# Blueberry shrimp?



## AkCrimson (Dec 17, 2009)

I asked for a few RCS from a lfs, and they gave me 2 very blue shrimp, one of which is berried. I did a little googling, and came to the conclusion that they are "Blueberry" shrimp? Is this correct? Or is it just a morph of a RCS?

She looks just like this.


*Edit* Ugh. Kept searching after posted and found a thread like this. Don't know why it didn't turn up in the forum searches...

So for anyone who has these, do they stay blue???


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## gogreen (Sep 18, 2008)

sure looks purty though


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## Nue (Dec 27, 2009)

Very Nice! I think blueberry is correct, but im not completely sure. Very nice find. Do by chance know if it is Neo-Caridina or Caridina. I know Msjinx on Aquaria central, has a mystery blue shrimp. Keep us posted!


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## DarkCobra (Jun 22, 2004)

Nice shrimp!

I don't have blueberries, but I've read about them. If it is a blueberry, it's an RCS with a specific genetic mutation. They do stay blue!


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## AkCrimson (Dec 17, 2009)

As far as I am aware, it is Neocaridina. I'm not 100% positive as to the other one, its still pretty small, and has no stripe on the back. 

They are in my 10gal, which has LED lighting. So far my plants (especially the crypts) _love_ it and are growing like crazy. But it does not offer a lot of light for viewing, plus my driftwood still has a bit of tannis in it. SO I may just end up taking them home to the 29. After all, what is the point of having a blue shrimp if you can't see it's color???

I'll keep ya updated.


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## Hobbes1911 (Mar 2, 2009)

I tried them a while ago, and they changed color for me.... I heard it is something in their diet that makes them blue, and when that is gone, so is the blue.


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## kvntran (Feb 16, 2008)

I bought a few of them out of curiosity. After some research, I also found that some TPT members already bought into these "blueberry" shrimps as well. Based on my experiences, they are dyed shrimps. They would lose their color and turn into some common kinda brown/gray shrimps. 
I got them to breed, and the babies look similar to amanos only darker with some interesting marks. I like them, even I was tricked into buying them.

Kevin


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## mgamer20o0 (Mar 8, 2007)

the ones i got under those name dont really hold their breeding colors. sounds kind of like kvntran. some were a little blue some were clearish....


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## Robert H (Apr 3, 2003)

Well if you search out information on various species, you will find it is not uncommon for many dwarf shrimp to vary greatly in color depending on tank conditions, sex, and age. Many Neocaridina color morphs, including red cherry, yellow, and blues, juveniles are more pale in color and darken as they get older. Red nose, aka red front shrimp is another that can range from practically colorless to intensive red markings.

Kevin, I would really like it if you could cite your "sources", because I researched it extensively and the only proof or mention anywhere on the internet about shrimp being dyed is speculation from people. Nothing but rumors. I did find one web site article that states there is a "true blueberry" color morph that was bred in China and stated that the coloration varies in the age of the shrimp and can change from blue to brown naturally. Nobody tricked you Kevin. Not the store you bought them from or anybody else. Fish often change color for all kinds of reasons. It is not that far fetched to think that shrimp do the same thing.

In the batch that I got, most were a very dark blue, but a few were light blue, and there were a couple that looked near colorless with only a trace of blue.

I am more excited over the Tangerine bee shrimp. They had a much higher rate of survival on shipping, and the whole batch of shrimp is a solid, brilliant orange.


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## mgamer20o0 (Mar 8, 2007)

just found this in my photobucket. pics still in the bag. never did take more pics but they look like the same ones i got. i also dont think they dyed but could very well be something in their environment. 











> I am more excite over the Tangerine bee shrimp.


they look great. only down side is the orange shrimp (Caridina cf. propinqua) need bw to breed in.


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## AkCrimson (Dec 17, 2009)

mgamer20o0 said:


> just found this in my photobucket. pics still in the bag. never did take more pics but they look like the same ones i got. i also dont think they dyed but could very well be something in their environment.


Yes that's what it looks like! Are yours still blue at all?

I doubt they were fed anything special to keep them blue, since my lfs didn't even know they were there...they were just hanging out in a tank with the RCS.


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## kvntran (Feb 16, 2008)

Robert H said:


> Well if you search out information on various species, you will find it is not uncommon for many dwarf shrimp to vary greatly in color depending on tank conditions, sex, and age. Many Neocaridina color morphs, including red cherry, yellow, and blues, juveniles are more pale in color and darken as they get older. Red nose, aka red front shrimp is another that can range from practically colorless to intensive red markings.
> 
> Kevin, I would really like it if you could cite your "sources", because I researched it extensively and the only proof or mention anywhere on the internet about shrimp being dyed is speculation from people. Nothing but rumors. I did find one web site article that states there is a "true blueberry" color morph that was bred in China and stated that the coloration varies in the age of the shrimp and can change from blue to brown naturally. Nobody tricked you Kevin. Not the store you bought them from or anybody else. Fish often change color for all kinds of reasons. It is not that far fetched to think that shrimp do the same thing.
> 
> ...


Robert,

If you search this forum for blueberry you'd find old threads about this, of all members who had anything to say, say the same thing I found with my shrimps. I have no doubt that blue shrimps exist, blue pearls, blue tigers are known blue. There maybe some real "blueberry" out there, but the ones I bought are not.

Mustafa (petshrimp.com) has been keeping shrimps for a long time, notice he had blue shrimp in quote? I found the same thing he found about the so-called blue.

If I was sold a blue shrimp, and they turn something else, even their kids are not blue, it's fair to say that I was tricked. I'm not saying that the store owner tricked me, they maybe were the victim too. The end result is the same, I didn't get what I paid for. 

I'd love to see how your batch develop, hopefully you will get some blue offsprings from your batch. Please keep us posted.

Kevin


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## AkCrimson (Dec 17, 2009)

I read somewhere (I'll see if I can find the link), that a blueberry shrimp may have offspring that are blue, or it may have offspring that are clear or brownish. However, those offspring may be a carrier for the blue 'gene'. Not sure how credible that information is, but it'd definitely intriguing. I'm curious as to whether my shrimplets will be blue.


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## h2osanity (Sep 19, 2008)

I just recently observed that through the use of Hikari algae wafers that my cherry shrimp were turning purple. We determined that it was caused by the wafers containing Astaxanthin /Algamac-ARA. This can be found in nature in some of the regions that these shrimp originate from.

There is a very interesting thread on blue colouring in shrimp you can view the link http://www.planetinverts.com/natural_or_artificially_colored.html


http://www.planetinverts.com/natural_or_artificially_colored.html


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## GTR (May 27, 2009)

If someone will dye a coral for a couple extra bucks there's no doubt in my mind someone else would dye a shrimp for an extra 50 cents.

SteveU


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## AkCrimson (Dec 17, 2009)

That may be, however these shrimp are almost certainly not dyed, as they were born in the tank at the lfs.


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## mgamer20o0 (Mar 8, 2007)

AkCrimson said:


> Yes that's what it looks like! Are yours still blue at all?
> 
> I doubt they were fed anything special to keep them blue, since my lfs didn't even know they were there...they were just hanging out in a tank with the RCS.


the off spring where lighter blue or clearish. never saw any brown.


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## Vladdy (May 6, 2008)

You know how when you turn on the aquarium light after the aquarium was in the dark, the shrimp are a duller color? After they've been in the dark, some of my red cherry shrimp look like blue pearl shrimp, then later, they get their red color back. And some of my red cherry shrimp have translucent blue swimmerets.


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## aelysa (Oct 20, 2006)

So I'm wondering, if these are neocaridina, can you breed them with blue pearls to get a really deep blue? These look like the exoskeleton is blue while blue pearls have blue pigment in the tissue.

Edit: I guess I can just try it myself by getting a female blueberry and throwing them in with my blue pearls. Aquatic Warehouse is getting in a shipment on Monday.


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## DarrylR (Oct 9, 2007)

Looks like a wild neo to me :/.


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## Nue (Dec 27, 2009)

DarrylR said:


> Looks like a wild neo to me :/.


You know, you could be correct. My wilds or rather my mix breed Neo's between a red and yellow, are all sorts of colors, blue, red, brown, and clear, one actually looks like yours but is like a root beer color. They could have cross breed in the LSF tank, thats what happened to me. I guess time will tell.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

So is this considered a neo then? The reason l ask is because shortly l'm going to add some crs and cbs to my blueberry shrimp tank and don't want them to interbreed.


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