Let's talk about Harlequin shrimp

[JokerGirl]

Not the best photos as they were taken under my actinics. I really should've gotten my tripod out.

Meet my semi-new male Picked him up about a month ago. He was about half the size that he is now, and was completely missing a claw. He's definitely grown quite a bit!

The pair

The female

The male

BTW, I've had my female for a little over a year now.

 

[E.intheC]

those are great pics! Excellent coloration

 

[buttons buster]

ya those are beautiful

 

[JokerGirl]

Thanks The actinics give them a neat, although unnatural, glow. It really makes the blue pop.

 

[E.intheC]

Very exciting news (well, for me anyway )

Tonight there should be a new addition (pair of additions) to my tank and some new pictures for this thread.

 

[gkaquatic]

cant wait to see them hope the transfer goes good. i wish i had a pair! maybe one day.

 

[Speckled Grouper]

My Harlequin in action

 

[E.intheC]

..yeah, so I can't take decent pics of them.. they come out blurry ...

 

[E.intheC]

OK, so I picked up 2 of these guys last friday. Man, do they hide or what?

I just put a starfish in for them, but I'm curious.. how do you guys cut the arms? They're pretty tough! (Yes, I realize that's a weird question.)

 

[clayw]

sawzall does the trick.......















JK use a sharp butchers knife and just apply necessary pressure to the choppin spot ;-)

 

[E.intheC]

Yeah, I wasn't sure they'd be so tough to cut through. I mean, I don't have a decent set of knives nor a big set of biceps :lol: but it shouldn't be that bad. Part of it was b/c I didn't want to use full force (and I felt a bit bad for the starfish)

 

[clayw]

definitly a much tougher "skin" than the eye seems to think. Ive cut a few the first one was for a class last year with a scalpul. Yes, it is sort of sad, youre harvesting somehting for its limbs, but its better than letting the whole thing die and be a waste for just a couple arms.
-clay

 

[gkaquatic]

coral cutters or a nice pair a scissors (meat cutting ones) is what i use. ive found that each star is different some are really tough and others not so much... not sure y.

as for two harlequins a whole star might be fine. they may consume the whole thing before it starts to rot, as long as its not a huge star.
try and see its worth a shot if u dont like chopping arms. but if anyone has just one harlequin a whole star at once is a waste.

 

[unbreakable]

has anyone noticed if the male sacrifices itself or the female eats the male when there hasnt been food for a while? i was about to feed them a starfish today when yesterday i noticed the male hanging out with the female more than usual.... this morning i find that the male is completely gone. this is the second time it happens and its always the female who stays alive

 

[gkaquatic]

never heard of the female eating the male. but the reason they might be dieing is that the male allows the female to eat more which causes him to starve. not sure though. it would be the case if u were feeding whole stars the are medium size because they could both eat at the same time.

 

[blazing]

i just pick up 2 harlequin shrimps a few days ago. had a bunch of little stars in my tank and i think they were attcking my zoas. at the moment they are eating the little stars but i dont think that will last them to long. how many choclate stars do u guy use to rotate? and how long does it take for thr arms to grow back?

 

[E.intheC]

Those are good questions. I have had my shrimp for about 2 weeks now, and they still haven't eaten anythng. I have asterinas (which I think they're eating bc the numbers are slowly receeding, but I don't actually se it happen). But no choc chip stars. I've tried putting the star in there face down less than a few inches from the star.. Tried lower lighting, keeping a good physical distance from the tank, etc but no success yet.

 

[gkaquatic]

if they are actually eating a bunch of asterina stars they can refuse food simply because they are full. ive have my harlequin not take a asterina shortly after eating a chip leg. they will also not eat right before a molt or just after. if u think neither one is the case try leaving it for a short bit they may just not trust what u are trying to give them right away. one last thing may be that they dont realize that its a leg of a star. i know this may sound stupid but think about it do u think onme legged stars are a nomal thing in the wild. try a whole star the first time or two to get them use to chip stars then try legs

*as for *Blazing question... after all the stars are gone u will need to supplement chips or some other affordable star. i normal keep two to three stars in rotation. and as for the leg regrowth that my very. if the stars are in a well established tank they will start to grow a leg back in a few weeks but in a tank with not much for them to eat they my not grow legs back fast enough. ive had to realize that the star may not grow legs back fast enough in some cases but at least it had a longer life then if u feed the whole star.

one last thing as i think i said before but try a whole star at first, if it's not huge, for a pair of harlequins. they might be able to eat the whole thing without it rotting.

 

[E.intheC]

those are good points gkaquatic. I wonder if my stars are too large (actually tried feeding whole, thinking similar thoughts as you).. still nothing. I'll just have to be patient ..

 

[gkaquatic]

thanks and yeah just be patient it took me a little bit to get mine use to everything