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SnailsTiger shrimp aquarium | 5 beautiful tiger shrimp
Looking for a colorful dwarf shrimp to add to your freshwater aquarium? We've got just the thing for you: tiger shrimp. This common name for striped variations of Caridina mariae and C. serrata encompasses a whole bunch of stunning shrimp, so let's have a look at them to help you find the perfect start to your very own tiger shrimp aquarium.
We'll discuss 5 beautiful "true" tiger dwarf shrimp and one stripey bonus species. Don't forget to tell us in the comments which variety is your favorite!
Table of Contents
Red tiger shrimp (Caridina mariae “Red Tiger”)
Let's start off the list with a spectacular red specimen: a selectively bred color variety of Caridina mariae shrimp appropriately known as the red tiger shrimp. Lower grades of red tigers are already nice to look at, with a mostly transparent body and thin red lines, but the higher grades are where it's really at. They'll have more (though never fully) opaque red coloration and broader, more even stripes.
There are also red tiger shrimp available that sport a blueish base color rather than a transparent base color.
Although tiger shrimp eyes are naturally dark brown to black in color, tiger shrimp can have a naturally occurring mutation that gives them bright orange eyes. Very striking, as they almost seem to glow in the dark! It's suspected the mutation causes poor vision in the shrimp, but this doesn't seem to affect them in the slightest.
You can find more information about these beautiful dwarf shrimp in the full red tiger shrimp care guide.
Did you know? Tiger shrimp naming is generally done like this: (optional: body color) + (optional: eye color) + (stripe color). So a red tiger shrimp with a blue body and orange eyes would be referred to as a blue body orange eye red tiger shrimp. It's a mouthful, but at least other shrimpers know what you're talking about!
Blue tiger shrimp (Caridina mariae “Blue Tiger”)
Meet the most popular species for a tiger shrimp aquarium: Caridina mariae "Blue Tiger", better known, of course, as the blue tiger shrimp. Another selectively bred color variety, this one can range from pale to deep blue with well-defined blackish stripes. There are even blue tigers whose color is so opaque that their stripes aren't really visible anymore! These are referred to as royal blue tiger shrimp.
Like the red tiger shrimp, blue tigers can carry the gene for orange eyes. In fact, OEBTs (orange eyed blue tiger shrimp) are probably more common nowadays than specimens with normal, black eyes. It just looks great, especially on very dark blue shrimp.
Interestingly, blue tigers can also occur with silver eyes, although these aren't bred as commonly. Another common mutation is the rusty gene, which manifests in dark red coloration on the shrimp's back. You can find more about tiger shrimp coloring in the blue tiger shrimp grading guide.
If you're interested in acquiring some blue tigers, can find out everything you need to know about keeping your population in great shape in the full blue tiger shrimp care guide.
Blonde tiger shrimp (Caridina mariae “Tiger”)
Yep, we've got another Caridina mariae variety for you! In fact, the blonde tiger shrimp isn't just any old C. mariae - it's THE C. mariae as it's found in the wild. The aforementioned red and blue tiger shrimp are both selectively bred color varieties of the species. This is not.
Many wild-color shrimp aren't too exciting to look at, but that's different with this one. The blonde tiger shrimp has a variety of colors and patterns. It sports a mostly translucent body, although it can sometimes lean towards reddish or blueish. Its face and tail tip are generally yellow and it has a stripey pattern in reddish brown or black.
Blonde tiger shrimp can throw all sorts of mutations, so can make for quite a fun addition to your tank. They're not too fussy as long as the water quality is kept high.
Tangerine tiger shrimp (Caridina serrata “Tangerine Tiger”)
Common naming for dwarf shrimp can be messy, and that's the case for the tangerine tiger shrimp. Although the "tiger" denomination suggests it's one of the Caridina mariae species, it's actually not. It's a different (though closely related) species scientifically known as Caridina serrata.
Wild type Caridina serrata shrimp are a dull brown in color, but whaddaya know, like many other shrimp, this species has the ability to display all sorts of color mutations. One of these, an orange mutation, was quickly picked up by enthusiasts and bred into a stable line. Because these shrimp have some reddish stripes on their orange bodies, they were dubbed "tangerine tiger shrimp".
Tangerine tigers are a great option if you're looking for a colorful dwarf shrimp that's not too fussy. They breed readily, usually quicker than the other tigers, and make for good beginner shrimp. Do remember that many Caridina shrimp can interbreed, so if you don't want to muddle the genetics of your population, stick to keeping them with shrimp from other genera. Red Cherries from the genus Neocaridina should work well.
You can find everything you need to know about keeping these shrimp in the full tangerine tiger shrimp care guide.
Fancy tiger shrimp (Caridina cantonensis x mariae)
As we just mentioned in the previous paragraph, many Caridina dwarf shrimp can interbreed. Sometimes this is considered undesirable, but other times, breeders will mix different shrimp and discover some beautiful little gems in their offspring. So was born the fancy tiger shrimp, the love child of Caridina cantonensis (bee shrimp) and Caridina mariae (tiger shrimp).
Specifically, fancy tiger shrimp are bred using the "crystal" varieties of C. cantonensis, which themselves are the product of long lines of selective breeding for color and pattern. To produce red fancy tigers, Crystal Red shrimp are allowed to breed with tiger shrimp. To produce a black version, Crystal Black shrimp are used.
This relatively recent addition to the huge variety of different dwarf shrimp types has become a fast favorite. The deep coloration with clear stripes is almost a little reminiscent of a fishbone galaxy shrimp, but without the price tag and more challenging care that results from the extensive backbreeding required to produce those.
BONUS: Amazon tiger shrimp (Euryrhynchus amazoniensis)
Here's one species for a tiger shrimp aquarium you likely haven't met before! The Amazon tiger shrimp of the genus Euryrhynchus has nothing to do with the Caridina dwarf shrimp we've discussed so far, but we still wanted to discuss it as a bonus. It's an unusual, larger shrimp with a decorative tiger pattern.
It's easy enough to tell an Amazon tiger apart from "true" tiger shrimp. Although at a maximum size of around 2", it's not much larger, it sports two massive front claws that can grow almost as large as the body itself.
Despite its daunting claws, this species is peaceful. It will need soft, acidic water with a low TDS and relatively high temperatures. If you can find some, they should make for a unique project and a great addition to certain Amazon biotope set-ups.
