Amano Shrimp Breeding Project

[MR_Shrimp]

Ok I've had a few amanos for about a year or year and a half.
And it seems that every month I have at least on filled up to the rim with eggs.


I was thinking of starting a project.
Get a 2.5 gal tank or small container, add salt water and a air pump and try and see if I can breed them.

Questions would be, do I need to acclimate the amano? put it thru, a little brackish, a heavier brackish, than full salt water? or do you think they will adapt from fresh to full salt water.

I think that it should adapt very quickly. since in the wild the tides may be very fast, specially where the sea meets fresh water. one hour you have fresh water and the next the sea is invading, so from that I believe they must adapt quickly or else they would not survive.

Now I am saying that because I want to keep her on salt water the least amount of time because I don't want her stressing out too much, due to rapid changes and small container, little water movement .....
So when she is about ready to give birth I want to transfer her and keep her for no more than 2 or 3 days there.

And also I don't want to kill her. I love my amano and don't want to have to buy others.

I also know I should have some green water in hand when the babies come out, which is very easy to get.

Now what else do I need to provide to the babies?
How long do you think they should stay in the salt water?
Any other ideas would be helpful.

So basically my plan is:
1-Wait about 25-27 days from when she gets the eggs.
2-Transfer her to a salt water container. (hopefully it doesn't need much acclimation) with an air stone.
3-Wait for the little guys to come out and move the adult back to the tank.
4-Feed them "green water" till they come out of their larvae stage (god knows how long).
5-Transfer them to my planted tank.
6-Be a proud mommy, actually daddy... maybe both.

I am open to suggestions and advices. I wanted to get this going since the last one to "get pregnant" just had dropped the eggs on her swimmers on august 4th

[krisw]

This is something I've thought about on and off for years, but never actually did. I found this website, however, awhile back where a guy documents how he did it:

http://mikes-machine.mine.nu/breeding_yamato.htm

There's this one too:

http://caridinajaponicabreeding.blogspot.com/

[MR_Shrimp]

great pages... I think I might have to get started on buying some salt and start my "green water factory"

ow... and get ready to work a lot :S

Thanks Kris

[krisw]

Definitely keep good notes and pictures if you can. If you're successful, maybe you could talk at one of the meetings to teach the rest of us how to do it.

[DonkeyFish]

I started to do this a few months back and, well, lost interest before the larvae hatched. Seeing as how there are eggs pretty much every month I said "ah heck, I'll just try sometime later when I feel like it" LOL

Those links are very good. DO NOT PUT YOUR ADULT SHRIMP IN SALT WATER The eggs actually hatch in fresh water and are carried to the salty water. You have somewhere between 24-48 hours to get salt in the water with the babies after mom is moved back to the original tank. I had my momshrimp in the holding tank for a week+ and wouldn't you know it, the day after I gave up and put her back in the community tank she was empty again. LOL. And no, I never ever see any larvae.. but wouldn't expect to with the ravenous livebearers in that tank.

So good luck!!! As Kris said, make sure to take good notes (for us AND you) and pictures if you can. We will all be anxiously awaiting results (and purchasing opportunity!)!

[MR_Shrimp]

After some "education" I guess I am a little more educated and I'll have some better chance:)

I've never seen the larvae either, hopefully they were eaten by the fish, crab and crays I have and it was not the larvae that were "not good"
...
anyways will set up things and take as many pics as I can... I just don't have a macro lens

[MR_Shrimp]

Another question ...

does anyone have a 2 gal or smaller fish tank with filter I could borrow for a few months to get this going?
I just don't want to invest too much.. if we get some offsprings I'll give you guys some in exchange.

[MR_Shrimp]

Well I bought a 1 gal nano, and it's been running for 2 weeks now, I put in some shrimp to see if it is safe, by now it should be fully cycled.

Than the plan is to move the pregnant amano when it reaches it's 4 1/2 weeks (it started carrying the eggs on aug 4th .. so more or less on the 4th again)


can't wait. will post some pics later

[kerokero]

I'm interested in hearing how this goes too This is definately something I want to try at some point (on the ever growing list of things to do "after I get a job" - but at least now I can keep cherries alive!).

Thanks Kris for the links - at least one of them is new to me and being the research fiend I am, I love having more to read on the subject

[fredyk]

Found some inspirational pictures. The pregnant amano was put into a small freshwater container and had some fry. The problem becomes when they move into salt water.

And a youtube link of the same thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=994klNcF9No

Just fyi, it's kind of a hassle to raise them, but it's just easy to hatch them.