Do guppies eat shrimp?

I have a 5 gallon guppy tank, and was wondering if I could keep some of those colorful little shrimp (I forgot what the genus name is, but it includes cherry shrimp and all their color variants). There aren't a ton of plants and hides, so the shrimp would really be at the mercy of the guppies. I'm not trying to breed a bunch of them, more just keep a few, infact, eating the baby shrimp would actually be helpful keeping the tank from getting overpopulated, I just don't want all my adult shrimp getting devoured.

 

Yes they will definitely eat the baby shrimp. I think adult shrimp are just barely too big for them to munch on.

 

They won't bother the adults but they will eradicate the babies. I don't think anyone's ever complained about having too many shrimp though, lol.

 

They won't bother the adults but they will eradicate the babies. I don't think anyone's ever complained about having too many shrimp though, lol.

So basically the shrimp will be a snack factory for the guppies, but the adults will be left alone?

 

So basically the shrimp will be a snack factory for the guppies, but the adults will be left alone?

Yes, sounds like it would suit your situation!

 

As others stated, the guppies won't touch the adults but the babies will disappear in no time. But, if you add lots of plants (java moss would be awesome for this) you could probably have a thriving little shrimp colony.

 

As others stated, the guppies won't touch the adults but the babies will disappear in no time. But, if you add lots of plants (java moss would be awesome for this) you could probably have a thriving little shrimp colony.

Do marimo moss balls work?

 

Do marimo moss balls work?

They don't offer as much coverage but if you had lots and had them positioned in such a way that the guppies couldn't get at them, I don't see why not.

 

Do marimo moss balls work?

It doesn't have to be plants, although they're a great option. You could add a pile of rocks to the tank, sized so that the shrimp can crawl inside but the fish can't follow.

 

So glad I didn’t get guppies! I almost bought 5 male guppies a couple weeks ago but then thought maybe I shouldn’t so that I don’t risk my cherry shrimps.

 

I'm going to get a mystery snail, and since moss balls are actually a type of algae, would the snail eat it?

 

There are guppies that will eat shrimp and there are guppies that will leave them alone. But wether it concerns an adult or a young shrimp, by the time that they will change scales, the first 24 hours the new scale will be soft and at that point also an adult shrimp can become a victim of a guppy.

 

A while ago I bought 10 red cherry shrimp to start a colony in my guppy tank. They didn’t bother the adults, but only one baby every made it to adulthood.