A question that I am asked often and see posted on forums often is “How do you catch Dwarf Shrimp?”

When attempting to catch Dwarf Shrimp, if not using a proven technique, it can be quite a pain because Dwarf Shrimp can be fast and quite agile. But using this simple technique it is very simple to catch a large amount of shrimp or even target a specific shrimp.

Step 1
Drop a piece of sinking shrimp food (such as Hikari Shrimp Cuisine) as close to the front glass as possible.

Step 2
Allow time for the shrimp to gather around the food

Step 3
Slowly insert net behind shrimp, putting the shrimp between the net and glass.

Step 4
Move net toward shrimp and scoop up as many as needed.

The shrimp will normally be distracted by the food and are usually easy to catch. I tend to scoop under the shrimp just on top of the substrate and it seems to work VERY well.

Good luck!

Iodine is an important part of a Dwarf Shrimps life cycle. It is needed to promote healthy molting and to encourage immune responses to injuries. It is obvious that any Dwarf Shrimp keeper would want their shrimp to have adequate amounts of iodine, but is supplementation needed?

A staple in the diets of most Dwarf Shrimp is algae, either in the naturally occurring form in the aquarium or as part of their diet provided by their keeper. Almost all algae have a high amount of iodine in their cells, and this iodine is readily accepted by Dwarf Shrimp and, in my experience, has been more than an adequate source.

I often read about new Dwarf Shrimp hobbies, and even some experienced ones, supplementing their Dwarf Shrimps iodine intake by putting liquid iodine into the water column. In my many years of researching this, I have never found any credible evidence that suggest that a Dwarf Shrimp can even use iodine found in the water column.

It is true that many marine invertebrates need a fair amount of iodine in their water, and they can use the iodine in the water column. I believe that the idea that marine inverts use iodine from the water has spurred on the belief that Dwarf Shrimp can as well.

Again, I have never seen any credible proof that Dwarf Shrimp can use iodine in the water column and I have plenty of evidence that it is not needed as a supplement. I have many aquariums with Dwarf Shrimp and I have never supplemented any type of iodine. My shrimp have always molted well and have always recovered well from any type of injury.

So what is my suggestion for the use of an iodine supplement?

I suggest avoiding supplementing any type of iodine in a Dwarf Shrimp aquarium. I have never seen any benefits to it and if the iodine is over dosed it can be harmful or deadly. If you are extremely concerned about your Dwarf Shrimps iodine intake (or lack there of), just make sure to feed a balanced diet that includes a high algae content.