[Andyandsue]

I have a small tank, and I know not to overcrowd, but I'm wondering are ghost shrimp best kept in pairs? I lost one today and I'm wondering if the other needs a companion.

And before I get a ton of questions, he really died. He molted and I found both his exoskeleton in the tank and his lifeless body in the hiding spot. So bummed out about him/her.

Thanks.

 

[Brandon]

Im not an expert on these but i think its better to keep them in pairs because my friend has a bunch to feed to his sting rays. They seem to do pretty well in bunches.

 

[musho3210]

one of mine died during its first molt, as some of the people who helped me said you should make a cave of some sort that only the shrimp can enter.

 

[FDStation152]

I've kept them both in bunches and solo and had both do well. In fact in groups they tend to squabble a lot over food they find (toss in a sinking pellet to a large bunch of ghost shrimp and theyll spend an hour fighting for it) so they probably wouldn't overly mind being kept alone but since they spend a lot time hiding I prefer to have a bunch so I can always spot atleast a few.

 

[musho3210]

one i make there personal cave i will drop some sinking things in there for them to eat like algae wafers and stuff, hopefully this will encourage them to breed so there young will feed my rams :wink:

 

[FDStation152]

I've yet to have them successfully multiply in a community tank. I see the females carrying the eggs often but the baby shrimp are either eaten but other tankmakes or fail to get the required food. Toss some in a tank with nothing but java moss though and watch how many you end up with.

 

[Zephyr]

Definately get a literal "handfew" more of ghost shrimp. They have almost no bio-load, and do great as a tank clean up crew.
As for molting, I would increase the water hardness a bit. My water is pretty hard in my 10 gallon, and my shrimp continue to set the record for most molts. *I swear one of the females has molted twice in the past week!*