Live – Amano Shrimp (Per Piece)

Description

Amano Shrimp are named for the aquarist Takashi Amano, who first introduced them to the aquarium hobby after discovering their ability to obliterate algae in aquariums. Also known as Yamato Shrimp, this species is found in the wild in Japan, as well as parts of Korea and Taiwan. They are extremely difficult to breed, so most Amano shrimp are caught in the wild and then sold to stores and individual hobbyists.

Their reputation as excellent algae eaters makes these shrimp ideal candidates for planted tanks. Amano Shrimp are totally peaceful, and are great additions to shrimp tanks with other dwarf shrimp species because they will not interbreed with other dwarf shrimp or eat shrimp fry. Though their translucent coloration does not make them stand out as much as the other, brighter-colored varieties of dwarf shrimp that we offer, they are beautiful in their own subtle yet elegant way. Their clear, light blue bodies are speckled with small, dark red or brown dots that form interesting patterns, and they often feature an opaque blue or brown stripe along their backs.

Compatibility

Safe: Small, peaceful fish and invertebrates. Good choices are:

Other dwarf shrimp
Small, peaceful fish
Asian Stone Catfish
Bushynose Plecos
Corydora Catfish
Danios
Guppies
Hillstream Loaches
Otocinclus (safe to keep with breeding shrimp as well)
Ram Cichlids
Tetras (small tetras only)
Filter Shrimp
Vampire Shrimp
Singapore Flower Shrimp
Snails (all types)
Ramshorn Snails
Mystery Snails
Nerite Snails
Sulawesi Snails (aka Rabbit Snails)

Unsafe: Any fish or invertebrate large and/or aggressive enough to eat a dwarf shrimp. Examples:

Angelfish
Barbs (the aggressive kinds)
Bettas
Catfish (large)
Cichlids
Crayfish (most types)
Discus
Pacu
Plecos (large)
Golfish (large)
Gourami (large)

Feeding

As mentioned above, Amano Shrimp have quite the appetite for algae, but they will also eat leftover fish food and detritus on the floor of your aquarium. If there is not a lot of algae in your tank, they can be fed a variety of foods to supplement their diet, including shrimp pellets, fish flakes, algae wafers, bloodworms, and blanched vegetables (such as zucchini or spinach). Since Amano Shrimp are larger than all other types of dwarf shrimp, they will need to be fed a bit more.

Warning! Avoid any food product, medication, or plant fertilizer that contains Copper of any form. Copper is toxic to invertebrates. Many commercial fish foods, medications, and plant fertilizers contain copper or more commonly copper sulfate. Always look at the ingredient list for any product going into the aquarium to ensure they are copper free.

Breeding

As mentioned above, Amano Shrimp are extremely difficult to breed in aquariums. In fact, they will not breed at all in freshwater, which is the type of water in which most aquarium hobbyists keep them. Even if you receive a pregnant female Amano shrimp, you will likely find that her eggs never produce offspring. Brackish water (which is a mix of fresh water and sea water and thereby has more salinity than fresh water, but less than sea water) is required for Amano shrimp to reproduce successfully. Even with the correct salinity of water, it is still extremely rare for hobbyists to successfully breed these shrimp due to the fragile nature of their hatched larvae and the special, detailed care required by them.