Shrimp

Shrimps are a good addition to a salt water fish tank being colourful and also cleaning up left over food. Most shrimp are between two and three inches long with some species growing to more than ten feet in the wild. They remove parasites from fish and rely on camouflage and stealth for protection. They have a hard carapace which is shed regularly to allow the shrimp to grow. When shed the shrimp is very vulnerable until a new shell grows so in the aquarium provide rocks and caves for your shrimp to hide. they can be fed on flaked foods, freeze dried or live foods.

As with other marine animals, some shrimp are reef safe, and some are not. Shrimp like the scarlet cleaner and blood shrimp are both cleaner types and are definitely reef safe. These shrimp will set up stations in your tank where fish will actually come to them for a cleaning. Cleaner shrimp should be ok in pairs, but use caution when putting more than one of the same type in the same tank depending on the size of the aquarium

Shrimps such as the coral banded shrimp and peppermint shrimp are both considered reef safe, but I would be very cautious with these type. CBS are territorial toward other shrimp and crabs, but are a very interesting addition to a reef tank. My experience with peppermint shrimp is not a very good one. These shrimp are very aggressive and ate a few polyps from one of my corals before I removed them from the tank. However, peppermint shrimp are great for removing aiptasia from your tank if you have any.

Finally, species such as the mantis shrimp should be kept in a species only tank. These shrimp are very territorial and very capable of dominating everything, including fish, in your aquarium. Not reef safe.

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