Macrobrachium Lanchesteri (Glass shrimp)
Origin: Asia
Appearance: This Macrobrachium has a transparent body with brown to black stripes on the front-side of the body.
Including claws they will can grow up to 10cm.
Sexing: Males will grow bigger than females. Males can reach 10cm while female will reach 5-8cm. The front legs and claws of males are larger.
Life span: 3-5 years.
Size: 5 to 10cm.
Sexually mature: From 3 months onwards.
Gestation: 2 to 3 weeks.
Character: Can be placed with larger fish. If fish are weak or ill they can be caught. These shrimp can be kept solitary but a group is better for the shrimp.
Males will fight when too many are placed together.
Tank setup: From 30 liter with Java moss and plants. Make sure enough hidingplaces are provided. These can be created with plants, wood and stones.
Waterconditions: Temperature 18-30ºC with an acidity of pH6 to pH7.5 and a water hardness of 4-30dGH.
Feeding: They will eat about anything they can find. They are not really hunting but can grab a weak or sick fish. They also like frozen food and water fleas(Daphnia).
Breeding: In a 3-5 week cycle the females will have 50 to 200 eggs.
Breeding is not very easy. The young will go through several planktonic stages before they are developed into shrimp. During this period the light should not be turned off. If it is dark then the larvae will sink to the bottom and die. Parents should be removed as well since they will eat the larvae.
During the first 4 days the larvae do not eat. After 4 days they will moult and they will get their arms. After this they should be fed with brine-shrimp. They do not hunt for the brine-shrimp but will try to catch it when it comes straight into their arms. Because they do not actively hunt there should be enough food available. After about 4 weeks they will moult again and start walking and swimming like their parents.
Tank mates: Medium sized fish. Make sure these do not sleep on the bottom of the tank or have large tails.
Copyright photos: © Pawel Szewczak(left), www.zierfischfarm.at(right)
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