There are many different types of freshwater shrimp. They are fun little scavengers that help keep your aquarium clean. Shrimp like to eat leftover fish food and other debris. Other shrimps love to eat algae. And, there are filter-feeding shrimp that feed on particles in the water itself.
Table of Contents:
- Amano Shrimp (best algae eater)
- Bamboo Shrimp (popular fan-feeder)
- Ghost Shrimp (best for feeding tropical fish)
- Red Cherry Shrimp (most popular aquarium shrimp)
- Vampire Shrimp (another popular fan-feeding shrimp)
- Whisker Shrimp (most dangerous type of freshwater shrimp)
- Panda Shrimp (most unusual)
- Blue Tiger Shrimp (most beautiful)
- Blue Bolt Shrimp (most popular bee shrimp variety)
- Pinto Shrimp (last but not least)
- References & Further Reading
10 Most Popular Freshwater Shrimps For Aquariums
The following shrimp are easy to care for. Some can live peacefully with other shrimp and fish. But, some do best in an aquarium with only shrimp of the same species. These are the best freshwater aquarium shrimp for aquariums:
Amano Shrimp
Amano shrimp are algae-eating shrimp that also eats uneaten food and detritus in the tank. Amano shrimp can live best with other Amano shrimp or freshwater snails and non-aggressive fish like Oto cats and Cory catfish. These types of shrimps also prefer planted aquariums and are considered to be the best freshwater shrimp for algae.
- Scientific Name: Caridina multidentata
- Care Level: Easy
- Temperature Range: 65-85 °F/18-29.5 °C
- Suggested pH: 6.5-8.0
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Infraorder: | Caridea |
| Family: | Atyidae |
| Genus: | Caridina |
| Species: | C. multidentata |
Bamboo Shrimp
Bamboo shrimp eat by filtering edible material from the water column. These shrimp do best in tanks with flowing water so that they can get food. They have specialized limbs that help them catch food particles and bring them to their mouths. You can keep them happy by feeding them powdered fish flakes or algae powder. Bamboo shrimp are calm and non-aggressive toward other tank mates.
- Name: Atyopsis moluccensis
- Temperature: 68-82 F
- Size: 2-3”
- pH: 6.5-7.5
- kH: 2-7
- gH: 6-15
- TDS: 130-320
- Care Level: Easy
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Family: | Atyidae |
| Genus: | Atyopsis Chace, 1983 |
Ghost Shrimp
Ghost shrimp or glass shrimp are popular types of freshwater shrimp used for feeding tropical fish. But, you can also keep them as pets or with tank mates that are peaceful. These shrimp as transparent and blend in with their surroundings. They spend most of their time scavenging for leftover scraps in the tank. They make perfect additions to nano aquariums and great tank mates for nano fish.
- Scientific Name: Palaemonetes sp.
- Care Level: Easy
- Temperature Range: 70-80 °F/21-26.5 °C
- Suggested pH: 7.0-7.8
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Infraorder: | Caridea |
| Family: | Palaemonidae |
| Genus: | Palaemonetes |
| Species: | P. paludosus |
Red Cherry Shrimp
Red Cherry Shrimp are small, brightly colored shrimp that like tanks plenty of live plants. They use the plants as hiding places and spend most of their time scavenging for food or algae. Cherry shrimp are non-aggressive and cannot defend themselves. So, keep them by themselves or with other non-aggressive tank mates.
- Scientific Name: Neocaridina davidi var. red
- Care Level: Easy
- Temperature Range: 65-85 °F/18-29.5 °C
- Suggested pH: 6.3-8.0
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Infraorder: | Caridea |
| Family: | Atyidae |
| Genus: | Neocaridina |
| Species: | N. davidi |
Vampire Shrimp
Vampire shrimp are also a filter-feeding shrimp that use web-like limbs to bring food to their mouth. So, keep them in tanks with good water circulation to help them collect food. Vampire Shrimp are peaceful, so keep them with other peaceful shrimp and fish.
- Name: Atya gabonensis
- Temperature: 75-84 F
- Size: 3-6”
- pH: 6.5-7.5
- kH: 2-5
- gH: 6-15
- TDS: 120-350
- Care Level: Easy
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Infraorder: | Caridea |
| Family: | Atyidae |
| Genus: | Atya |
| Species: | A. gabonensis |
Whisker Shrimp
Whisker shrimp look like ghost shrimp because their bodies are almost transparent. But, whisker shrimp are bigger and longer than ghost shrimp. Though they look like ghost shrimp, they are not friendly toward them. Whisker shrimp are aggressive and will bully ghost shrimp and other freshwater shrimp. They can also bully small fish. It’s best to keep themselves or with freshwater snails. You can also keep them in the same tank with larger fish that can’t eat them but are too big for the shrimp to bully.
- Name: Macrobrachium lamarrei
- Temperature: 65-80 F
- Size: 2-3”
- pH: 7.0-7.8
- kH: 1-8
- gH: 3-15
- TDS: 200-500
- Care Level: Easy
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Infraorder: | Caridea |
| Family: | Palaemonidae |
| Genus: | Macrobrachium |
| Species: | M. lamarrei |
Panda Shrimp
Panda shrimp are a bee shrimp type known for their panda-like coloration. They aren’t the easiest type of shrimp to keep and are for the more experienced shrimp keeper. With the right care, they can thrive and be an eye-catcher in any shrimp collection.
- Scientific Name: Caridina cf. cantonensis var. “Panda”
- Care Level: Semi-difficult
- Temperature Range: 62-75 °F/16.5-24.5 °C
- Suggested pH: 6.0-7.5
Blue Tiger Shrimp
These shrimp are bright blue with black stripes and striking orange eyes.
- Scientific Name: Caridina cf. cantonensis ‘Blue Tiger’
- Care Level: Moderate
- Temperature Range: 65-75 °F/18-24 °C
- Suggested pH: 6.0-7.5
Blue Bolt Shrimp
“Blue Bolt”) is a popular variant of the classic Bee Shrimp. It is relatively hardy like many of the Neocaridina dwarf shrimp and is a great option for dedicated and experienced shrimp keepers.
- Scientific Name: Caridina cf. cantonensis var. ‘Blue bolt’
- Care Level: Moderate
- Temperature Range: 65-75 °F/18-24 °C
- Suggested pH: 6.0-7.5
Pinto Shrimp
Pinto shrimp have the classic solid coloration of the Caridina shrimp. They have white stripes, triangles, and spots depending on the patter, and come in black and red versions.
- Name: Caridina cantonensis
- Temperature: 65-73 F
- Size: 1”
- pH: 5.5-6.5
- kH: 0-2
- gH: 3-6
- TDS: 90-130
- Care Level: difficult
Things To Consider
Care
Freshwater Shrimp are delicate and don’t tolerate unexpected changes in water temperature and parameters. Like freshwater clams, shrimp are sensitive to copper and can die even if small doses are in the tank water. So, be careful when using plant fertilizers, medications, etc.
Tank Mates
Be careful when keeping different species of freshwater shrimp in the same aquarium. Some types of shrimp are aggressive toward other shrimp types and small fish.
Shrimp can also be victims of bullying by larger and aggressive tank mates. So, be sure to do a bit of research on compatibility when choosing the kind of freshwater shrimp you want for your tank.
References
- Freshwater Shrimp Species – Caridina and Neocaridina – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLkMY1y42Q0
- How To Breed Freshwater Shrimp – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71DD-nYVmLY
- Top 5 Aquarium Substrates for Freshwater Shrimp – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz7CeD6vsYs
- The Atya-like shrimps of the Indo-Pacific region (Decapoda, Atyidae)
- 6 Things You Didn’t Know About Aquarium Shrimp
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