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I don't think any of those things should effect the shrimp. IME identical tanks develop along different trajectories to different stable conditions that will contain a particular biochemistry and micro-flora and fauna. Sometimes all you need to do is shake things up a bit and send the tank off in a different direction to a new stable state that is hopefully more favourable to the shrimp. This could be as simple as moving the shrimp to a bucket, draining the water and do a new scape. If you don't want to bother catching all the shrimp you can still do a lot of moving things around leaving the tank running - e.g. gravel vac the substrate to remove a lot of "mud", take the wood out - sun dry it, then put it back in in a new spot, maybe a new globe in the light if you can (or swap the lights with another tank to change the colour temperature). Redirect the outflow from the filter to flow the water in a new direction. Some new plants. In other words just change things up... a new start with all the same gear. Nothing to lose.

Fantastic to hear that the nursery tank is working so well so quickly! I would just carry on as it is at the moment as it may all work out given a bit more time and with more shrimps as you put them in from the nursery tank. When I have only a few shrimps they tend to be hiding a lot but when I was 'overstocked' they were much braver. IF it is possible you could do an experiment of dropping the big tank water level down maybe to half (if easily possible) and see if that makes a difference as obviously then the pressure will be less? If it makes no difference after a month then go back to full water level? Maybe they think it is winter as the pressure is greater in the big tank????? In the long run though if it continues to be a problem with the big tank there may be an advantage to doing the nursery tank as you can control the numbers better in the big tank that way when you get further down the line and over-run by just transferring a few to the nursery tank to have the babies and knowing that the berried females shrimplets in the big tank won't survive and cause too much of a population explosion - a sort of family planning' for your shrimps........ And you have a backup source of shrimps should there be a disaster in one of the tanks? REALLY pleased that at least the nursery tank works. I would let the shrimplets get to 1cm before transferring them back to the big tank to give them a fighting chance! I still tend to think if you just continue as it is given time it may sort itself out on its own, unless it has to do with the pressure then carrying on with the nursery tank will sort that out and has some advantages in number control long term. Simon

@Grubs take a look at articles... should be up and running now... thanks!

Hello again everyone. Just an update and a question. My nursery tank has been working like gang buster and I've got 21 babies and 3 more pregnant females. Thanks everyone for your help. My question is what should I change in the 60 gallon to fix my issue with the dying shrimp? The differences in the tanks are Malaysian driftwood, fluval filter, splash bar, atmospheric pressure (because the 60 gallon is 30 inches tall, nursery is 12)