Ghost shrimp

[armyngmike1982]

How long does it take for them to breed. I'm looking at setting up a 10 or 20g tank to breed ghost shrimp to use as food for my oscars. And what do you feed ghost shrimp

[ayla]

They eat algae and will also scavenge on just about anything. You can give them a sinking pellet or 2.

If you start with adult males and females, they'll probably start mating pretty soon after settling in.

The female will carry her eggs for about 3 weeks. She will release the larva over a short period of time and they will be free swimming and VERY tiny. Keeping them alive can be tricky, you need to feed them infusoria or have them in a well established tank with infusoria of its own.

After about 1 week they will get legs, and after 5 weeks they will be adults.

Just make sure to start with shrimp proven to be actual ghost/glass shrimp and not prawns or other random species!

[armyngmike1982]

Can you buy infusoria. Or if I let the tank go with a bunch of ghost shrimp will it grow on its own? I'm gonna get a sponge filter for the tank. But It sounds fairly easiy to breed them

[pillguy]

Thought ghost shrimp needed brackish water to develop from the larval stage. Have been looking at something like this too. Think you might have to look at crystal red shrimp, they do not have a larval stage. Might be a bit of work for feeders though.

[armyngmike1982]

I just want some small shrimp that are quick and abundant breeders

[kleankord]

I have had ghosts for 3 months and red cherries for less than 2. although the ghosts berried I haven't seen babies. but I have seen quite a few red cherry babies.
Posted via Mobile Device

[ayla]

You can't buy infusoria that I'm aware of, but do some googling and you'll find how to make it.

It really is going to be pretty tricky to keep the larva alive. It's hard to keep a dense enough amount of infusoria for them to eat.

You may get some babies, but without a breeding pond, I wouldn't count on being able to sustain enough to use as feeders. a 10 gallon tank isn't very big, and the bigger you go with an indoor setup, the harder raising the larva will be.

[Dr. Awkward]

I have a friend who accidentally bred them in a 10 gallon planted tank. She started with 3-4 adult shrimp and got about one baby shrimp every month or two. There were a lot of snails in the tank, probably where they were getting infusoria to eat.

Have you seen the threads on here about marbled crayfish? That sounds to me like a really good option for growing your own live food.

[Luiz]

Go for Cherry Shrimp, they reproduce like rabbits ,,,, grow fast ,,,, like full size in 2 or 3 months.

Each female may hold 20 or 30 eggs or more.

Eat algae waffers.

They are full fresh water shrimp, no brackish water needed.

Very easy.

BTW: no need infusoria, the babies like a tiny replica from the parents and eat algae waffers too.

[ayla]

while I agree that cherries are easier to breed,I don't think they are a suitable food for an oscar. Well, maybe as an appetizer.:D

You could breed cherry shrimp and use your profits to buy good frozen stuff for your guys if you'd like your hobby to be a bit more self-sustaining.

I agree that the marbled crays are a better choice if you want to go the live food route.

[Lp14301]

Are ghost shrimp a good source of live food?