Help us choose: Shrimp

Which shrimp do you think should go into our tank?

Our tank is almost done cycling.  So here are the fun posts!  Tell us what you think should go into our tank.  Anyone can comment without registering, so have at it!

The CUC (clean up crew) is the first thing to go into a freshly cycled tank.  These are animals that clean poo, algae, and uneaten food.  Examples of these critters are shrimp, snails, and crabs.  We will have all three.  

There are many varieties of shrimp and here are photos and profiles of a few that we think would be interesting to go into our tank.  We can’t have them all, so tell us what your favorites are!

PEPPERMINT SHRIMP

Image from Blue Zoo Aquatics

These little dudes are must.  They are non-negotiable. Not pretty critters, but our tank will have at least one of them.  They eat Aipstasia which is a nasty little pest that’s pretty until it takes over your tank. So, we think one of these little guys would be good to have on hand.

You can view their full profile here at Live Aquaria.

BUMBLE BEE SHRIMP

Image from Scuba Board

 These are some awesome looking shrimp.  That's mainly why we're looking at them.  Most of the fun of a reef tank is having variety of species and a variety of looks.  Some of these shrimp lend themselves very well to that.

These are small shrimp reaching a max length of 1" and we would probably buy them in a pair.

You can view their full profile here at Live Aquaria.

SEXY SHRIMP

Image from Reef Sanctuary

 Why is the Sexy Shrimp sexy?  Because it dances!  It sways it's lower abdomen back and forth when it walks like a sexy women.  These shrimp usually host anemones in the wild or home aquarium but will also host coral and rocks when anemones are not available.  These too are small shrimp at about 1" to 1 1/2".

You can view their full profile here at Live Aquaria and here's a video of the sexy dance!

FIRE SHRIMP

Image from Rate My Fishtank

Now, this is a type of shrimp we want.  The Fire Shrimp is a cleaner shrimp.  What is a cleaner shrimp?  Think of Jacque from Finding Nemo.  The shrimp will perch on a piece of a live rock and fish will come to be cleaned.  Large species of fish will even open their mouths for it.

You can view their full profile here at Live Aquaria and here's a video of a Fire Shrimp in cleaning mode.

BANDED CORAL SHRIMP

Image from Reef Delivered

 The Banded Coral Shrimp is another cleaner.  They are also a bit larger than the Fire Shrimp.

You can view their full profile here at Live Aquaria.

SKUNK CLEANER SHRIMP

I hope to have an eel one day.  Just not as big... Image from About Fish Online

The Skunk Cleaner Shrimp is another cleaner.  They are also usually a bit cheaper than their more flashy cousins.




You can view their full profile here at Live Aquaria.

So tell us what you think! We're in the market for one Peppermint, one cleaner, and one "decorative" shrimp.  Which ones are your favorite?