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View Full Version : I knew better...


Gdevine
04/24/2007, 08:34 AM
I purchased a Fire (blood) Shrimp [Lysmata debelius] last night at my LFS. I asked and re-asked "will he be compatible with my 2 Skunk Shrimp that have been in the tank since launch (about 4 months)."

I was told "no problem, we mix them all the time and never have a problem..."

Ok, so I start to feel a bit more comfortable that he will be accepted by the 2 Skunk's and I'd have a trio of beautiful cleaner shrimp.

I do all the right stuff and acclimate accordingly. Put him the tank and he climbs on a lower rock and hangs out.

All is good...so I thought.

So I am reading Coral magazine just 2 feet from the tank and it's getting late, the timers do their job and the lights go out. Well, when that happens the 2 Skunk's go on their scavenger missions and who do they come across...you bet...the new Fire shrimp.

The 2 skunks go to town on him and within seconds he's f'n dead!

Thank God I had my net close by as I was able to pull the dead shrimp out of the tank because one of the 2 Skunk's was trying to pull him under a rock for a huge feast.

The morale here...go with your instincts first. I had a strong suspicion that adding a new species similar to two already existing was probably going to be a problem and it was.

Never again...trust your gut first!

SDguy
04/24/2007, 08:38 AM
In all fairness, people do mix those shrimps in their tanks all the time with no problems. On the other hand, I have a friend with a fire shrimp that kills other shrimp introduced to the tank, so nothing is ever 100% certain. Sorry for the loss, those buggers aren't cheap.