Interesting shrimp, or other tiny guys

[Blitzburggirl]

I'm building a microtope (50-60 gallons) either plumbed into my 180 or run stand alone with a skimmer rated to 150...

Livestock would be 2 clowns and their nem (likely RBTA)
Pistol and a highfin, yasha, or yellow watchman goby.
Then maybe a couple eviota gobies or sharknose gobies
Or I may just forgo the gobies and pistol and go with 2-4 pipes... Depends on whether my copperband has a taste for LPS or not LOL and those corals have to go in this tank.

I'd also like to toss in some interesting tiny inverts. The kind you have to be looking for to see. This is really what this tank is about. I already have a sexy shrimp trio. I'm thinking along the lines of interesting crabs, or other itty bitty shrimp. Interesting snails too...

I want it to look like a species tank with the nem and clowns... until you look closer

 

[Blitzburggirl]

really? No ideas

 

[Bongo Shrimp]

Only problem is that the clowns would LOVE to eat some tiny shrimp...

 

[Blitzburggirl]

Really??? Yikes!! I have 2 clowns in my 12 right now, and the sexies are in there!!!! Granted they are big sexy shrimp and small clowns.. but still.. I'd never heard that!

I was thinking some bumblebee shrimp too

 

[Bongo Shrimp]

Your fine with small clowns. I mean I have kept two baby false percs with sexys for a long time but I fear big adult clowns would want to eat little shrimp like that.

 

[cbr600rri]

Yea, I agree with Bongo Shrimp and would like to add your chances of adding the shrimp first then clowns are higher vs adding the clowns and then dropping in shrimp that are tiny. They would think it's food. And I've also add clowns and sexy anemone co-exist, but forgot which ones I introduced first.

Btw, besides sexy how about urchin crabs or emperor shrimps?

 

[Blitzburggirl]

I'll have to look at those guys

 

[mija1111]

My clowns is not interested in shrimp

 

[philter4]

I have kept bumble bee shrimp, and they would probably be safe with the clown because they are strongly nocternal and the clowns are active in the day. That is one of two problems with the bumble bees, for starters once they are in the tank you almost never see them, and second they are so tiny that in a 50 gal tank they would just be lost. Also be very careful, they are strongly territorial and I have seen them actively chase down and kill each other when you try to keep them together.


If you are interested in shrimp, try some like pederson's cleaners, or harlequin shrimp. Both of those will be safer with the clowns then the sexy shrimp, the only problem with the harlequins is they only eat starfish, but if you don't mind the diet and have stars available to you they are one of the best looking shrimp around.