The American Glass Shrimp
has been in the aquarium hobby in The United States for
as long as the hobby has been around. The American
Glass Shrimp is often found being sold as a feeder
shrimp, to be fed to larger fish.
Most American Glass Shrimp
that are found in America are sold as feeder shrimp and
will not have a long life span in the home aquarium due
to the conditions they are shipped to the store in and
kept in the store. If the shrimp do survive, or if
a captive raised stock is available, caring for the
American Glass Shrimp is fairly easy. A well
established aquarium will support a fairly large
population of American Glass Shrimp.
American Glass Shrimp are
very enthusiastic eaters, and will accept any food
intended for aquarium fish or invertebrates including
flake foods and sinking pellets. The American
Glass Shrimp has often been observed swimming upside
down at the surface of the aquarium to feed on flake
foods.
Breeding American Glass
Shrimp can be a little bit difficult in the home
aquarium. American Glass Shrimp are difficult to
determine sex and they are a low order shrimp (their
eggs hatch as free floating larva, not miniature
versions of their parents) so they are a little more
difficult to raise. Once hatched the small larva
will require powdered algae (Spirulina is a great algae
for this) and should be in a separate aquarium to avoid
predation.. The larva will metamorphosis to
miniature versions of the adults in about a week. Once
the larva have reached metamorphosis, they will require
no further special care.
The American Glass Shrimp is
generally non-aggressive but there have been reports of
a few individuals that can get a bit aggressive.
They can sometimes eat baby shrimp of any species or
even fish fry. They are always an active shrimp
when there are no predators in the aquarium.
As with all aquatic
invertebrates it is important to make sure copper does
not get into the aquarium. Copper is toxic to all
Dwarf Shrimp. Many medications contain elevated
levels of copper, so it is recommended not to medicate
an aquarium with Dwarf Shrimp in it.
Many shrimp are labeled Ghost Shrimp that are not
American Glass Shrimp. These are often clear
shrimp that look similar, but are not the same shrimp.
