Can I keep skeleton shrimp?

[kris2001]

I have mixed reef with a huge sump with rocks and no chaeto.... Just ba, ha, fa, corals, one tang
..
Can I keep skeleton shrimp? Where to get them and what do they eat?
THX

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

I have mixed reef with a huge sump with rocks and no chaeto.... Just ba, ha, fa, corals, one tang
..
Can I keep skeleton shrimp? Where to get them and what do they eat?
THX

Out of curiosity, what are "ba," "ha," and "fa?"

Regardless, you can keep skeleton shrimp, but they're large amphipods, so they may be eaten by your fish.

Very few places actively sell these. The only place that I'm aware of that carries them right now (and that doesn't list them as out of stock) is a coldwater shop that notes their skeleton shrimp are seasonal and found when water temps are in the ~30's to ~40's Fahrenheit.

So, unfortunately, if you really want them in a tropical tank, you'll probably have to special order them from a place like KP Aquatics.

What they eat varies drastically from one species to another from filter-feeding to scavenging/grazing to predation of other small pods and small worms (see the "Caprellid feeding" section in the paper below):

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/223842623_Caprellid_amphipods_An_overlooked_marine_finfish_aquaculture_resource