010)

First, make sure they're the dead shrimp. A shrimp molt looks like a dead shrimp to some people. Is the dead body pink or white? If it's pink, it's a dead shrimp, if it's white, it's a molt.

If they are actually dead, remove the dead bodies because they'll foul your water even further.


----------



## jslmsca (Jun 24, 2011)

Thank you for the information.


Nitrites are not 0. I have a hard time getting an accurate reading by comparing to the colour scale provided but it's between 0.1-0.3.


I actually only lost one. The other "missing" one was hiding and refused to come out to eat with the others. It's still hiding under driftwood. I think it's female with the other four redder ones being male. I'm not sure what this behaviour indicates.


The carcass is white, not pink, and has been motionless all day. I just watched the following molting video and that's exactly what I'm seeing. So it's the molt. The shrimp must be hiding somewhere. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxGObYnY3mI

Quite the temporary relief... Hopefully all six will come out and play at some point to confirm...


----------



## GDP (Mar 12, 2011)

Shrimp are very good at hiding as ive come to find out. Ive also noticed after being stressed they tend to hide, then all the sudden will start to come out. However 2 weeks is not very established.


----------



## mordalphus (Jun 23, 2010)

The redder ones would be your females by the way. Glad to hear it's just a molt, and not a dead shrimp.


----------



## ncharlie (May 20, 2011)

I sticks two crs in my Fluval Edge. They disappeared and I know one died since weeks later I found one hiding in the plastic cave. I have not seen him lately, but this tanks always tests positive for nitrates. Low but it is positive.

My Fluval Ebi never has nitriates. In fact, seems pretty clear. I have three ghost shrimp and two ottos in that tank.

I want to put CRS in it when the weather cools.


----------



## jasonpatterson (Apr 15, 2011)

Nitrates aren't really a concern at reasonable values. Nitrites are a problem. 

If you have fast growing plants in the Ebi compared to the Edge, that might explain the lack of nitrates, as the plants will happily slurp them up as a nitrogen source.


----------



## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

dumb question... what color are they eyes? a few of my shrimps eyes were white. Im not sure if they were on their way out or just the beginning of a molt.


----------



## piffy (Oct 2, 2010)

Ah yes, the deceiving molts  Happy your shrimp are okay.

One quick thing - CRS is usually an abbreviation for Crystal Red Shrimp (the red and white striped ones), RCS is what people use for Red Cherry Shrimp 

Silly aquarium acronyms xP


----------



## discuspaul (Jul 27, 2010)

GeToChKn said:


> Ya, nitrites need to be 0 too for a fully cycled tank and cherries are pretty hardy shrimp, so if they died, your tank probably isn't cycled. Keep up with water changes for now to keep the levels down until the filter can fully cycle and keep testing daily and hopefully you won't have any more losses.


 
I strongly suspect this is the correct assessment.


----------



## jslmsca (Jun 24, 2011)

I picked up the carcass and it definitely was a molt. And I finally found the sixth one, hiding in the darkness under some driftwood, not wanting to come out. But it's alive. Maybe it comes out at night...

Thanks again everyone for the help.


----------



## WaveSurfer (Oct 3, 2007)

jslmsca said:


> I picked up the carcass and it definitely was a molt. And I finally found the sixth one, hiding in the darkness under some driftwood, not wanting to come out. But it's alive. Maybe it comes out at night...
> 
> Thanks again everyone for the help.


Great to hear all the shrimps doing fine! 

You'll be seeing baby shrimps in no time!


----------



## flip9 (Jun 16, 2011)

It will eventually come out. Even if it doesnt, it can survive just by eating driftwood. 

You dont need to remove the molted shells, they just eat it again.


----------

