Peppermint Shrimp
From ReefPedia
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[edit] Peppermint ShrimpScientific Name Lysmata n.sp. Max. Size: 3 inches Tank Size: 10 gallon Aggression: Generally not aggressive, but some look-a-like species are Hardiness: These shrimp are easy to care for, with the tank bred specimens being the hardiest. Reef-Safe: With caution- they are known to eat certain species of anemone and will occasionally (rarely) harm corals and other sessile inverts. Available as captive-bred: Yes |
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Physical Description
Transparent bodies with pink lines on their bodies.
Distribution
Lysmata wurdemanni: New York to Port Aransas, Texas. Other species are found throughout the Caribbean.
Taxonomic Stuff you know you Care About
- Family: Hippolytidae
- Genus: Lysmata
- Species: wurdemanni
Behavior
Scavenge for food throughout the tank at night. During the day, they usually hide out in a small cave or overhang.
Feeding
The peppermint shrimp will scavenge for food thorughout the tank. They are aggressive feeders and will eat any food that you feed them, including pellets, frozen and flake foods. They will sometimes eat aiptasia anemones.
Breeding
The peppermint shrimp breeds readily in the home aquarium if the adults are fed properly. The adult will deposit the larvae at the surface of the water, usually late at night. The larvae must quickly be siphoned out and placed into a separate tank, preferably 10 gallons or larger. The larvae tank must not have a filter, but instead an airstone to circulate and aerate the water. The larvae can be fed freshly hatched brine shrimp (less than 3 hours old is the most nutritious) or flake food. The uneaten food must be cleaned out often so the tank does not become polluted. After about 5-8 weeks the larvae will undergo metamorphosis and become adult shrimp (they will still be very small)
Social Structure
Most peppermint shrimp prefer to live in groups, one species lives isolated in tube sponges.
Additional Notes
There are 4 new species of Lysmata that have been recently discribed. The Lysmata in the picture is one of those new species. Lysmata wurdemanni is not commonly traded. The most commonly traded shrimp is also a new species. Lysmata rathbunae is a deep water species and is never seen in the aquarium trade.
