Ghost Shrimps are also called as the Glass Shrimp. These are the most suitable Freshwater Shrimps to keep in your aquarium as it is essential for the better Ghost Shrimp breeding in a proper way. These are always available for sale in the nearby stores that provide pet. You will find these Ghost Shrimps along with other Shrimps in a small tank filled with fresh water. You can find air bubbles coming out of the bottom of the tank.
Buying Ghost Shrimps doesn’t cost much. These are purchased as food for larger fish. Ghost Shrimps are good water cleaner, and it becomes fun when they are left in a water tank. They will look for any food that might have been left in the aquarium. The body of these Shrimps is transparent. This is why they are called the Ghost Shrimps. You can see an orange spot in the tail of the Ghost Shrimp. Ghost Shrimp has ten pairs of legs, and their size is about 2 inches maximum.
Ghost Shrimp Care
Let us have a look at the method involved in caring for the Ghost Shrimp.
- Setting of the tank: The first and foremost step to take care of your Ghost Shrimp is to set up a water tank. You need to do the following to set up a water tank;
- Purchase a water tank of about 19 liters.
- Buy a filter for the tank.
- Buy an air pump to provide oxygen.
- Fill the bottom with sand.
- Buy the Ghost Shrimp.
- Taking care of Ghost Shrimp: The next step is how to take care of your Shrimp. Let us have a look at the things you need to do;
- Feed it two times a day. They should be provided with food that can sink in the water.
- Maintain the water temperature of the tank from 18-28 degree Celsius. If you are in a
- Add some plants in your tank. Try to buy aquarium plants.
- Provide some company to your Ghost Shrimp. Add some other creatures such as small fishes or snails. Don’t put fish that are big in size otherwise, they will eat your Shrimp.
- If you have a baby Shrimp, keep it aside until they become adults.
Ghost Shrimp Breeding
- First of all, you need to purchase a large tank to keep your Shrimps.
- You need to purchase another tank that you will use for breeding. This is done for the safety of young ones.
- You need to use a sponge filter in the tank you will use for breeding. As other filters suck water inside them which can kill the young ones.
- Attach an air pump to both the tank.
- Fill the bottom with sand and fill water in the tank.
- Maintain a temperature of around 18-28 degree Celsius.
- Add plants to make breeding comfortable.
- You need to buy feeder Shrimp to obtain better breeding quality.
- You need to have both male and female Shrimps in your tank.
- Typically, a female Shrimp takes about few weeks to produce eggs.
- When you find a female with eggs, transfer it to the tank that you are using for breeding.
- It takes about 20 to 24 days to hatch an egg. Keep monitoring the progress.
- Once the eggs are hatched pick the female Shrimp form that the breeding tank and put it back in the other tank.
- When hatched, the young ones are difficult to see. So, even if you don’t see anything, feed the tank for about 3 weeks.
- Once the young Shrimps have long legs, feed them the food that you feed the regular ones.
Ghost Shrimp VS Brine Shrimp: Which is the Best Pet?
To have a better knowledge of the fact that which one is a better pet to keep, we shall compare both the Shrimps and find out the answer. Let us compare both the Shrimps to find out which one is the best pet.
Ghost Shrimps takes about 3 weeks to develop their legs. On the other hand, Brine Shrimps take about only 2 weeks to grow into an adult. Ghost Shrimp can survive only in fresh water while Brine Shrimp can survive in saline water also.
Brine Shrimps are found all over the world whereas Ghost Shrimps are found in areas that provide fresh water and mostly in the US. The size of Ghost Shrimp is much bigger when compared to Brine Shrimp. The normal size of a female of Brine Shrimp is about 10-12 mm whereas the standard size of Ghost Shrimp is about 50mm.
When compared in the matter of breeding styles, Brine Shrimps can produce eggs that can be stored and hatched whenever they are needed whereas the eggs produced by the female of Ghost Shrimps get destroyed after few days. When compared regarding the lifespan, both the Shrimps have a lifespan of about one year.
Now, looking at all the comparisons above and adding the fact that Ghost Shrimps are less expensive and add a good look to the aquarium, I think the best is to buy the Ghost Shrimp.
My Opinion About Ghost Shrimp
Ghost Shrimp as said earlier is a gentle and nice creature. The addition of this creature adds beauty to the aquarium. Because the aquariums are fed with fresh water, Ghost Shrimps becomes an obvious option to buy. The activities that they perform while searching for their food even keep you interested in them. They are a perfect scavenger and will clean whatever left behind is found inside the tank. This reduces your tension to clean the tank regularly. The cost of keeping them is also minimal, and they are available easily in every pet shop. What they can dwell well with other small creatures is also another factor that makes them perfect for the aquarium.
Overall, the beauty of this little creature is certainly a thing you need to watch and make others watch. It is a perfect pet to keep in your house. The fact that it can feed on small aquatic plants is a plus as you don’t need to feed it all the time. You will certainly enjoy the company of this little creature.