If you rarely see your shrimp, read this.

[LINK]

I had 3 Skunk cleaners in my 180 gal Reef. I almost never saw them unless I checked out the tank at night. I added 2 more cleaners, and now all 5 hang out right in the open. Ever since I added my first cleaner, I have wanted it to hang out on the "front" of the rocks. Now with 5 in the tank, they are all almost always in sight.

 

[trigger0214]

Safety in numbers, or atleast the odds increase of actually seeing one! I have two emerald crabs that I swear are dead until I see one eating in a secure little cove in a peice of live rock. This will happen, oh, every six months or so. Pretty impresive since the crabs are tag alongs and the tank is full of crustacean eating fish.

 

[TopNotch]

I have a 'loner' skunk cleaner in my 30 Gal long.... He is out and about all the time!

When i put my hand in the tank, he trys to grab on and clean it... Or when i put my face too close to the glass.

Otherwise he is always running around the tank somewhere...

 

[JohnD]

I added a blood shrimp to my 30 gallon tank last summer, but I only saw him/her for the first few weeks and only in the back of the tank. About 6 months ago I added 2 small cleaners and they are always out and about. I am planning to convert the CC to a DSB (it always seems like NEXT weekend is the time) and hope to see the blood shrimp!

 

[Anonymous]

my shrimp are always out and about - all except for one...mostly because he's still too little. that would be my peppy. but my cbs, my fire and cleaner are pretty much always in view.

 

[dvb]

I have two cleaner shrimp which are always out and about. They are easy to find anyway because of their long white antennae. I have yet to see my Peppermint shrimp since I put him in about two weeks ago though. He was out for about 20 minutes and then he was gone! I hope he is still alive. Do emerald crabs eat shrimp? I hope not. I still have hope that he is alive. Someone told me that shrimp are attracted to red light, so you might want to try shining a red light at them at night to see if they come out for a little inspection. I should do that myself.

 

[Anonymous]

i think the peps are very timid. mine hides all day long. but i notice that he comes out at night. i don't have to shine a special light in the tank at night to see him. my tank is in the living room so i just turn the hall light on at night and it shines just enough dim light onto the tank so that i can see my critters roaming about.

 

[HuBu]

i have 1 cleaner shrimp in my 10 gal. at first he was very shy, always hiding between rocks, and he would run away whenever i open the hood to feed. but now he goes around the whole tank and would even clean my fingers when i stick it into the water. its true about safety in number, the more shrimps you have in your tank the less shy they would be. but eventually the shrimp will get used to the environment i guess and travels around.

 

[liquid]

Depends on the shrimp. I had six peppermints in a 38 gal tank and they still hid. Go figure.

Shane

 

[karlas]

i had a cleaner and never saw him but when i added a 2nd they come out a lot more and always together. especially when i feed the fish they both come out

 

[danmhippo]

I am with Shane, Depends. I have 6 peppermint and 3 cleaners in 150G, and I still don't get to see them till lights out.