[Sandrilene]

Hideki has been healing his tail and separated from his ghost shrimp (i'm now 95% sure that they attacked his tail as he is alone and its improving) so at this point he killed his snails and the ghost shrimp are destroying his fins when they are together. he is in a 5 gallon tank which at this point in time i'm not willing to increase (nor do i think a fish experiment would go well at all) so am i out of things to try tank wise to add to the 5 gallon at this point? If the ghost shrimp have been destroying his fins is there any reason to suspect that will stop? If i knew they could possibly do that i never would have tried them. :-? I really hope his fins recover.

 

[Beall]

Honestly, I have no clue what your asking for help with? from what I read, you asked a question then partially answered it for yourself.
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The only think I can say is maybe try the Compatability forum for a faster response as far as tank mates go.
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As for the fins, over time they should heal. If im not mistaken, there is some sort of antibiotic / medicine to help with the repair of fins and the protective slime a fish has?
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Sorry If I was too blunt, or this doesnt help. Really just confused on what your wanting to know. :/

 

[TakoLuLu]

I'm at a loss as to how a ghost shrimp could be responsible for major fin damage. They don't have claws or the sort of mouth that could be munching on fins (mouths in the middle of their stomachs that they sort of shovel things into with their feet). I may be wrong here, but I'm sort of doubting they are your issue.

 

[Bombalurina]

Tako - they do have claws and can cause rips in fins. Not usually to a serious extent, though.

Sandrilene - I would suggest cherry shrimp. They are clawless.

 

[TakoLuLu]

Looking at them more closely I suppose their little arms do have tiny little hookish claws on them. I was reading earlier this week about how several types of shrimp that grow larger in adulthood (and much more aggressive, with large claws!) look almost exactly like ghost shrimp as juveniles. As such they're rather often mislabeled and sold as ghost shrimp. The article mentioned that a good way to be sure they were really ghost shrimp was to be sure they had short arms without noticeable claws as the other types would have long front arms with pronounced claw even as juveniles. I guess that just stuck in my head as them not actually having claws, lol!

 

[laoshun]

usually shrimp swim around near bettas at the surface searching for food.

 

[Sandrilene]

Looking at them more closely I suppose their little arms do have tiny little hookish claws on them. I was reading earlier this week about how several types of shrimp that grow larger in adulthood (and much more aggressive, with large claws!) look almost exactly like ghost shrimp as juveniles. As such they're rather often mislabeled and sold as ghost shrimp. The article mentioned that a good way to be sure they were really ghost shrimp was to be sure they had short arms without noticeable claws as the other types would have long front arms with pronounced claw even as juveniles. I guess that just stuck in my head as them not actually having claws, lol!

I had no idea that this was even possible. Now I am angry because one of the shrimp is quite a bit larger then the other shrimp and has claws and longer arms. I bet he is not a ghost shrimp, if they really can look so similar otherwise. Since I didn't know there were even other clear species of shrimp... if I had I would had said i didn't want that one! I was under the impression they weren't aggressive. I'm probably going to talk to the manager at the pet store and see if they will do something about this. I feel that they should at least apologize since my fishes tail is half gone. MAYBE they will at least give me a discount on stuff to make it regrow better. :-? Poor hideki. :-(

 

[Tikibirds]

some of these shrimp are clear...and $$$:shock: Maybe you got one of them instead?
http://www.theshrimpfarm.com/store/
http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos...7109_164420216905067_1732881_1991539963_n.jpg

 

[Aus]

usually shrimp swim around near bettas at the surface searching for food.

My red cherry shrimp stay the heck away from my betta (or they're lunch) and forage mostly at the bottom, in the various hidey-places I provide for them.

There's a few aggressive shrimp species (the long-armed shrimp is famous for eating small fish) but most really aren't - I'd suspect your fish of tail-biting himself before I'd blame the shrimp unless that one larger shrimp proves to be a highly carnivorous species.

Maybe take it back to the store and ask for it to be identified? If it's not a ghost shrimp but something nastier, then I'd maybe ask to be compensated. If it's a ghost shrimp - I really doubt it was to blame for those fins.

 

[Sandrilene]

I was with you guys when I saw the red I had assumed he had done it himself but since I have separated them his tail has been recovering if anything, not getting worse. I can't see him having stopped all of the sudden when he is in a smaller bowl (temporarily to treat the tail and figure out what the heck was going on with him). I really do believe he isn`t a ghost shrimp but will be looking more closely at him. He swims around quite a lot whereas the other one chills at the bottom and he swims up to the fish since i thought he was a ghost shrimp i had assumed he was just checking him out but after hearing he might not be one it was like a light bulb went off in my head. I could still be wrong about it but it does make sense of everything. Might post picture of him if i can get a decent one.

 

[Sandrilene]

http://www.fishchannel.com/images/a...ter-aquariums/indian-whisker-shrimp-500px.jpg this is what the arms look like (not necessarily the rest if shrimp.

 

[TakoLuLu]

I'm far from an expert at identifying shrimp, but everything I've read about the current misidentification issue (I've been reading up on it as I plan to get some ghost shrimp in a couple months) implies that if the shrimps claw arms are that much longer and his claws that pronounced, then he is likely a misidentified shrimp. I wish someone with more shrimp knowledge would come to the rescue here!

 

[Sandrilene]

Home now. got a picture of him... not all of him he didn`t want to move farther. Sorry if its not good I did my best with not having much time to take a picture right now ( I have to be up again in 3 hours so need to sleep!). hope it works/ is helpful for people to see what i'm talking about. Hideki's fins seem to be healing very well. thought i'd let you know.

 

[Beall]

A Ghost Shrimp is a scavenger and will eat anything edible, including other ghost shrimps. Of course the food must be dead and not moving (Flake food for example), because they are not really a predatory fish that can catch other fish or swimming food. So for this reason I doubt the shrimp attacked your friend.
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As these two species of animals coexist very well, you may look into the disease "Fin Rot." I am not an expert on this, but if your fish is already sick and stressed, I presume its possible.
*NOTE* Ghost shrimp need very clean water, so that generally means a filtered tank. But as they are a very small species with very little wastes, a live plant natural type filter will work.
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It has been known by some that these shrimp become very aggressive to anything about their size, so if he is around your bettas size, i suppose this could maybe play a factor(not likely). Most of the attacks would have to take place when your bettas guard is down, so 'sleeping.' (But once attacked, wouldn't he have run away?) Maybe there is another cause as to why his fins are rotting away in that tank, but not in the new tank?

 

[Bombalurina]

I should point out, there are many, many different shrimp species sold as glass or ghost srimps, so it's hard to generalise.

 

[Sandrilene]

I don't know, at first I thought it was rot. Then looking more closely one day I saw a red streak so that indicated either biting or attack. I treated the tail with aq salt and it is getting better. If he was biting himself I think his tail would still be getting worse? One of the shrimp is twice the size of the other shrimp and can swim around very well in the tank, just as well as the betta can, but I'm not saying for sure it was the shrimp. I am worried it isn't a ghost shrimp now and probably am removing them from the tank as a pre caution. Besides moving things around is there anything I should do for a solidary betta to keep him happy? He eats snails so he is sort of out of luck on the live things in his tank front.

 

[TakoLuLu]

I should point out, there are many, many different shrimp species sold as glass or ghost srimps, so it's hard to generalise.

There are many different species in the genus that has been given the common name of ghost/glass shrimp. However, if the shrimp is a true ghost/glass shrimp (from the genus Palaemonetes) they should have shorter, smaller clawed arms. That is, as i understand it, one of the genus' identifying characteristics. The problem seems to be in the fact that shrimp from other genus are being sold as shrimp from the genus Palaemonetes.

At this point though I'm pretty sure this is on the verge of getting wildly off topic, lol. Besides, other than the fact that I can find them in the ditch out behind my home & going hunting for them in a college Bio course, I don't really know that much about them. I should probably can it before I come off as a snotty know-it-all or, worse, argumentative.

 

[Sandrilene]

doesn't bother me. knowledge is power.