Trigger and pep shrimp....WHAT THE....

[mie]

Will pepermint shrimp clean fish? in the wild or in the home aquarium.
Reason i am asking i bought a little pep shrimp last week and it has staked its claim under a rock, well My niger trigger has found it, and all the trigger does is sit on the sand bed with his left side against the rock about 1/8 of an inch from the shrimp. what is going on? I have never seen the trigger act agressive towards the shrimp

 

[miaheatlvr]

Well, that is a Triggers natural food in the wild, even a more "docile" one as the Niger is considered...Unfortnatley Nature is taking its course and your trigger wants to make your peppermint shrimp an expensive snack..

 

[mie]

How would him sitting on the sand next to the shrimp be perceived as wanting it for a snack? Would'nt he just stick his mouth down ther and grab it. he has not eaten my coral banded. YET.... 8 plus months.

 

[kjr_trig]

Interesting indeed. I would disagree with Heatlovr, Niger's can be quite aggressive when they want too, mine was the most aggressive fish in an "Aggressive" community, even though he was not the "Alpha". Once they get established they can become quite bossy, I fear for the lives of your shrimp over time. Good Luck.

 

[usefulidiot213]

Doesn't sound like he is trying to eat the shrimp. If so, you would be right. He would just dive down and get some. Have you or do you have an issue with Ick. Sometimes a fish with parasites will try to get cleaned to help eliminate the stowaways... Either way he doesn't seem like he wants to eat him just yet...

 

[mie]

Here is a pic the shrimp is just behind him above his fin in the rock. he will sit there for several minutes. and we only had one case of ich and was taken care of with hypo months ago. no signs ( I have been looking )

 

[seamandrew]

Maybe, the niger trigger has a crush on your shrimp.. yeah, I know that was lame.
It could be seeking a cleaning, that's a good possibility or perhaps it's not even aware that they both share a home next to each other. You can try rearranging some of the live rock to see if the behavior changes.

 

[stdreb27]

Originally Posted by seamandrew
Maybe, the niger trigger has a crush on your shrimp.. yeah, I know that was lame.
It could be seeking a cleaning, that's a good possibility or perhaps it's not even aware that they both share a home next to each other. You can try rearranging some of the live rock to see if the behavior changes.
Why try to change the behavior? He isn't eating the little guy. And that is good, normally they do.

 

[seamandrew]

That's true stdreb27, it just seems the aquarist is perturbed by the situation. So, I was offering some advice on how to change the dynamic between the niger trigger and the shrimp.

 

[stdreb27]

Originally Posted by seamandrew
That's true stdreb27, it just seems the aquarist is perturbed by the situation. So, I was offering some advice on how to change the dynamic between the niger trigger and the shrimp.
sorry not trying to flame you

Just wanted to mention that you may want to keep the rules the same in that tank.

 

[aquaknight]

Peppermints are indeed fish cleaners in the wild, and good ones too. The drawback is they lack the white colored antennae most types of cleaner shrimp have, which is a sign to fish. The trigger being smarter then most IMO, I guess views the peppermint as a cleaner.

 

[mie]

Well thanks everyone for your input. I just back into town this morning from work and the trigger is still acting the same way and the shrimp is still alive. The question is, will he eat him if he is out in the open? Or are they nocturnal hunters? (the shrimp)

 

[stdreb27]

Originally Posted by mie
Well thanks everyone for your input. I just back into town this morning from work and the trigger is still acting the same way and the shrimp is still alive. The question is, will he eat him if he is out in the open? Or are they nocturnal hunters? (the shrimp)
I think they both are nocturnal.

 

[mie]

Originally Posted by stdreb27
I think they both are nocturnal.
No, the trigger actually locks himself away in a cave and stays mostly all night.