If you have an Axolotl, you may have wondered if you can keep shrimp with it. In fact, cherry shrimp in particular can live easily with an Axolotl.
Many shrimp species, especially robust dwarf and cherry shrimp, can be kept together with Axolotl. They pose no threat to axolotls, because they have no claws with which to injure axolotls.
Dwarf shrimp grow to a maximum of around 1 inches (3 cm) and they are easy to keep.
How can I keep axolotl and shrimp together?
Since axolotl and dwarf shrimp have similar housing conditions, they can be kept together in one tank.
Most dwarf shrimp are happy with temperatures between 64 to 77 °F (18 and 25 °C), so you can follow the requirements of the Axolotl and keep the water temperature around 64 °F (18 °C).
Cherry shrimp don’t need strong currents or bright lights, same as the axolotl. Their behavior also makes them a good choice for the Axolotl tank, they aren’t territorial or aggressive towards the Axolotl and can’t hurt them.
A good initial population is 10 shrimps, although you can of course keep larger groups.
If you want to maintain a shrimp population in the aquarium, you should make sure that the shrimp have enough hiding places and retreats so that they aren’t all eaten by the Axolotl. Plants and shrimp shelters* are ideal for this purpose.
Before the newly purchased shrimp can move into the tank, you should keep them in quarantine for a few weeks to make sure that they don’t have any diseases or parasites that could infect the axolotl.
Which shrimp species are best for an Axolotl tank?
Particularly robust species that reproduce quickly are best, these include Red and Orange Fire shrimp*, Amano shrimp and Blue Pearl shrimp*.
All these shrimps are peaceful and reproduce quickly, with 20 to 40 young shrimps hatching 4 to 6 weeks after mating. The reproduction of Amano shrimp is more complicated and won’t happen in a normal tank, because their larvae need brackish water to develop.
4 Advantages of shrimps in the axolotl tank
1. Cleaning crew
Shrimp act as the cleaning crew in the tank and can provide better water quality. They eat biofilms from surfaces, such as algae and bacterial plaque. You can also feed them with special shrimp food, but this is usually not necessary.
2. Live food
The shell of dwarf shrimps is soft enough that axolotls can eat them without hurting themselves, and they can provide a variety to their daily diet.
3. An eye catcher
The colorful cherry shrimp are a nice contrast to the green plants and can enhance the visual appearance of the aquarium.
4. Easy to keep
Dwarf shrimp don’t have complicated requirements and as long as the water temperature is right and they have enough biofilm and algae to eat, you usually don’t even need extra food.
Conclusion
If you want to keep your Axolotl with other animal species, then dwarf and cherry shrimps are a good choice. They can’t hurt you Axolotl and clean the tank.
But you should have no problem that some of the shrimps will get eaten, when your Axolotl is hungry.