Shrimp Gone AWOL

[RTR]

Amano/japnica shrimp have been bred in captivity - that is not new at all. But they do require SW to get through the multistage larval form before settling out.

I have never kept any ghost shrimp smaller than 1 1/2" as adults, most are are at or over 2" at maturity. There are multiple species sold as ghosts in this country (including some Marcobrachium shrimp which are definitely not ghosts). But of the 4-6 species we see most often, one or two species will breed in FW, they have an abbreviated larval stage (hours for the species I have bred most) and will survive and do well in FW planted tanks. We used to have an article here on breeding them - I'll have to dig it ouit and send it back to the library here. Our species are from the Gulf Coast of SE USA (Florida to Texas). Not all shrimp sold in the hobby as ghosts are the same. If your ghosts are unidentified transparennt shrimp from other areas, I have no clue as to what they are and whether or not they can be captive bred. One clue is that the FW breeders tend to have large eggs, while those requiring SW larval stage(s) tend to be small egg types. The small eggs indicate that there are likely to be multiple larval stages which will grow as the eat from the plankton. FW forms tend to settle out quickly as miniature adults and feed first on infusoria which they graze from the substrate and plants.

HTH