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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

Red Cherry Shrimp breeding?

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14 Feb 2011 23:26 #1 by SSS (Sion S)
I bought just 3 of these guys 2 weeks ago, when I got them 1 had a "saddle" and the other 2 didn't.
Then after a week another one started getting a saddle.
So after two weeks I'm fairly sure I have 2 females and a male, but my question is,
how long after the saddle shows should they breed and start carrying the eggs?
Because it hasn't happened yet I'm rethinking what I thought was my m/f ratio.
Anyone any ideas whats going on?

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14 Feb 2011 23:33 #2 by joey (joe watson)
to stop in-breeding you need more but the ratio is not important unless you need to pump out the shrimp (for feeders etc) from saddle to eggs i'm not sure as she needs to be fertilised, but from eggs to shrimplettes you are looking at a month. once they start they dont stop, trust me! if you have any fish with them, dont expect the young to survive too well but put alot of moss or bushy decor in and some young will be able to survive. also moss is like viagra for them, and you will find the females spend alot of time in there when carrying eggs i guess its for safety

Location: Portlaoise, Midlands

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14 Feb 2011 23:42 #3 by SSS (Sion S)
I never even thought about inbreeding.
I just got them because I had some store credit from selling some fry and they were doing 3 for a tenner.
Didn't research them or anything, a bit of an impulse buy.
So you're saying that a female will have a constant saddle if the eggs don't get fertilized?

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14 Feb 2011 23:49 #4 by joey (joe watson)
the saddle is the eggs developing, like ovaries for women, they wont become eggs unless fetilised but if you got at least one male then they will be fertilised

too much inbreeding from the same blood can either wash out colours or strengthen colours (like selective breeding but not quite) but it can weaken the shrimp so much that they can be very easily wiped out - like captive breeding of endangered animals - and this is what has happened to the crystal red shrimp (unrelated to the cherry) so much so that they need very specific conditions. the cherry's however are the most hardy fekkers i have kept. and some have been through some horrible conditions (unintentional, but when dealing with 300+ all the time some are bound to get left/lost/flushed etc)

Location: Portlaoise, Midlands

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14 Feb 2011 23:58 #5 by SSS (Sion S)
Ok cool thanks, that clears a few things up,
I think I'll grab a few more the next time I get a chance.

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26 Feb 2011 20:20 #6 by SSS (Sion S)
So its been almost 4 weeks now and one of the females saddle just seems to be getting bigger and bigger,
I dont know if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but its taking over more and more of her body.
Is something wrong or is she just biding her time?

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26 Feb 2011 20:33 #7 by Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
Its normal,you should see eggs under her tail shortly,then you know she is ready to drop soon enough.

Gavin

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26 Feb 2011 21:03 #8 by SSS (Sion S)
Cheers,
I'll be more patient haha!

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10 Apr 2011 22:52 #9 by SSS (Sion S)
Finally after about 2 and a half months one of the shrimp is carrying eggs.
I bought 3 more on Tuesday so that must have started something!
The eggs are meant to be green yeah?

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10 Apr 2011 23:02 #10 by JohnH (John)
Yes,
They do appear rather greenish.
They hold the eggs in the top "saddle" as described until they moult, then the eggs are transferred 'down under'.
Now you have to wait for them to hatch into little 'shrimpeens' and then the female will release them into the wide world.
John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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10 Apr 2011 23:05 #11 by SSS (Sion S)
Thanks.
Was expecting clear eggs or maybe yellow/red, green seems an odd colour for them!

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10 Apr 2011 23:19 #12 by joey (joe watson)
the eggs are usually green or yellow and rather brightly coloured. dont know why this is. the females saddles will be the same colour as her eggs. one side note - do not soften the water too much, shrimps need some hardness in the water to help build strong exoskeletons (shells) and thus help when they moult and reproduse. the Laois water is a bit good for something at least!

Location: Portlaoise, Midlands

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11 Apr 2011 12:00 #13 by Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
Firstly ensure you have no fish in the tank as the shrimplets will be eaten,if you cant avoid that, then have lots of moss etc for them to hide. The shrimp are realeased as young shrimp and are able to swim immediately.(v small versions of the adult,and almost see through alot of the time).
Put a sponge over the filter intake also to avoid them being sucked in.
Gavin

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11 Apr 2011 12:06 #14 by joey (joe watson)
oh yeah and just to add that you shouldn't use a syphon for water changes, i found its best to use a clear plastic jug so you can check each scoop for shrimplettes

Location: Portlaoise, Midlands

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11 Apr 2011 17:01 #15 by SSS (Sion S)
Thanks for all the help guys.
There is fry in there and a few small BN plecs, so the fry might eat them.
I have a few newly bought mosses that I'm trying to grow out so hopefully
that'll be good enough for a few shrimplettes to survive.

Actually on the same subject, can I use staples to attach moss to wood or
is that dangerous for shrimp(or fish)? Doubt theres any copper in them but don't
know if they're stainless steel or not.

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11 Apr 2011 17:50 #16 by Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
Just use fishing line around the wood. Its much better.

Gavin

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11 Apr 2011 19:01 #17 by SSS (Sion S)
Yea tried that and doesn't look good, so want to try something different.

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11 Apr 2011 21:10 #18 by Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
What colour fishing line did you use? The idea is that it keeps the moss attached initially,after that it will attach itself most likely and will grow over the fishing line in time. Ive never had a problem with it,if you want you could cut the fishing line after the moss has established itself.

Gavin

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11 Apr 2011 21:56 #19 by joey (joe watson)
you should keep invertibrates away from any heavy metals, especially copper. most dechlorinators will also eliminate these heavy metals, so definately do not use staples. a fine green fishing line is best. tie it in slip knots to pull the moss tight to the wood

are you using the shrimp for decorative purposes or just to have a go at breeding them?

Location: Portlaoise, Midlands

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11 Apr 2011 22:03 #20 by SSS (Sion S)
Well actually I just used cotton thread a few times, sometimes it works
but it has come off a few times. But when its tied I just couldn't get it
to look natural so I thought stapling it would get a more natural
placement.

The two types of moss I'm using are moss balls and Ricia Fluitans.
I flattened out the moss balls but because they grow go slowly it might
take a while for it to attach properly.
With the Ricia its so delicate that I couldn't tie it so I'm just letting it
grow to possibly do something with later.

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11 Apr 2011 22:06 - 11 Apr 2011 22:10 #21 by SSS (Sion S)
@Joey - both really I like the look of them and like their behaviour, and whatever I keep
I like to have a go at breeding, just for fun though I've no intention of breeding to sell.

I won't use staples then if theres a danger to them especially as I doubt they're stainless
steel.
Last edit: 11 Apr 2011 22:10 by SSS (Sion S).

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