19 Cherry Shrimp Facts That Will Surely Amaze You!
Cherry shrimp can be fascinating creatures. They possess unique characteristics that set them apart from other fish in an aquarium.
In this article, I’ll talk about some of the interesting facts regarding cherry shrimps. I have collected all these facts after hours of research and about 7 cups of black coffee. All these facts amazed me and made me love these little creatures even more!
I hope these facts will help you to know more about your cherry shrimp.
Let’s get started!
1. Cherry Shrimps Can Be Cleaners For The Aquarium
Cherry shrimps are mostly kept for their algae-cleaning capability. They are excellent algae eaters. In fact, algae fall into the staple diet for cherry shrimps.
So, if you are having a hard time cleaning algae from your aquarium, just throw in a bunch of cherry shrimp. They’ll clean the algae within no time.
Also, cherry shrimps eat different biological substances from the substrate. As a result, these substances don’t decompose and produce ammonia in the aquarium.
Thus, cherry shrimps help to keep the aquarium neat & healthy.
2. They Eat (Nearly) Everything
One interesting fact about cherry shrimps is they are omnivorous. It means they eat everything, including both vegetation and meat. Cherry shrimps are excellent scavengers. They eat uneaten food, different biological substances, and fish poops from the substrate.
Algae is also one of their staple diets. Thus, cherry shrimps keep the tank clean by eating almost everything.
At the larvae stage, shrimp depend on plankton. When mature, they live on algae, dead fish, snails, plants, etc. So, there is no need to worry about their diet.
3. Unique Reproduction System
Most fish reproduce by laying eggs, which they carry inside their bodies. However, this is not the case for cherry shrimp, which have a unique reproduction system.
Cherry shrimp carry their eggs under their bodies, which can be clearly seen. A shrimp carrying eggs is known as a berried shrimp.
When ready for breeding, the female releases a type of sex hormone. The males react to this hormone and start the breeding process. When the breeding process is completed, the female deposits the sperm, which forms into eggs later.
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4. Molting Helps Cherry Shrimps To Grow
If you’ve been keeping cherry shrimps for some time, you’ve definitely seen white shrimp bodies lying on the substrate. Many beginners mistake those for dead shrimps. But that is not the case.
These are actually the cherry shrimp’s old exoskeletons. The shrimp get rid of their old exoskeleton and form a new one—it’s like changing a dress. This process is known as molting.
Molting is extremely important for the growth of cherry shrimp. They molt as they grow, a completely natural process. At the younger stage, cherry shrimp molt almost once a week.
It can be difficult for beginners to distinguish between molted skin and dead shrimp. Here’s how you can identify both. Molted skin will appear whitish in color. They look exactly like a living shrimp.
On the other hand, dead shrimps turn pinkish after a while.
Do you know shrimps can face a lot of problems, even death, due to failed molting? Why does molting sometimes fail? How to prevent failed moltings? All the answers are in this article.
Most Popular Neocaridina Shrimps As Pets: Infographic
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5. Excellent Swimmers (In Backward)
Cherry shrimps are very skilled at swimming. But there’s a catch. They are more adept at swimming backward rather than forward. Yes, you’ve heard me right!
Cherry shrimps have many arthropods in their body. They flex their muscles using the arthropods and the tail to swim backward. By moving the abdomen towards the body, the cherry shrimps can shoot their body backward.
The speed is so fast that it happens almost in an instant. Cherry shrimp use this type of movement to hide from prey quickly.
However, that doesn’t mean cherry shrimps can’t swim forward. Though their speed is much less, they can swim forward, too. For this, cherry shrimps use their limbs underneath their bodies.
Another interesting fact is that though cherry shrimps are excellent swimmers, their primary mode of moving is walking, not swimming.
6. Their Skin Is Yummy
I’ve already mentioned the molting process of cherry shrimp. Cherry shrimps molt in order to grow. During each molting phase, they leave their old exoskeleton and form a new one.
You should never throw out the old exoskeleton. It contains very important nutrients and minerals for the shrimp. And cherry shrimps love to eat their exoskeleton, too.
After each molting phase, the cherry shrimp gets very vulnerable as it has to form a completely new exoskeleton. During this stage, it needs high-grade nutrients and minerals. The old exoskeleton can be an easy source for that.
7. Changing Colors
Do you think lizards are the only animals that can change their colors? Well, you are wrong. Cherry shrimps can do that, too!
Cherry shrimps can change their color depending on many factors. The quality of the diet, nutrition, water parameters, water quality, etc. determine the color of the cherry shrimp.
The higher the quality of the diet, the color will be more intense and brighter. Also, water parameters like pH take an active role in determining the color of cherry shrimps.
Generally, if the cherry shrimp is living a happy and healthy life, it will show a more intense color.
8. Matching The Substrate
Cherry shrimps are extremely good at camouflaging and blending with the substrate. They do this by changing the color to match the substrate.
If your tank has a light-colored substrate, the shrimp will show a lighter shade of red. This helps them blend in with the substrate and stay safe from predators.
On the other hand, if you use a dark substrate, the cherry shrimp’s color will become much darker and more intense. That’s why most shrimp keepers advise using a darker substrate in the shrimp tank.
By using a darker substrate, your shrimps will show much more intense color and beauty.
9. Very Quick Dress Change
During the molting phase, the cherry shrimps come out of their old exoskeleton and form a new one. Though this process occurs very often, it is extremely hard to observe them doing so.
This is because cherry shrimp complete the molting process very quickly – within less than a few seconds.
Though we can take hours to change dress, for cherry shrimps, it is like a few seconds.
Quite interesting, right?
10. Where Are The Larvae?
This is a very distinguishing characteristic of cherry shrimps. Most fish, including many other species of shrimp, have a larvae stage. During reproduction, the eggs hatch into larvae, which grow into baby fish later on.
However, cherry shrimps do not have a larvae stage. That means the eggs hatch into tiny shrimp babies, which look exactly like miniature versions of adult cherry shrimp.
At the initial stage, the shrimp babies hide among rocks and plants and live mainly on biofilm. Soon, they turn into adult shrimp.
11. Taking Care Of The Eggs
The female cherry shrimps are very careful about their eggs. They take care of it until the eggs are hatched into shrimp babies.
As I’ve said earlier, the female cherry shrimps carry their eggs underneath the body. During this stage, the female constantly fans the eggs using its tail.
Like shrimp, eggs need oxygen. Fanning does exactly that. It provides oxygen to the eggs and keeps them healthy. Thus, female cherry shrimps take care of their eggs until hatching.
12. Protective Body Cream
As we use different body creams to protect our bodies, cherry shrimps also have a protective body cream of their own.
The cream is nothing but a mucus secreted from the body of cherry shrimps. This mucus acts like a protective cream and keeps the cherry shrimps safe from different parasites as well as infections.
There is another function of this slimy mucus. It helps the shrimp to swim faster through the water.
13. Females Are Brighter
In the case of cherry shrimps, the females are larger and brighter in color. Often, the female cherry shrimps have much more intense coloration than their male counterparts.
Also, when developing eggs, the females form a saddle spot on their backs. This way, you can easily identify the females from the males (Of course, when they are sexually mature).
14. Tail Is The Propeller
Like other fishes, cherry shrimps don’t have any fins. They swim through the water with the help of their tail. The tail works as a propeller in this case.
It helps the shrimps to propel forward or backward. Also, the arthropods play a vital role during swimming.
15. Cherry Shrimps Are Social
Unlike most other fish species, cherry shrimps are very social. In fact, they thrive well in a group of at least 10 shrimps. Without being in a group, the shrimps don’t do well individually.
Cherry shrimp also feel safer when they are part of a large group. They are also very peaceful in nature. In my whole shrimp-keeping experience, I have seen cherry shrimp fight with each other only a couple of times.
So, if you are planning to keep cherry shrimp, I highly encourage you to buy at least 10 of them. This will ensure a balanced ratio of males and females in the group. As a result, you’ll soon start to see baby shrimp roaming around in the tank.
16. It Can Be Difficult To Stop Reproduction
Once you’ve set up a decent shrimp tank and your cherry shrimps are living peacefully there, soon you’ll observe breeding. Once cherry shrimps start to breed, it is really difficult to control their population.
Cherry shrimps can breed like crazy. Within a few months, your tank can have 2nd or even 3rd generation of cherry shrimp.
17. Can Observe Different Directions At The Same Time
This is another fact about cherry shrimps that really shocked me! Did you know that they can move around their eyestalks?
Yes, I am not joking! This means they can see different directions at the same time. So, like us, cherry shrimps don’t have to move around their neck to see the surroundings. Their eyestalks do all the moving around for them!
18. Subtle Yet A Deadly Enemy
Can you guess who the most dangerous enemy of cherry shrimps is? If your answer is large predators, then I am sorry. You’re wrong. Yes, predators can be deadly to cherry shrimps, but it is not the deadliest one.
The major problem why most cherry shrimps die in an aquarium is due to rapid changes in the pH. Yes, it can be that deadly to shrimps.
pH is a measuring standard that measures how acidic or alkaline the water is. Cherry shrimps prefer a specific pH range in the water. If the pH changes drastically within a very short period of time, the shrimp can’t tolerate it.
You’ll need to ensure the tank water has a stable pH. Many shrimp keepers put cholla wood or almond leaves in the tank for that purpose.
19. Temperature Can Affect Them
The temperature of the water plays a vital role in many aspects of cherry shrimp’s lives. If the temperature is higher or lower than a standard value, the shrimp will be affected in various ways.
Let me explain.
| Higher Temperature | Lower Temperature |
|---|---|
| Shorter lifespan | Longer lifespan |
| Eats more often | Eats less |
| Molts more frequently | Molts less frequently |
| Breeds quicker | Breeds slowly |
| Lower offspring quality | Higher offspring quality |
The ideal temperature range for cherry shrimps is between 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature is higher than that, then the shrimp will molt more often and grow much quicker.
However, as the shrimp molt often, they often suffer from fatigue and loss of energy. Ultimately, at higher temperatures, though the shrimp breed more, the offspring are not of higher quality.
On the other hand, if the temperature is cooler, the reverse will happen. The shrimps will molt less, grow much slower, breed slowly, and have higher-quality offspring.
It is better to maintain a balance and aim for the ideal temperature range.
Conclusion
I hope you liked reading these facts as much as I did. After learning about these interesting cherry shrimp facts, I started to love these little creatures even more. I hope these facts will inspire you to learn more about shrimps.
Happy Shrimp Keeping.
About Author
Hello, I’m Muntaseer Rahman, the owner of AcuarioPets.com. I’m passionate about aquarium pets like shrimps, snails, crabs, and crayfish. I’ve created this website to share my expertise and help you provide better care for these amazing pets.
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