# My CRS/green shrimp tank !!!



## Alexpatrascu

*My CRS tank !!!*

Hey there shrimps lovers !!!

I finally decided to take the CRS way in my shrimp hobby !!!

I used to have a RCS tank with co2, ferts and everything that was needed to have a beautiful aquascape but I guess when things are too simple we start looking for a challenge !!!

I also started a 15 gal planted tank for my soon to arrive yellows and CPOs...check *this topic* !!!

So here is the beginning of my new CRS/greens tank.....shrimps will be on their way after the tank is cycled !!!

I bought a shallow 30 gal tank form a LFS, I changed the front glass and the two sides(they were scratched) and I redid the silicone just to be sure....

I installed the styrofoam 3D background(the cuts were a perfect match, can't even tell where the cut is) and I was ready to go....

*Specs*

Aquarium 30 gal(30x18x13")
EHEIM 2215
24" 2x24W T5HO light fixture
SMS122 pH monitor
3D background(styrofoam)

ADAII soil(2x9L bag)
Driftwood forest
Xmass moss
Flame moss
Anubias nana
Java fern
Moss balls
Japanese hairgrass

CRS
Greens
OEBT

*Here it is*










*I dropped inside the two bags of ADAII that I got from Toronto, threw in a piece of driftwood with some Anubias(too big, had no other place to put it) and started the cycling*










The blue-ish color of the water is from the (soon to be changed with a 18.000k) actinic neon, being that this was a salt water fixture.

Next post.....the aquascape...you'll love it !!!


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## Alexpatrascu

So here is the aquascape taking shape....

Got together a bunch of river rocks, some(~15) hair meshes from some1 at Maxi(darn expensive at farmacy - 3.5$/3pcs), my driftwood, Xmass and flame moss, java fern and Anubias....














































So I made 10 Xmass moss rock and I'm planning on making some riccia stones when it grows a little more.

I also received my moss balls today...very happy with my purchase !!!


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## igor.kanshyn

Great start!


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks Igor.

Here is an update....aquascape is done !!!

Hope you like it.














































Riccia stones will be added soon.

Stay tuned !!!


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## igor.kanshyn

Looks amazing!

Just be aware that all that little hills will be even with time


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## Otaku

nice tank man! I'll race you with the development of my moss rocks and branches with yours 

are you going to get some nice rooty plants to make use all that nice plant substrate? plants would absolutely love it considering how deep it is 

good stuff, keep it up


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## CrystalMethShrimp

Hey Alex

Back ground looks great hope it's safe for your crs.
I'm also glad you got the sub finally.

Great looking tank. It's like a play ground for crs haha.


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## Alexpatrascu

igor.kanshyn said:


> Looks amazing!
> 
> Just be aware that all that little hills will be even with time


Thanks Igor, and I know the hills are gonna be gone in time...I'll redo them when that's gonna happen.....



Otaku said:


> nice tank man! I'll race you with the development of my moss rocks and branches with yours
> 
> are you going to get some nice rooty plants to make use all that nice plant substrate? plants would absolutely love it considering how deep it is
> 
> good stuff, keep it up


Yeah, I'm curious to see who gets there first....

About the plants, I'll add just some japanese hairgrass, that's it....I'm trying to keep the soil alive for as long as I can...



CrystalMethShrimp said:


> Hey Alex
> 
> Back ground looks great hope it's safe for your crs.
> I'm also glad you got the sub finally.
> 
> Great looking tank. It's like a play ground for crs haha.


Yeah Jay, it looks good and it's just plain old styrofoam, nothing unsafe about it...I guess ....

Will keep you posted after I add the riccia rocks !!!


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## Alexpatrascu

Riccia stone are done...


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## ShrimpieLove

Looks very nice! A forest for shrimps!


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## Alexpatrascu

ShrimpieLove said:


> Looks very nice! A forest for shrimps!


Thanks Sabrina....


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## Alexpatrascu

Added the riccia stones and coconut shell caves !!!

Also switch the 2x24W light fixture with the 4x24W so I can give a little more light to the mosses till my shrimps arrive !!!


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## segrig

I really like this tank, it looks great. I'm looking forward to seeing the finished and inhabited product.


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## arktixan

awesome looking tank, can't wait til more growth, and shrimp arrive


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks a lot uys for the nice comments.

Shrimps are comming soon, prolly at the ends of the week.

Will keep you updateed.


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## Alexpatrascu

Lunch time today the package arrived !!!

Just 5 FDOA, unfortunately the higher grades !!!


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## Otaku

hey are you having any algae problems? 

my moss and fissidens are growing great, but there's algae that has woven itself into them that's impossible to physically remove without taking out chunks of the moss 

i've got like, 50 RCS and 10 Amano shrimp that don't seem to help 

I went back to 48 watts/ 29 gallons... and i just spot treated my Crypts with Excel and now I have a bright pink algae lol.. i don't dare to spot treat the mosses though


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## ThyrosineChoi

very nice?how many did u get for how much??


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## CrystalMethShrimp

hey Alex your tank will be very fun to watch.

It's like a flea circus. So many areas for the crs to climbing in and around. The foam background brings the scape together and is a great idea if it doesn't kill the crs.
Are those charcoal bamboo i see ? 

Can u upload a video with your crs in it please. 
I think I will design my new tank this way as well.


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## igor.kanshyn

Otaku said:


> hey are you having any algae problems?
> 
> my moss and fissidens are growing great, but there's algae that has woven itself into them that's impossible to physically remove without taking out chunks of the moss


Moses and crypts are low-light plants. They can grow with an intersive light if you supply them with CO2 and good fertilization, but algae can grow as well.
Having a high light you might need to think about fast growing stem plants.

As I see from Alex pictures, he has quite a great light (4x24 T5HO) and the tank is 30 gallons.
It's about 4 WPG for now and this is lots of light. 
Just be prepared to a battle with algae


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## gem

On my riccia stones and java moss stones I also have a very dense cover of beard algea. I was told that If I spray SEACHEM FLOURISH EXCEL on it directly it will die.....My only concern is that I have RCS in the tank would it be harmful for them?.....is there any other way to treat this thread algea?


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## Alexpatrascu

Otaku said:


> hey are you having any algae problems?


No algae problems for now and I don't expect I'll have any as I'll change the lighting soon.



CrystalMethShrimp said:


> hey Alex your tank will be very fun to watch.
> 
> It's like a flea circus. So many areas for the crs to climbing in and around. The foam background brings the scape together and is a great idea if it doesn't kill the crs.
> Are those charcoal bamboo i see ?
> 
> Can u upload a video with your crs in it please.
> I think I will design my new tank this way as well.


Thanks Jay, I really like how it turned out.

Those are not bamboo, they're 1/4 coconut shell made by me(cut, cleaned, boiled...) but I moved all of them into the 15 gal CPO tank as I needed some more hiding places for my crays.

I'll try to take a video of the tank sometime this weekend.

I can't wait to see your new tank !!!



igor.kanshyn said:


> As I see from Alex pictures, he has quite a great light (4x24 T5HO) and the tank is 30 gallons.
> It's about 4 WPG for now and this is lots of light.
> Just be prepared to a battle with algae


I do have a freshwater fixture 2x24W T5HO that I'm gonna put on the tank instead of this one(salt water 4x24W T5HO)....I'm just giving the moss/riccia rocks a push...



gem said:


> On my riccia stones and java moss stones I also have a very dense cover of beard algea. I was told that If I spray SEACHEM FLOURISH EXCEL on it directly it will die.....My only concern is that I have RCS in the tank would it be harmful for them?.....is there any other way to treat this thread algea?


You might wanna take a look here for some info !!!


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## Alexpatrascu

Here are a few crappy pics of my CRS/CBS.

My camera's LCD screen is broken so I can't tell what's in focus when I look through the viewfinder


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## Beijing08

nice grades alex!


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks Leon.

I do have 2 SS that have kind of a faded white so I'll have to get rid of them.

Here they are at lunch time....


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## Alexpatrascu

Everything is growing nicely...


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## igor.kanshyn

Looks great!


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks Igor.

Here is my first berried SS female...


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## igor.kanshyn

Cool! Have a good luck with her


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## arktixan

Tanks looking good sir  Congrats on the Berried


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## CrystalMethShrimp

I bet you can just spend hours looking at that tank.

It looks like a playground.


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## Alexpatrascu

You're right Jay, sometimes I do spend quite a while looking at the tank.

You should see the CRS "flying" from one tree to another....they're like monkeys !!!

Now I added 10-12 CPO babies from the batch that hatched last night....will post some pics soon.


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## iBetta

i absolutely LOVE those small branches! where did you get them? local pet store?


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## CrystalMethShrimp

please make a 720p hd video 

btw as you know I'm in the process of setting up a 30 gal tank. I really want this style now. The Styrofoam background is perfect for shrimps as the Fluval ebi tank even uses the same material.


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks, those branches are actually some roots that I found in my "back yard"...there's a small patch of trees(small forest) in the back of my building and I found some small trees that were taken out of the ground(I think they were some kind of house plants/trees).....they all come from the same big root that I found and took apart....I boiled them(3-4 hours/day) and cleaned them for 3 days....

Jay, my photo camera doesn't have a HD video option, just regular video....I'll try to take a video with my Kodak Playsport XZ3 though it doesn't have a great closeup resolution !!!

About the *background*....I say go for it.....especially when Hagen is using it in their setups !!!

Will post some pics/vids soon.


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## Alexpatrascu

And here is a video of the tank.....finally....


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## Beijing08

damn the shrimps look so happy


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## Alexpatrascu

They *are* happy Leon.


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## Alexpatrascu

Goddamn, look at this sh!t....my only berried female is dead....


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## arktixan

Aw man that's terrible 
Are you going to try, and do the artificial hatchery?


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## Alexpatrascu

Yeah Jon, I already put the eggs in a net breeding box close to the spray bar fom my Eheim 2215 so they get a good water movement !!!

Will have to wait and see if they come through...


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## arktixan

Good luck! Fingers Crossed for you!


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## sujeev87

good luck. Do you by any chance know why she died?


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## CrystalMethShrimp

if I died I 'd want to be reincarnated as a crs living in that tank.


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks Jon, I hope everything is gonna be OK.

@ sujeev87...I really don't know why she died....my tank is OK, all the tests came out good a few days ago, the rest of the gang seems OK.

Thanks Jay, I'll promisse I'll take good care of you if you end up in my tank !!!

Can't wait to see your new 30 gal setup coming alive !!!


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## Ciddian

I am so sorry about the female!  Good luck with the eggs!


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## igor.kanshyn

Beijing08 said:


> damn the shrimps look so happy


Yes, and they are mating!

That's a cool tank, thank your for the perfect video


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> Goddamn, look at this sh!t....my only berried female is dead....


I am sorry about the dead female.

Each time I have a dead shrimp I started to test water, think about what was wrong and why it could died ...and there was usually no answer ... it's so disappointing 

Don't be upset to much, if they breed, you did a good job!


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## brapbrapboom

Alexpatrascu said:


> Goddamn, look at this sh!t....my only berried female is dead....


sorry about ur female CRS.. also, this tank is really tempting me to get another CRS tank up LOL!


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks a lot guys for the support.

I'll keep you posted on the eggs development !!!


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## Alexpatrascu

Found two more SS females berried.


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> Found two more SS females berried.


That's cool!


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## Alexpatrascu

And now a CBS is berried !!


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## brapbrapboom

Alexpatrascu said:


> And now a CBS is berried !!


Congrats man!!! Now I cant wait till I stock up and have berried mommas!


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks buddy.

And guess what I found this evening in my breeding net where I had the eggs I collected from the dead CRS female........

TADAAAAAAA !!!!!

I found 6 CRS babies till now and I still have ~10 eggs in the net....I hope all of them are gonna hatch !!!


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## sujeev87

congrats. That's pretty cool. How did you set it up?


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## Alexpatrascu

Well I put all the eggs in the *breeding net* and I made a little setup so the net is in front of the spray bar from my EHEIM 2215 so they can get a good water movement !!!


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> Well I put all the eggs in the *breeding net* and I made a little setup so the net is in front of the spray bar from my EHEIM 2215 so they can get a good water movement !!!


Sounds good. I wish you success with that!


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## brapbrapboom

I see a baby!!


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## Alexpatrascu

igor.kanshyn said:


> Sounds good. I wish you success with that!


Thanks Igor....success has already been achieved !!!

So I have 6 babies from yesterday evening and 9 more babies this morning....yayyyy.

I still have 2-3 eggs in the net and I'll wait to see if they hatch...I hope they will !!!

More pics this evening.


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## Alexpatrascu

Here is the setup for the breeding net and another shot of a 1 day old fry !!!


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## sujeev87

that's pretty cool. I never knew you could ever do this. Thanks for posting this stuff up.


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> Thanks Igor....success has already been achieved !!!
> 
> So I have 6 babies from yesterday evening and 9 more babies this morning....yayyyy.
> 
> I still have 2-3 eggs in the net and I'll wait to see if they hatch...I hope they will !!!
> 
> More pics this evening.


Wow, that's super cool.
I tried artificial hatching several times, but it has never ended successfully. Eggs got fungus very fast.


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## sujeev87

How long were the eggs in this setup before you noticed they hatched and What temperature and pH do you keep your tank at?


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## Alexpatrascu

sujeev87 said:


> that's pretty cool. I never knew you could ever do this. Thanks for posting this stuff up.


Glad to be helpful...this is how people go to the next level, by sharing their knowledge/experiences !!!



igor.kanshyn said:


> Wow, that's super cool.
> I tried artificial hatching several times, but it has never ended successfully. Eggs got fungus very fast.


Sorry to hear about that Igor.....what method did you tried ?!?

Some people do it in a small container changing the water everyday(or a few times a day) *OR* keeping the eggs in a stainless steel stainer with an airstone under it so the eggs get water movement.....OR as they think it's better with what they have(i.e ME) !!!



sujeev87 said:


> How long were the eggs in this setup before you noticed they hatched and What temperature and pH do you keep your tank at?


Well my female died 2-3 days after she got berried(died on 26.06.2011) and I noticed the first CRS fry two days ago(11.07.2011) !!!

So that makes the whole artificial hatchery process 16-17 days long....that's _almost_ a full "regular/natural" hatching time !!!

My pH is ~6.6(I have ADAII) and I try to keep the temp as low as I can in this weather...it's usually at 72-74F !!!


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> Sorry to hear about that Igor.....what method did you tried ?!?
> 
> Some people do it in a small container changing the water everyday(or a few times a day)


Yes, this is what I did. It doesn't work.
Your are right, It should be constant water movement.



Alexpatrascu said:


> So that makes the whole artificial hatchery process 16-17 days long....that's _almost_ a full "regular/natural" hatching time !!!


Hm, it should be 23-29 days for crystal red shrimps.
Are you sure that it's the same female.
Or she might has got pregnant earlier.

How long have you had eggs after her death?


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## Alexpatrascu

igor.kanshyn said:


> .....
> Hm, it should be 23-29 days for crystal red shrimps.
> Are you sure that it's the same female.
> Or she might has got pregnant earlier.
> 
> How long have you had eggs after her death?


Yes I'm positive it's the same female but now that I think about it(and after checking my journal on page 3 ).....she was berried longer than 3 days before she died, she was berried for 10 days !!

So that means that the whole process is around 26-27 days long !!!

She:
- got berried on 15.06.2011
- died on 24.06.2011(9 days)
- eggs hatched on 11-12.07.2011(17-18 days)

Now I'm not seeing any of the young CRS in my tank...maybe they're hiding or they didn't make it(though I've been adding Chi Ebi regular)


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> Yes I'm positive it's the same female but now that I think about it(and after checking my journal on page 3 ).....she was berried longer than 3 days before she died, she was berried for 10 days !!
> 
> So that means that the whole process is around 26-27 days long !!!
> 
> She:
> - got berried on 15.06.2011
> - died on 24.06.2011(9 days)
> - eggs hatched on 11-12.07.2011(17-18 days)
> 
> Now I'm not seeing any of the young CRS in my tank...maybe they're hiding or they didn't make it(though I've been adding Chi Ebi regular)


Great, that make more sense now 

Use Mosura BioPlus or Mosura BT-9, Rich Water. I hope you still have some of them


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## Alexpatrascu

igor.kanshyn said:


> ......
> I hope you still have some of them


I saw one of them on a moss stone !!!


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## soonhong

Very nice shrimp tank setup and nice shrimps you have there....


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks.

And here are the latest updates....I GOT MYSELF SOME OEBTs !!!

Thanks again Ricky for these awesome shrimps...I owe you big time !!!


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## novice

Your photography skills make the OEBT's look much better than when they were in my tank.


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks Ricky, they look just as good as they did in your aquarium.

And here's what I found when I was moving some of my moss stones around to make some room for the japanese hairgrass....

A SS+ and a SSS+


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## novice

those are some nice sss - how many of those do you have - were these from the SS that you had or do you have adult SSS grades too?


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## Alexpatrascu

I think I saw 3 of these SSS and I do have a SSS+ in my tank(male)...check the last pic from the first set of pix on page three !!!

I also sold all my moss stones today and I started seeig ~8-10 CRS babies(S, SS & SSS) that I thought were dead.


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## Alexpatrascu

The tank is going really well.

I have a dozen babies and almost 80% of the females are berried.

I added a piece of wood from my 15 gal CPO tank and all the shrimps jumped on it !!!

Here are a few more pics...


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## missindifferent

So jealous! I especially like the blue tiger shrimps... does he have more?? 

p.s. Why are they called OEBT?


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks.

OEBT stands for Orange Eye Blue Tiger shrimps !!!


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## Alexpatrascu

Finally...after 2&1/2 months, my Green female is berried !!!

I have another one that has the saddle.


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## dchow

pretty!

Are those green tigers?


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## Alexpatrascu

Neah, they're the regular babaulti greens.

Now my second female is berried AND I saw a third female saddled.....yeyyyy !!!!!


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## zfarsh

Can the mods make this thread sticky? That's if everyone agrees, as this thread seems too usefull and I believe it should always be on type as a guide for everyone, specially newbs like me. What do you guys think?


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## Alexpatrascu

Thanks a lot for thinking about this buddy but I don't think it's necesarry to make this topic sticky !!!


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## Alexpatrascu

Ain't this life a motherf... bitch !?!!

The only SSS+ in my tanks is dead....

At least I have a few offsprings from him.


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## arktixan

that's terrible, i know how you feel, sure i dont have the high grade u do... but I've lost quite a bit while I was away on Vaca def not a good feeling.

Let's hope the offsprings pull through !


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## Alexpatrascu

Guess what I saw in my CRS tank after a close look....2 CBS babies, CROWN !!!

I only had S grade CBS in my tank(before I moved them in my 2 gal) so I guess they must've had a SSS+ parent.

Another strange think I noticed is a CRS baby with a black spot on his first red stripe(last to pics)...anyone seen anything like this before ?!?


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## Alexpatrascu

What do you say about this photo ?!??


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## igor.kanshyn

Alexpatrascu said:


> What do you say about this photo ?!??


I like it 
They are cosmo-shrimps


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## flyingshrimp

Alexpatrascu said:


> Finally...after 2&1/2 months, my Green female is berried !!!
> 
> I have another one that has the saddle.


Are they kept with CRS?

If not, what's the water PH they are in?

My brother has better success in his tank with PH 7.4 - 7.8. Most green babies died in my CRS tank excepy Cherry.


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## Alexpatrascu

Cosmo-shrimps, hahaha, that's a good one Igor.

@ *flyingshrimp*, yes they're in the same tank with the CRS.

I only have 2 females but I see babies everywhere, they love to hang out in the frogbit roots jungle.


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