Red Cherry Shrimp Care

Caring for Red Cherry Shrimp | The Shrimp Farm

Scientific Name:

Neocaridina heteropoda

Other Scientific Names:

Neocaridina denticulata sinensis

Neocaridina davidi

Common Name:

Red Cherry Shrimp

Other Common Names:

Cherry Shrimp, Cherry Red Shrimp, RCS, Fire Red Cherry Shrimp, Painted Fire Red Shrimp

>> More about Cherry Red Shrimp

>> Breeding Cherry Red Shrimp

>> Feeding Cherry Red Shrimp

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Red Cherry Shrimp Care

Keeping Red Cherry Shrimp is fairly easy for a dedicated aquarium hobbyist. Red Cherry Shrimp can be kept as long as the aquarium they are in has stable parameters, avoids harmful elements, feed them high quality food, and only contains acceptable tank mates.

Cherry Shrimp Water Parameters

Stable water parameters are very important when keeping Red Cherry Shrimp. They have a wide range of acceptable parameters such as a pH range of 6.0-7.6 and an acceptable temperature range of 65-80°F. It is far more important that the pH, temperature, and water hardness stay stable than to pinpoint a specific number. As long as they parameters are stable with in the acceptable range Cherry Red Shrimp will flourish in the aquarium.

There are a few elements that are commonly found in an aquarium that are very harmful to Red Cherry Shrimp. Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate are all very harmful. A cycled and well-maintained filtration system will eliminate Ammonia and Nitrate. Nitrate is the byproduct of the filter eliminating Ammonia and Nitrite and is removed by water changes or by growing plants.

Cherry Shrimp Breeding

Bright red female Red Cherry Shrimp carrying eggs.

Berried Adult Female. Noticed the green eggs. Egg color does not affect the color of the hatch.

The easiest of all shrimp to breed is that of the cherry shrimp. These fresh water shrimp are low demanding. Providing stable parameters in terms of PH, GH, and Temp is generally all that is needed. Ideally GH of 9-12 and PH of 7.0-7.6 with water temp between 70-75 in your water supply will promote breeding.

Feeding high quality shrimp diets rich in proteins aid in the rearing of baby shrimp. Baring in mind they may seem uninterested in your foods if an abundance of algae exists in your aquarium.

Filtration

A good filtration system and frequent water changes help aid in keeping water parameters stable. Due to the small size of Red Cherry Shrimp, a sponge filter, or power filter with a sponge pre-filter is recommended. Most shrimp keepers use sponge filters for this very reason.

Water changes of 20% a month is all that is necessary to keep Red Cherry Shrimp healthy, as long as you do not over feed the tank.

Red Cherry Shrimp Diet

These dwarf shrimp are amazing algae eaters. Keeping your shrimp with live plants is ideal as they will feed on the algae growth on them. Shrimp are opportunistic feeders, they will eat almost anything! Algae is a good main food, however supplemental feedings are recommended.

You should Feed high quality foods such as Ebita Breed Quatro 2. Powder foods for baby shrimp like MK Breed Baby Shrimp Food are ideal as well.

Heavy Metals

Aquatic plants use Nitrate as a source of nitrogen and help reduce this element in the water column. While aquatic plants are good for helping eliminate Nitrate, other fertilizers used to maintain plants can kill Cherry Red Shrimp. Copper is found in many aquatic plant fertilizers contain trace amounts of copper, so it not recommended to dose fertilizers in tanks that contain Cherry Red Shrimp.

Cherry Shrimp Tank Mates

A peaceful community aquarium containing only small fish makes a good home for Red Cherry Shrimp, but almost any fish that can fit a Cherry Red Shrimp in its mouth will make a quick and tasty meal out of them.

Recommended tank mates for shrimp include tetras, guppies, and smaller barbs. If breeding Cherry Red Shrimp, a shrimp only tank is recommended. Other shrimp safe tank mates would include freshwater snails like mystery snails, ramshorn snails, or nerite snails.

Cross Breeding Cherry Shrimp

Red Cherry Shrimp should never be put in a tank with other Neocaridina species to avoid cross breeding. They can be kept with Caridina species such as Amano Shrimp, Bee Shrimp and Crystal Red Shrimp. While Crystal Red and Bee Shrimp require lower pHs and temperatures than are common in the aquarium to breed, they will live just fine in most water parameters that Red Cherry Shrimp will live and breed in.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do Cherry Shrimp eat?

These dwarf shrimp eat soft algae in your aquarium. They are not picky and will eat anything including dead shrimp! Blanched vegetables are also common to feed in your shrimp aquarium.

How long do Cherry shrimp live?

Neocaridina shrimp live on average for two years. They will reproduce greatly leaving you behind generations of shrimp to come.

How many Cherry Shrimp per gallon?

Fresh water shrimp produce little bio-load. Keeping 75-125 per 10 gallons is not uncommon. A Shrimp Colony will keep itself in check. If your colony is breeding well you need to do nothing more.

How big do Cherry Shrimp get?

They will reach about 1.25-1.75 inches in length. Some people report 2 inches in length after feeding heavy protein rich diets.

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