Where is this thing already???

pballer · 09-18-2006, 03:47 PM

hey on the 13th i put in my cleaning crew which came w/ 2 peppermint shrimps. I saw them for maybe 8 seconds then bam there gone. I called up the place i got them from and they said they were just hiding b/c they are molting and wont come out till there exoskeleton grows back. well i searched every crevace i could c with a flashlight and no sign. Does any1 no if it this is true or they are just b.s.ing me also does any1 no if this is true how long will it take them to finish???
thanks in advance

Geoff · 09-18-2006, 08:32 PM

you will prolly never see the peps again, but they are still alive, prolly. ornamental shrimp are very secretive. you have a much better chance of seeing them at night with a flashlight. look for thier reflective red eyes.

do you have any green brittle stars in the tank? they will eat peps.

G~

pballer · 09-18-2006, 09:45 PM

thnx i tried at night w/ a flashlight no luck and there are no brittles or any stars for that matter b/c i was advised not to geet any b/c i was told that when i get corals they will knock them off and that i would be a Biatch to get them out once they find a nice little hole in the rock
and thank u geoff for all the help so far

stonepilot · 09-19-2006, 07:59 AM

I see my pep all he time special when I put food in the tank.everything comes out when I put food in the tank.

pballer · 09-19-2006, 10:30 AM

i put brine shrimp in all that happened was it just whipped around the tank till it got to my sabea anenome. if they r molting how long will it take roughlly??

Geoff · 09-19-2006, 08:48 PM

a molting usually only takes a day. they are very shy. i have had some that i have never seen until i had to rearrange the tank. then i pull out a rock and a 4" pep comes out of it!! yes they do get that big. if you have rocks with a lot of caves than it is prolly holed up in one. even with the lights out it will take several hours for them to come out. when i say lights out, i mean lights out in the room also.

G~

pballer · 09-19-2006, 10:57 PM

when i check at night for them when it is like 3 in the morn and the lights in my room have been off since 10 and i only have the moon lights on i still never see them.
so heres another question i guess would i be able to add another shrimp like a fire, sexy anenome, pistol, coral banded or any other nice looking(reef safe) shrimp
thanks agai for all the help

REEFSTOCK · 09-19-2006, 10:59 PM

peppermints will usually stake out a cave or hole. Once they do they don't move around a whole bunch. You can get the to come out, if you are patient, and hand feed them... some of them.
Thats the problem when folks get thse to eat aptasia. If they are getting fed enough in their "home" they wont venture around to find other food. Each individual's terretory does not seem to be very large from what I have observed.

now, if there are no fish in the tank, like in a sump. I have seen them cruise all around at night.

pballer · 09-20-2006, 08:34 AM

i didnt sleep much last night(sick) and just hung out watching the tank and i didnt c them anywhere not in cave or cruisin round.

hng · 09-20-2006, 09:23 AM

I haven't seen my pep shrimp for three weeks. I saw him for like 2 days after adding him to the tank and since then, he's been MIA.

Geoff · 09-20-2006, 09:52 AM

those shrimp that have very small claws you can add more than one of. those with big claws like Coral Banded shrimp i would not add any shrimp besides that one. CBS- can be mean to other shrimp and expecially to thier own kind.

my favorite shrimp are SW ghost shrimp. they are great scavangers!! not the prettiest things, but serve a great purpose.

G~

pballer · 09-20-2006, 12:09 PM

is there shrimp u guys would suggest that i can add that has a lot of flash and wont hide all day long. maybe a fire or something else

REEFSTOCK · 09-20-2006, 12:32 PM

Skunk cleaner, FTW

pballer · 09-20-2006, 12:42 PM

two new questions
a. is there anything i can get a bit flashier and that hangs out in the open??
b. if not how many of these guys should i pick up???

REEFSTOCK · 09-20-2006, 01:12 PM

2 skunk cleaners. If you have an overhang out front, they will hang out right there. Put your hand up to them slowly, like letting a dog check you out, and they will give you a cleaning

A pair gets along fine. Because they have male and female parts... they party alot ;p