Can I mix shrimp?

chrisnif

Member
So, I find shrimp interesting when they are doing whatever they do. From what I've gathered red pacific/skunk cleaners you can have more than one sometimes, peppermints are fine in groups, coral banded get 1. But can I have say 2 skunk cleaners, a coral banded and 3-4 peppermints?
No invert eaters in the tank, although I'm waiting to hear back on a pair of stary-eyed hermits that are 3-4 inches and ate some brittle stars...not sure if i want them yet, but free to me, maybe trade in at the LFS :)
 

j. crow

Member
The only shrimp that I know of that don't mix well are Coral Banded Shrimp, Pistol Shrimps, and Mantis Shrimps.. Now I have a Skunk Cleaner with my Coral Banded Shrimp and they're fine, the CBS doesn't like the Cleaner to get near him but no over the top aggression or chasing.. all shrimp are different though.
 

chrisnif

Member
Cool. It sounds like getting the CBS last would be my best bet. I just like how big they get and how awesome they look... The one LFS here gets rarer stuff in the late spring and early fall (not too hot or too cold for shipping i guess). Last year they had something that looked like a CBS but it was all red was huge too, maybe 4-5 inches, but petite, not like a lobster or anything...dont remember what it was :)
 

browniebuck

Active Member
One thing that I would be a little concerned about are aquarium dimensions and the ability of the cleaner to stay out of the way of the CBS...if the aquarium is big enough, I wouldn't see a problem as they could both have their own territory. I don't know what the dimensions are on a 56 (what your profile lists).
If you wanted to mix shrimp (a little more safely), you could get a fire shrimp or two instead of the CBS...they are basically just solid red cleaner shrimp with the bright white antennae, white tips on their legs, and a few spots of white.
I have 4 cleaners in my 125 and plan on adding about 4 red fire shrimp in the near future...I also love to watch my shrimp.
 

bang guy

Moderator
It takes CBS a few years to mature but once they do they will eat other smaller species of shrimp. All of the Cleaner Shrimp species mix well but larger Cleaner Shrimp will eat the tiny ones, even of the same species.
 
T

tiny

Guest
I have one larger Cleaner and 3 small same sized Peppermints in my 55. I got the Cleaner first, so he has dominance over the Peppermints, but they all get along. The Cleaner will get territorial sometimes toward the other guys, but he's not as aggressive to them as my clown is.
 

mastertech

Member
Had a fireshrimp and added two peppermint. never saw the peppermints since that night.
added a skunk and those two (fire and skunk) now hang out together sometimes.
 
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