Japanese Pistol Shrimp

[bradley01]

Hello all. I have been trying to identify my pistol shrimp for a long time. I can never get a good picture of it as it swims off rather quickly and hides whenever I pick up my rocks. And I can't catch it to put it in a container. But, I have done some searching and found a picture on Drs. F&S of a Japanese Pistol Shrimp (Alpheus bisincisus) that I am 99.9% positive it is what I have based on its markings.

Here is the link to Drs. F&S:

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=497+525+2129&pcatid=2129

Now comes the hard part...what will pair with it? I had a Tangaroa Goby, but I can definately tell you that it would not pair with it. I took it back. What's next? Anyone have a Japanese Pistol that they have had luck pairing? Anyone heard of someone having one with luck pairing it? I'm open to any and all suggestions. I sure would like to see this guy getting brave and peeking out of his hole more often! I have even tried baiting him right out front of his hole. I know he knows there's food out there because he feels all over it with his antennae. He's just a big pansy! Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
Cheers!

 

[bradley01]

BUMP. Anyone have any ideas?

 

[1stcar86z]

Mine was very outgoing when food is in the tank. I took him to the LFS and traded for him and the goby. For a yasha and a candy stripe pair. they are so small though . The jap killed two fish and almost my goby though.

 

[1stcar86z]

Mine was very outgoing when food is in the tank. I took him to the LFS and traded for him and the goby. For a yasha and a candy stripe pair. they are so small though . The jap killed two fish and almost my goby though.

 

[Reefun]

It could be one of the pistol shrimp that come from the Florida keys. I live in Florida and have seen them around. I would think if you want to pair it with something one of the watchmen gobies would work well.

 

[bradley01]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14743509#post14743509 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by 1stcar86z
Mine was very outgoing when food is in the tank. I took him to the LFS and traded for him and the goby. For a yasha and a candy stripe pair. they are so small though . The jap killed two fish and almost my goby though.

I don't like to hear that...

I keep my shrimp well-fed, though, so I don't think it would ever "desire" to try to kill one of my fish.

I guess I can try a YWG, i'm just worried about it not working because it is so hard to get a fish OUT of my tank...

 

[LeslieH]

Being well fed may not have anything to do with whether the shrimp will "desire" to kill a fish. They are territorial and unless they accept a fish they will defend their burrows. Not all alpheid species partner up with fish.

 

[1stcar86z]

YWG failed for me it is what I had. yeah the shrimp killed and ate a three stripe damsel and a blue damsel. that lived in the rocks that pistol desided he wanted, at least they were cheap fish i guess. And the jap pistol was very well fed. lol. the yellow watchmen tried constantly to share the burrow with the pistol.

 

[bradley01]

Your pistol killed the goby, too? Sounds like I ought to just give up and try to get this dam thing outta my tank!

 

[1stcar86z]

no didnt kill the goby. I did give up and traded for a yasha and candy stripe pistol though. they paired as ssoon as they hit the tank.

 

[pb4ugoout]

I have a large YWG and a japanese pistol and they share a burrow. They have a tunnel about a foot long in the middle of my tank. He just molted, hasn't tried to kill anything yet. My goby gets a little aggressive when my six-line comes close tho.

 

[bradley01]

^
Do u have any pictures of your pair? I know, that's like asking a psychic if they have pictures of the ghosts they talk to...

I was just hoping that maybe your shrimp shows himself more often since he has a goby. Can you verify that for me?

I've been hearing my pistol shrimp popping away in my tank. I think my peppermint shrimp is harrassing him and trying to steal his food. It's kinda funny; like a little boxer staying just outside of the bigger boxer's reach! I laugh everytime I hear a pop! I know...one time I'm not gonna laugh bc the shrimp is going to have killed something...I'll cross that bridge when I get to it...

 

[pb4ugoout]

I can try. They are in an awkward spot that is hard to photograph. The goby usually sits in front of the shrimp as well. I'll see what I can do but don't expect miracles. I must say I'm a little disappointed with my pair. I got them expecting to be able to observe a really cool relationship. Well they are cool, but I rarely see the pistol. He is generally in the burrow or behind the goby or hiding in my live rock. I know where he hangs out so I know where to look but if I could do it again I would either look for a more curious one or get something else. I do hear his popping quite often which I think is pretty cool.

 

[bradley01]

that's interesting! He still pops, even though he has a goby? And I assume you direct feed him... What an interesting creature!

 

[ROB2005]

Its just my opinion from experience, Japanese pistol shrimp arent as active as the Tiger and Randalls pistols in terms of moving sand around to constantly maintain their burrows' integrity. My YWG seems to like him, but doesnt stay around him very long.

Now when I had my Tiger Pistol (died by bad molt) he and Gobay *my YWG* were working the tank all day! It was amusing.

 

[pb4ugoout]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14782387#post14782387 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bradley01
^
Do u have any pictures of your pair? I know, that's like asking a psychic if they have pictures of the ghosts they talk to...

Okay Bradley here are some photos. It took me a while but i was able to get some after I fed the tank. Some of them aren't the greatest quality. A combination of me only sort of knowing how to really use my camera and the curved dirty glass that makes the camera have trouble focusing on stuff. The pistol is named Sam; IE Yosemite Sam. The YWG is named Big Papi. I have a six-line named Tito(Terry Francona). The fire shrimp in there is named Trogdor. Anyway, they stick together most of the time. You can see the pistol wanders around on his own playing in the rocks sometimes. Also, I don't hand feed. They run whenever I moved near the tank so I have to be really still all the time. Maybe in time they will calm down a bit and I'll be able to hand feed them both. I can pretty much hand feed everything else in the tank.

 

[bradley01]

That is awesome! I was so fearful of getting a goby to go with my shrimp because the last one I purchased in hopes of pairing was the Tangaroa goby...and my shimp killed it and ate it. So, you can see why I would not want to go into this without serious consideration again. YWG it is!