cherry red shrimp lost there color

[starfishplus]

hi i have some cherry red shrimp.i have raised some from them. so i gave my sister some of the small ones, and i also gave my neice some ...well my sisters have turned to be clear. her PH is 7.8 and the temp is 74. the ones my neice have are red like mine..i think my sister has something to do with the water hardness because her water is very very soft...does anyone know any thing about this...please help.she even has one that has a saddle but it is clear too..And they came from mine so i know they are rcs.thanks

[msjinkzd]

Does she have a much lighter substrate that you or your niece? I have two tanks of cherries, one tank has a dark substrate and driftwood, the other has a light substrate and oak leaf litter, the light tank has very pale cherries, the dark tank has very dark cherries. Also what is she feeding them?

[Squawkbert]

My cherries are generally very light - I use pool filter sand. I don't mind though, the females still show color and they're still fun to watch.

[starfishplus]

Does she have a much lighter substrate that you or your niece? I have two tanks of cherries, one tank has a dark substrate and driftwood, the other has a light substrate and oak leaf litter, the light tank has very pale cherries, the dark tank has very dark cherries. Also what is she feeding them?

hi she has hers on white gravel but her shrimp are almost clear and she feeds the same things that i am..HBH crab and lobster bites.i also use some the newt food too.

[beviking]

misjinkzd has a valid point. The shrimp will be less colorful in a lighter environment. It is possible that the soft water has something to do with it but a female with ripe ovaries (showing a saddle) is a healthy shrimp. I doubt there is anything related to the water quality causing the pale-ness.

[Hooked Newbie]

:iagree: with Jinxy and Viking.

I moved mine from a tank with natural gravel to one with black gravel and they colored up considerably.