Greetings & Observations

[geo]

Greetings all,

I am a new member to this forum and I must say that there is a small treasure trove of information to be found here for those patient enough to read the threads.

I have had an interest in fish, in general, for several years having kept betta, koi, fancy guppies and so on. Several years ago I took an interest in inverts but unfortunately there was little information available for the hobbyist. I am presently re-exploring my former interest in shrimp, specifically Ghost/Glass Shrimp, for the past year. It has only been in the last couple of years that they have become perceived as a valid entry in the aquatic hobby field rather then just taken as feeder stock.

One thing I have noticed is that Aquatic/Pet Shops are not necessarily helping the situation. Recently I visited 7 pet shops here in Toronto. All of them had aquatic livestock. Of the 7 only 3 knew alittle bit about ghost shrimp and of that it was mostly relating to them as feeding stock. Ironically 5 shops carried a variety of shrimp. One shop in particular had the most beautiful cherry shrimp imaginable but the 4 people that worked there knew almost nothing about them. I suggested to them that maybe they make an effort to learn more and possibly help educate the public that inverts are interesting pets to have. One of the store staff stated it wasn't worth the effort to "pawn" them off as pets as they were too cheap and they are supposed to sell the more expensive stock! Well, I guess that might be one reason for the situation.

Hopefully as more sites like this forum pop up the public will slowly realize the wonder that is aquatic inverts.

Peace,
Geo

[Neonshrimp]

Hopefully as more sites like this forum pop up the public will slowly realize the wonder that is aquatic inverts.

Peace,
Geo

Hi and welcome Geo, thanks for sharing your experiences with us. I agree with your statement and wanted to add that is will ultimately be the job/duty of us, the hobbyist to share and spread the knowledge and experience with others. I hope you get as much out of this forum as I have and help the hobby to branch out. Hope you have fun while your at it

See you around the forums

[southerndesert]

Welcome aboard geo,

I like you found a wealth of knowledge here at this site...That lead to Cherry Shrimp....Months later I am caring for 8 tanks with as many different types of shrimp, so far with great success. I fear though that there is no turning back

Bill

[Baby_Girl]

welcome, geo. And I applaud your effort of doing your homework and reading through the threads here. It sounds like you're a good addition to this site already

That is indeed a sad observation. Shrimp are 'cheap' huh? Some stores still sell RCS for $4-5 apiece, and that is not cheap to me at all. In fact, they'd be making a killing if they bred their own. It's certainly more profit than they're getting for otos, or some other sadly wild-caught and exploited small fishies. Of course, they have no idea about CRS - the highest grade of which are going for $1000 per shrimp last time I checked

[geo]

Thank you for the kind welcome. I hope over time to be an asset to the forum.

In regard to the pet store experiences I actually had an opposite one yesterday. I went to a small pet shop in "china town" here in Toronto. Besides the various goldfish species that they had (and they had alot!) I was surprised at the shrimp selection available. They also had an interesting section on nano tanks, the first of any store I have visited here so far.

I have had experience with selective breeding with fancy guppies and wanted to know of your own experiences with selective breeding for shrimp. Is there a particular species that easily breeds and prone to genetic changes? I enjoy ghost shrimp but would like to add something with a bit of color, preferrably more then one so I can give SB a go.

Are there certain species of shrimp that may be illegal to possess? I ask this as another customer who was in the pet shop I mentioned above said that he say a few there that shouldn't have been allowed to sale. I have never heard of any restrictions but was curious if anyone knew of any. I am also exploring the possibility of whether Canada has any natural shrimp species suitable for the aquatic hobby.

Peace, Geo

[Mayko]

Welcome to the forum, and well put! I feel the exact same way, although you put the thoughts into words much better than I could have.

I was under the impression that Canada had much stricter laws concerning aquatic pets/plants (primarily plants though i think) as pets, or for import. However, beyond what I've heard I have no idea the specifics. However, I am certain that releasing any pet fish/shrimp is illegal and irresponsible.

I live in northern Michigan, and the only native inverts (as pets) that I am familiar with in the region are crayfish and scuds.

Concerning the breeding, I can't help you much there. I know Red Cherry Shrimp (RCS) are very colorful and extremely easy to breed, but I have very little experience myself... so I'll let the experts field this one.

Mayko

[geo]

My apologies regarding the cross breeding question. Just found an answer in another thread.

Canada does have strict laws regarding such things but nothing that I have found regarding small inverts specifically shrimp. Releasing into the wild is generally considered illegal for almost any animal purchased. And the same goes for attempting to capture and breed any native animals as well, although a blind eye is occasionally turned if the person's efforts helps revive a species. I know that there has been a resurgence in interest regarding native snails, newts and crayfish here. A small number of people are keeping and breeding them. I would think inverts such as the shrimp discussed in this forum would not be a huge concern primarily because we have a lengthy winter season here which most likely would kill them unless they migrated elsewhere for that time period. Has anyone in States attempted to breed them in an outside setting?