ghost shrimp as a gauge on shrimpkeeping skills

[fishbrain]

Would keeping 28 cent ghost shrimp alive be a good test in telling if I could keep more expensive shrimp?

[Balloon Fish]

depends on the type of shrimp. I've heard bumble bee shrimp (or was it bee shrimp?), well anyways they are harder to keep compared to ghost shrimp. But if you are getting cherry shrimp then their requirements are pretty similiar. The main things that kill shrimp is if you have copper in the water or ammonia, nitrites, or nitrates (in large amounts). Another thing to consider is the kH level in your tank, if you have a low kH then there are possibilities that your shrimp could die when they try to molt. But you can add cuttle bone to the water to raise up the kH a little. When i say low kH i mean about 4 and under. So to answer your question, the ghost shrimp are just to check the basic needs like low copper, low ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, good kH level, and if your tank is shrimp compatible. Things like the diets of the shrimp depends on the type of shrimp like bamboo shrimp you need to make sure you have stuff in the water for them to eat.

edit: if you are looking for cherry shrimp you can ask Mustafa, the admin of www.petshrimp.net cause he lives in NY, NY which is in the same state as you are

[Lotus]

To be honest, I didn't have much luck with ghost shrimp. My tanks tend to run a little too hot for them, so they never lived more than a few months. Ghost shrimp also tend to be one of a number of species, so it can be hard to know what their requirements are.

On the other hand, I have had amanos for around 18 months with only a couple of losses (due to accidents or stupidity on my part). My cherry shrimp also breed like crazy, with very few losses over the last year or so.

Other shrimp that I haven't kept yet can be harder to keep, such as crystal red shrimp or bee shrimp. I know if I ever want crystal red shrimp I would have to get a chiller, as they don't do well at higher temps.

So, in my experience, I wouldn't say ghosts are not a good indicator of shrimp keeping skills.

[fishbrain]

Thanks for the replies!
Of course I bought 4 "ghost shrimp" b4 posting lol. Can anyone guess at their temp. range? (seeing as they could be any # of species). The 5gal. tank I have them in is about 80°.

Lotus, what kind of setup do your cherry shrimp breed in? Breeding some shrimp then trying some in a few of my community tanks has been an idea of mine for awhile...... Thought I'd try the cheapest choice 1st.

[Lotus]

Yeah, that's about the temp when my ghost shrimp started dying

I have cherries in several set ups: One shrimp-only tank; one with male endlers livebearers and some cories; one with espes rasboras and dojo loaches. Large fish (like angels) will eat shrimp or their babies. Smaller fish will eat the babies, but if you have enough java fern or riccia, a few will survive. In my shrimp-only tank I went from 15 to more than 100 within a couple of months. In the endler tank, the population increases slowly but steadily. I'm not really sure how many I have.

A 10g tank makes a great shrimp-only tank. You need to make sure you cover the filter intake if you're using a HOB or canister filter, so the babies don't get sucked up. A 10g is much better, as it's easier to keep water quality good.

[Balloon Fish]

if you are gonna do a breeding tank some sponge filters are enough in my opinion