shrimp-attack.com

Here are some updates from my shrimp tank

1. Goldflakes (caridina spinata): 2 adults died, appearantly having molting problems, had brown bubbles in the neck before. One shrimp is berried! Change filtration to undergravel-canister-combination to reduce drift; shrimp like it and wander around more.
2. New Bee Shrimp: 2 shrimps are berried but one only carrys few eggs – they seem to be quick egg dropper if something is not convenient. Started a crossbreeding test and put a female ‘Golden Snow White’ in the tank.
3. Tuepfel: The first shrimp ist berried, took a long long time to go!
4. CR/CB Shrimp: Have offspring the second time- they like Akadama as gravel.
5. Black Tiger Hybrids: I set up a little tank with undergravel-air-filter and JBL Manado for my Black Tiger. Will crossbreed them when older.
6. Supertiger have offspring too.

These shrimp need very soft water. I am still waiting for my first offspring. One berried female perhaps has dropped the eggs or the shrimplets starved while I have been on vacation. I will have a try if they crossbreed with caridina cantonensis if I have the time. This would prove that they are not ‘normal’ Bumble Bee but New Bee.

Andreas Karge has recently shown some pictures from the new shrimp found in Vietnam. The trival name of this beautiful shrimp is ‘Princess Bee’. A scientific description and examination will surely follow soon.

The shrimp are held on SRBS with undergravel filter: Water parameter: KH 0, GH 6, pH 6-6,5, 24-25°C and moderate water changes every two weeks.

Please visit Andreas’ website (www.caridea.de) for further information.

New Bee Shrimp from Southern China (province Guandong) have reached hobbyists since 2006. They often resemble the phenotype of a Bumble Bee shrimp, although they don’t belong to the caridina breviata group. New Bee Shrimp are interesting for breeders for they can crossbreed with caridina cantonensis / caridina serrata and haven’t been selected to in to high grades yet.

Due to the raising scientific interest, the New Bee Shrimp have been divided and defined in four origin species within the group caridina:

• caridina venusta
• caridina tumida
• caridina maculata
• caridina meridionalis

Some European and Chinese scientists (Karge/Klotz and Wang/Liang/Li) have had a closer look to the New Bee. A very informative overview of the serrata group and the New Bee was written by Andreas Karge in German.

On their spring trip to China, Andreas Karge and Werner Klotz discovered in 2009 a shrimp with a line on the back which identified as caridina cantonenis: It did not belong to the neocaridina group. They caught a blue and white shrimp with stripes also.

This is, in my opinion, another hint that we cannot be certain to which group our freshwater shrimp belong. Shrimpists should therefore stop wondering about tiger shrimp with a back line like they did at aquaticquotidient. We should carefully read and argue if users have strange kind of crossbreds in their tanks no one ever has seen before.

It is possible that all the classification has to be revised in the future because scientific methods of glossary have to be more precisely. Perhaps only full DNA-analysis can disclose the secret of the caridina serrata.

Practical advises

New Bee Shrimp are not that easy to keep. They need very soft water. Friedrich Bitter describes the natural environment as little brooks with drift, no plants but tree leaves in it.  In their living space, enemies like fish often miss.  That’s why the shrimp are not shy and usually show.

Water parameters are important for breeding and healthy offspring. New Bee Shrimp shouldn’t be held too warm -  but in soft, clear, fresh water. This means:

• LW 80 -20 micro siemens
• pH 6,4 – even 5,4
• 15-22 Grad C

Images

by google

Sources

• caridina magazin 1/2009, 20-26
• caridina magazin 2/2009, 70-76
• discussions in german internet forums as crustawelt.de; garnelenforum.de