Happy November!

Winter is definitely coming as the temperatures outside are gradually getting cooler and the days are getting darker sooner. But things are heating up in my tanks as several females are berried. My Super Tigers have finally picked up breeding again - I think the hot Summer months really slowed them down. I also finally saw some activity with my Black Tigers, although it was a male BTOE x female Super Tiger; I suspect my original Black Tigers were all males, a similar experience shared with other breeders. And my Red Tigers have berried and released, but it is difficult to pick out the shrimplets from the mass of Red Rilis in the same tank. Finally, my Taiwan Bees have picked up activity as well. I removed all my CRS/Hybrids from this tank (except for two female CRS and their recently released shrimplets) and am sure the male responsible for the berry is either a BKK or Wine Red. Now comes the hard part of maintaining the berry and shrimplets upon release.
Fingers crossed ;)

March of the Hybrids!

With hybridization, the limit of shrimp varieties are ever expanding.  For example, there are numerous Tiger/Bee (TiBee) hybrids out there, as well as suspected TiBee/Taiwan Bee hybrids; even the famed Taiwan Bees (TB) themselves are believed by some to be the result of TiBee hybrids.  All of these shrimp are very attractive and unique in their coloration and patterns.

Such hybrids show how closely related all these shrimp species really are.  In fact, I once read that given nature's mysterious ways, it may be possible for Neocardina to cross with Caridina!

What do you think of hybrid shrimp?  Beautiful, or freaks of nature/deliberate crossbreeding?

Pinto Bee (Possible TB/Tiger/TiBee Hybrid)
Breeder: Astrid Weber

Blue Bee/Black Bee Hybrid
Breeder: Marian Bungeroth

White Tiger
Breeder: Monika (http://www.doxon.de/blog/)

Plant Dip: Eradicating Hitchhikers with a Chemical Bath

Taiwan Moss

I recently acquired a good amount of Taiwan Moss for some new tanks I am setting up.  Unfortunately, the moss came with lots of pond and trumpet snails (and possibly other hitchhikers).  Though the snails are harmless, I do not like them in my tanks; my morning routine consists of sitting in front of my tanks for an hour, and removing any snails that I see.  Right now, I have the moss in a 2.5 gallon tank and will lure out any snails with food.  After a few days of doing this, I will use a potassium permanganate solution to dip the moss into.  Depending on the result, I may use a chlorine solution as well; however, the chlorine method is much more harsh on the plant.

To prepare a potassium permanganate dip, fill a clean bucket with water and add potassium permanganate until you get a nice dark pink/purple color.  Add the plants and let them sit for 10-20 minutes.  After the bath, rinse the plants under water and add dechlorinator to the tank, which helps neutralize the potassium permanganate.  Be careful not to splash the solution as potassium permanganate may cause permanent stains; wearing gloves is also a good idea.

Preparation for a chlorine dip is very similar to a potassium permanganate dip; however, do not leave the plants in too long as they may suffer, possibly die, from the chlorine.  For delicate plants and moss, two minutes in the solution should suffice.

Red Cherry vs. Taiwan Fire Red

Red Cherry

Fire Red