Jump to content

best algae clean up crew and interbreeding?


Subtlefly

Recommended Posts

Hi team,

So my tank is cycled and water parameters are looking really good.  I have some high quality blue dream shrimp on the way - but what are your ideas on clean up crew?  Will the blue dreams be enough with a few nerite snails?  I know octo catfish are great but the tank needs to be really well established first.  What about the "Australian Amano Shrimp"?  I feel a bit sad about having crew in the tank that can never breed (like the poor old nerite snails).. so what about ninja or chameleon shrimp? or NQ algae eaters?  Will they interbreed with the blue dreams?  Am I better off to just see how it goes for a while and put up with some algae - and then maybe put a small group of octo catfish on the job?

What do you reckon?

Thanks and have a great day

sub

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would just see how it goes and let the tank settle before adding anything other than the blue dream and snails. You could add a couple of amano but they will be dominant over the smaller neocaridina so don't get more than a couple, but that will add another dimension/interest!

I have only ever had an algae problem when I have a new or recently set up tank, once settled I have never had a problem with algae?

I don't think you will be able to breed the ninja shrimp as they have larvae in brackish water according to my book?

Simon

Edited by sdlTBfanUK
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

None of the aussie natives will interbreed with anything, so ur good for that. Typus (aussie amano) can be freaking expense ($25 ea at my LFS) cuz they're not in demand. Riffles can be bred in fresh, as can DRN, i think ninjas/chameleons, paratya (ghost/glass), and blackmore river shrimp. DAE won't breed in freshwater, nor will NQ algae shrimp afaik. Most snails will breed out of control, but I have MTS and don't mind them (I also have a dense carpet tho). You could also have fish for your cleanup crew. My favourites are SAE (true SAE tho), otto cats and cories. All very easy to source, and super cute imo. My SAE nibbles on my fingers whenever my hands are in the tank for maintenance - he's a very personable fish. To be honest though, you could just get 5 or so nerites (micro aquatic shop probably has a deal) and they could handle the whole tank. They're tiny, but they demolish algae. 

Hope that helps. My favourite resource for the shrimp is Aquagreen, and particularly this document they've produced. https://www.aquagreen.com.au/files/Freshwater_Shrimps_of_NT.pdf

2 hours ago, sdlTBfanUK said:

You could add a couple of amano

Unfortunately we don't have them here in Aus.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Subtlefly,You are not going to need a clean up crew ... yet. 

Don't trust SAE's with shrimp.

The first signs of algae you will see is brown diatoms. Diatoms are best handled by snails or Ottos. Or just scrub it off ! you don't need a clean up crew for diatoms. Any diatoms you scrap off the glass will be eaten by the shrimps.

SAE's are great at cleaning up green hair algae, and black beard algae. But SAEs can't get at diatoms.  And as I said, don't trust them with shrimp. 

But don't get them until you see signs of loosing the battle with algae. What algae you have will determine the type of fish you can use to combat it. 

Edited by jayc
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah, I've never had them in a tank with shrimp, sorry if I provided misleading advice. I've found that if I cycle my tanks with plants, I don't get a crazy bacterial bloom, nor do I get brown diatoms - instead I get hair algae (yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay...)

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Join Our Community!

    Register today, ask questions and share your shrimp and fish tank experiences with us!

  • Must Read SKF Articles

  • Posts

    • beanbag
      Update to say that after a few gravel vacs, front wall scrub, moss / floating plant trim, that the condition seems to have improved.  My current theory is that it is due to waste / debris management, where "stuff" like that brown mulm accumulates in the substrate and behind the HMF filters.  Maybe some tanks can somehow deal with it, but mine can't.  Also another experienced shrimper suggested that maybe those "shell bugs" don't just live on the shrimps but also in this debris.  Maybe this is the reason some tanks fail due to "old tank syndrome" where all they need is a good gravel vac? Also, I am guessing that plant trim helps too because now more of the nutrients and light go into growing algae instead of more plants? Well anyway for this tank I will try weekly water change and monthly gravel vac / plant trim.  For my next tank, I'm thinking of something like an under-gravel system where this mulm can fall down and I vac it out.
    • sdlTBfanUK
      Good to have an update and good to hear you are getting shrimplets, so hopefully your colony will continue and you may not get to the point where you have to cull some to stop over population. These type of shrimp only live 12 - 18 months so the adult deaths may be natural? If you have the time I would do weekly 25% water changes, adding the new water via a drip system and do some vacuuming clean of the substrate each week, even if only a different bit each week! See if that helps in a few months and if it does then stick with that regime? It should help reduce any build-ups that may be occuring!
    • beanbag
      Hello again, much belated update: The tank still has "cycles" of 1-2 month "good streaks" where everybody seems to be doing well, and then a bad streak where the short antenna problem shows up again, and a shrimp dies once every few days.  I am not sure what causes things to go bad, but usually over the course of a few days I will start to see more shrimp quietly standing on the HMF filter, and so I know something is wrong.  Since I am not "doing anything" besides the regular 1-2 week water changes, I just assume that something bad is building up.  Here's a list of things that I've tried that are supposed to be "can't hurt" but didn't prevent the problem either: Dose every other day with Shrimp Fit (very small dose, and the shrimp seem to like it) Sotching Oxydator Seachem Purigen to keep the nitrates lower Keeping the pH below 5.5 with peat Things that I don't do often, so could possibly "reset" the tank back to a good streak, are gravel vac and plant trim, so maybe time to try those again. One other problem I used to have was that sometimes a shrimp would suddenly stop eating with a full or partially full digestive tract that doesn't clear out, and then the shrimp will die within a few days.  I suspected it was one of the foods in my rotation - Shrimp Nature Infection, which contains a bunch of herbal plant things.  I've had this in my food rotation for a few years now and generally didn't seem to cause problems, but I removed it from the rotation anyway.  I don't have a lot of adult Golden Bees at this point so I can't really tell if it worked or not. Overall the tank is not too bad - during the good streaks occasionally a shrimp will get berried and hatch babies with a 33-50% survival rate.  So while there are fewer adults now, there are also a bunch of babies roaming around.  I guess this tank will stagger on, but I really do need to take the time to start up a new tank.  (or figure out the problem)
    • jayc
      If that is the offspring, then the parents are unlikely to be PRL. I tend to agree with you. There are very few PRLs in Australia. And any that claim to be needs to show proof. PRL genes have to start as PRL. CRS that breed true after x generations doesn't turn it into a PRL. Neither can a Taiwan bee shrimp turn into a PRL despite how ever many generations. I've never seen a PRL with that sort of red colour. I have on Red Wines and Red Shadows - Taiwan bee shrimps. So somewhere down the line one of your shrimp might have been mixed with Taiwan bees and is no longer PRL. It just tanks one shrimp to mess up the genes of a whole colony. 
    • sdlTBfanUK
      Sorry, missed this one somehow! The PRL look fantastic and the odd ones look part PRL and part Red wine/Red shadow in the colour. They are still very beautiful but ideally should be seperated to help keep the PRL clean if you can do that.  Nice clear photos!
×
×
  • Create New...