Fire Shrimp Questions

[bearfan1942]

I have a new (6 week) old 65 gallon tank. Just added two beautiful Fire Shrimp. This mourning I noticed just one of the shrimp out during feeding. I also noted pieces of red skin on the tank bottom. Is this a normal molting occurance? Does the Fire Shrimp hid after molting? Do the shrimp molt thier entire skin including tenicles? Also the remaining shrimp is constantly cleaning my Blue Tang. Is this normal? I am new at this hobby and just trying to learn.

bearfan1942

 

[feh]

Yes, shrimp have been known to hide to protect themselves after molting until the new shell hardens.

 

[Mike J.]

The shrimp or crab will shed it's entire exoskeleton. Some people think that it's dead because of that. In simple terms the newly shed shrimp is just the meat part, no shell at all and very susceptible to predation. The shrimp then uses all of it's meat to make a new shell. That's when they are referred to as papershells because they will have a shell and no meat. Then the Shrimp is very hungry and will eat and fill in it's empty shell with meat. Then do the process again. It's how they grow.

 

[Mike J.]

I'm just trying to be helpful when simply explaining the process. The process is called ecdysis if you want to look it up for yourself. It's what I did my dissertation on.

 

[bearfan1942]

Thank you Mike. Are the Fire Shrimp cleaners for a Blue Tang?

 

[Mike J.]

Yes, all the shrimp with the white antennae are cleaners. Some are just better at it than others. The white antennae are a signal to the fish that they are cleaners. So, a coral banded shrimp, fire shrimp, or cleaner shrimp will all clean fish. Don't worry about it; the tang won't let the shrimp do anything unless he wants to.

 

[Mike J.]

Read this: Saltwater Aquarium Shrimp for Marine Reef Aquariums: Blood Red Fire Shrimp