Because you see them mixed in the same tank in a store doesn't really mean anything. Store staff are frequently poorly educated, and if they were loosing Cherry shrimps, I doubt they would even notice. When we didn't monthly inventories, we didn't even bother counting the shrimp (or Kuhlis loaches ;~)
I wouldn't be surprised if there was a bit of predation between species of shrimp (they all love to eat shrimp pellets), but I don't think it's going to be an issue if the food supply is sufficient. I'm amazing they don't eat their young so I wonder if they recognize the young of their species, or it's just a matter of hunger (so other shrimp, regardless of size are not at the top of their diet). Generally, if it moves, shrimp (& corys) will leave it alone. NetMax On Oct 20, 4:03 pm, "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Thanks. I knew the panda corys wouldn't bother the shrimp--actually > one of the amanos, which are of course a lot bigger than a cherry-- > will sometimes spar with a cory over a morsel it wants. The corys seem > to figure it's not worth the fight. I know rosy reds will eat > "wigglers"--mosquito larvae--but the adult cherries are a lot bigger > than that. I figure any of them would eat baby shrimp so I don't have > high hopes in that regard, but maybe if they breed, some of the babies > will survive. I was concerned about the adults at this point. > > The minnows spend a lot of their time hiding under a fake piece of > driftwood anyway and stay out of the plants. The amano shrimp > certainly aren't afraid of them but I don't think amanos are afraid of > much of anything. If the cherry shrimp stay mid to upper level in the > tank on the hornwort, the other inhabitants never go there. > > I did read of one claim that an amano shrimp might attack and kill a > cherry shrimp, but at my LFS they keep them in the same tank so I > think if that happens it must be rare. > -yngver > > On Oct 20, 10:50 am, NetMax <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > > I forget the technical term, but Cherry shrimpettes are born as > > miniature shrimp, so they can use their environment to evade > > predators. Having said that, the adage "if it fits in their mouth, it > > will be eaten" is fully applicable. The question is not whether they > > will eat the baby shrimp (they may, or they might not), but whether > > they make any significant impact on the shrimp population if they do. > > > Rosy Reds are opportunistic carnivores, feeding off mosquito larvae > > and small bugs in nature. Domesticated, it might not occur to them to > > hunt shrimp, and they would be slowed down if there was underbrush > > hiding the shrimp. > > > At least you don't have a micropredator (insectivore) fish which > > specializes in that kind of diet. A couple of Julidochromis might > > make a fatal dent in their population. > > > NetMax > > > On Oct 20, 11:08 am, "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > I have three rosy red minnows and they have never bothered the amanos > > > or ghost shrimp in the tank, but I wonder if cherries are so small > > > they might be tempted. There are plenty of hiding places for the > > > shrimp--lots of hornwort, anacharis, and decorations with small caves > > > that the amanos don't use--they have one area staked out and don't > > > leave it. > > > > I thought I better ask first because once the cherries go in the tank > > > I doubt I can ever net them again. > > > Thanks-- > > > yngver- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text -
