Trio123

Ok so I have a Bamboozilla, he is about 3.5 inches I'ld guess. I am trying to figure out how to keep him alive and happy as I hear they can be a little difficult. First, Im directly giving him a squirt of cyclopeez (the other fish go absolutely nuts over the stuff!) every three or four days as I figure he is filtering out some of the daphnia and flake food I feed. Is this a good diet? Second, I know marine shrimp benefit from a little iodine and calcium in the water, is this nessacary for freshwater? I read in another post that nori and spirulina have iodine... dumb question but is green marine algae sheets nori because there is no ingredients listed just percentages of protein and such? Third, do I need to add calcium and if so how much? Will it be harmful to my other residents? See my aquarium info. Lastly, I have a small coral skeleton that the marine algae is rubber banded to... could this provide calcium? Also have one piece of driftwood if that means anything.

I think he is healthy. He was dark brown at the store and when I brought him home he turned bright red with a white line down his back. But he does seem a little paler now... red color still but kinda whiter... this isnt a sign of a deficiency is it? Thanks for your help!!!! I know I ask too many question, I just want to get it right!

fishgirl

I have had 3 Bamboo Shrimp at different times but they all died with in one week. I was told by my LFS/LPS that I should feed them fry food. I used hikari brand. I have given up on Bamboo Shrimp.

sirdarksol

How old is the tank he's in? Bamboo shrimp need a well-established tank in order to thrive, as they draw their food from the little bits that grow/float in the water.

Red with a white line is definitely a good sign. It signifies that they are healthy and not terribly stressed. Petshrimp.com suggests not target-feeding these shrimp as they only catch a little bit, and the rest can cause water quality to deteriorate. They like having a decent current, and also like having a place where they can perch near the outflow of a filter.

If you see it picking through the substrate for food, that means it's not getting enough to eat. At that point, it would probably appreciate a shot of cyclopeeze.

One thing that shrimp need is iodine. They can't molt without the stuff. My tank with shrimp has marine salt, which has trace amounts of iodine in it. You can get iodine additives, or you can use nori (seaweed used in sushi) or spirulina to add it to the water column. The last two are cheaper but could mess with water quality.

Trio123

The tank is 6 months. Good to know... I will definately stop target feeding him. I have marine algae sheets and they look like sushi seaweed so I think I am using nori then (the congos, angel, gourami, cory cat, and farlowella graze on it so it probably gets into the water column. So I probably have enough iodine then I guess. As long as this stuff is really nori. I havent seen him picking through the substrate, he mostly just hides in his four hiding spots and perches himself infront of the powerhead everyother night or so. So he doesnt need any calcium added?

And thank you for the warning fishgirl... I knew when I bought him he would be hard to keep thats why I got the cyclopeeze. I saw cleaner shrimp go nuts over the stuff and fed it to the bamboos and they really seemed to like it and be able to catch it easily (mainly stays in the water column instead of sinking or floating). So I got the hairbrained idea that I could keep them from starving with it, we'll see if it keeps working. Thanks.

sirdarksol

Seaweed is exactly what you're looking for. Nearly every form of seaweed is rich with iodine, so you're good. I just say nori because it's one of the easiest to find in the grocery store.

Calcium could be another important one, though I'm not sure. Petshrimp says that they live in acidic water, which would suggest that they don't get a lot of calcium directly from the water. Unsure just how much their bodies need.

Also, if you notice that, after stopping feeding it the cyclopeeze, it fades back to the brownish color from when you got it, you might want to ignore petshrimp's advice about target feeding. If the cyclopeeze is making it happy, and if your nitrites are staying low, you should be fine.

Trio123

Oh Oh Oh guess what guess what guess what! I found a shedded skin, that must have been why he was whiter yesterday!!!! He is back to his red self today! Because he shed successfully, I think I will not worry about the calcium for now. Thank you sirdarksol, will keep an eye on him!

sirdarksol

Good news.