The Lure of Pure

The US shrimp hobby has seen a wave of "Pure Red Lines" (PRL) for sale recently, marketed to be from reputable breeders such as Benibachi, Crimson, and Ebi-ten.  Such shrimp carry quite a hefty price, but cost hasn't deterred many shrimpkeepers; most of these shrimp are pre-ordered and the remaining are quickly purchased by eager buyers.

This isn't the first time Pure Red Lines were in the US though.  Shrimp breeder Yoyo has been keeping Ebi-ten PRL CRS since June of 2011, and has successfully bred them, and continues to do so.

Benibachi PRL CRS

Wanting to see these shrimp for myself, I purchased a group of 10 last month.  As I am already working on selectively breeding my own lines, I opted to go with the "lowest" grade, just to see what they are like.  Phenotypically, they look just like my other CRS, whites and reds aren't any thicker or brighter. Perhaps this is what the low grades are like, culls from the high grade shrimp; though from seeing photos from keepers who purchased high grades, they do not seem comparable to shrimp featured on the sites of said line (again, culls?).  We'll see what the subsequent generations are like.

However, I warn novice shrimpkeepers to not make a quick decision to purchase these PRL shrimp.  The prices are quite high compared to other CRS in the market, and if you are inexperienced with keeping shrimp (particularly the "more difficult" Caridina types), the risk exists that the shrimp won't last very long.  Though it is great to see PRLs available in the US (I am grateful that these breeders are allowing their shrimp to be sold here - thank you!), I suggest shrimpkeepers keep, breed, and maintain their own lines as well - breeding projects are great fun and doing so will propel US shrimpkeepers in the international shrimp hobby.