Peppermint Shrimp Help!!!

[butrya03]

a few months ago i added 3 peppermint shrimp to my reef tank to help control an aptasia problem and tonight i noticed hundreds of peppermint shrimp larvae swimming around under my lunar lights. i have done a little research into rearing the larvae, but all information regarding this recommends setting up a tank just for the little guys. i was wondering what kind of survival rate i would have with just leaving them in the main tank. i know that the majority of them will fall victim to the ravenous appetite of my fish and corals, but im pretty sure the other shrimp are carrying eggs as well. has anyone had any success with leaving the larvae in their display tank? any help would appreciated. thank you in advance.

-ryan

 

[reef321]

my shrimp have spawned lot's of times in my tank, but they never last longer than a couple day's.

 

[ctenophors rule]

i would geuss poor, the filters should tear them to shreads.

why not just set up a nicelittle shallow bowl, with a very weak aerator, feed rotifers and freshly atched brine, and their you go.

just be sure to do daily water changes, and add start adding iodine durring the first week of their first month, that is what i did and they survived. (well most.....some.......a few.......4 survived, but it was my first time)

 

[butrya03]

thats what i thought about doing, but it was around 2:00 am when i noticed all the larvae swimming around. the other two peppermints that i have are carrying eggs, so i will just have to wait for them to hatch. now if i can only find a place to put a fish bowl where the cat cant get into it.

 

[lionbacker54]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14219385#post14219385 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ctenophors rule
i would geuss poor, the filters should tear them to shreads.

why not just set up a nicelittle shallow bowl, with a very weak aerator, feed rotifers and freshly atched brine, and their you go.

just be sure to do daily water changes, and add start adding iodine durring the first week of their first month, that is what i did and they survived. (well most.....some.......a few.......4 survived, but it was my first time)

 

[butrya03]

anyone have any pics of peppermint shrimp larvae just after a hatch? i have set up a small tank for some larvae i found in my tank, which i thought were peppermints, but im not sure, im thinking they might be really small mysis shrimp, but there so tiny. i havent been able to get a pic of what i have due to their miniscule stature. the only thing i can say is that there eyes shine a blue color when shined on by a flashlight. im new to this so im not exactly sure what i should be looking for.

 

[butrya03]

im not sure if anyone is still viewing this thread but my first attempt at raising the larvae that i had was a failure. not only were they mysis shrimp but they all died anyway. however last night i was able to catch actual peppermint shrimp larvae and have them in a tank with an airstone. the only problem ive encountered now is their food. i know they will consume live rotifers, but i cant find any. right now im using hikaris fry food but im not sure if they can or are consuming it. there are a bunch of very small mysis shrimp in the tank with them but i think that they are to big for the peppermint shrimp to eat. is the hikari fry food a viable food source or do i need to use something else. out of all the research i have done, only rotifers are mentioned as food for them.

 

[roblack]

You can order live rotifers online, not cheap though. Fry food may work, that's what I was thinking. Maybe they can eat non-live rotifers?

 

[butrya03]

ive heard of people trying dead rotifers but never heard whether they had any luck. i decided that the small tank i had them in was too much of a pain so i made a grow out cell for them that sits above my tank and runs off of my spray bar, then just drains back into the tank. no more daily water changes on their tank, and no more escapees.