I has questions

[mmermmer]

Hi everyone,

Hope you don't mind my ignorance! A couple of health-related questions from me...

1. Having relocated my expectant mums to a smaller tank, they have successfully dropped/deposited/birthed/expelled (?) a number of shrimplets in the last couple of days (before I had the chance to vacuum the gravel for them). Do I need to be concerned about a bit of waste in the tank, specifically snail and shrimp poo? How exactly should I clean this without risking certain death-by-siphon to all the little guys? ...if I need to?

See image

http://www.flickr.com/photos/108815754@N05/11835608854/

2. Also, what is the expected life-span of a Red Cherry Shrimp? ...In the event that i have some die and it's possibly too soon (touch cheap IKEA wooden veneer).

Thanks :)

[Squiggle]

You should be right with a small amount of waste on the bottom but if you really want to get rid of it you could try to syphon it out using an airline & don't have the other end too low so the suction isn't too strong.

Shrimp lifespan is generally 2 years. :encouragement:

[mmermmer]

2 YEARS! that's fantastic! (I imaged they were a lot like a fruit fly...1 or 2 shags and then they die of exhaustion)

[Squiggle]

Hahaha, nah they're not that bad. :rofl:

[Brado]

Hahahha wouldnt that be a crap life!!

[shrimpstan]

The waste or poop matter is not as important as the ammonia it will release. Once released the poop is just empty matter sitting there. The ammonia is probably long gone, through water changes and bacteria conversions, otherwise the girls may have died from the stress and you would notice poor survival rate. I guess though if you do end up siphoning some little ones u can always net them back into the tank.. I use those large Asian soup spoons for stuff life this because some nets can be a nightmare when dealing with new borns. After a bit of practice it gets easy.. I used to catch fighter fry using these :p

Great work on having new babies in your tank! Hope u get heaps more! :encouragement: