Do bamboo shrimp need companions?

BioHazard

Here and There
Mar 15, 2009
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Would a single bamboo shrimp be fine, or are they happier in pairs or trios?
 
From personal experience, I don't think it matters. I've kept them singly and in small groups. In both settings they displayed the same behaviors and showed no signs of stress/ill health/etc from being grouped or kept alone.

Although, my biggest male really seemed to get irritated with the smallest male because it used to climb all over him and he wasn't having any of that lol (other than that, I've never seen any issues)

But truthfully, I've never read anything one way or the other so feel free to skip over my personal experience until someone gives you something more concrete. ^_^
 
I figured they probably would be fine alone, but I wanted to check first. They never look particularly social at the lfs.
 
I have had both. If there are multiple Bamboo shrimp in a tank, they will tend to spend 60-70% as part of the group, the rest of the time they go off to either hide, or scrounge around the tank.

I personally prefer multiples. With a tank setup for filter feeders, they can be very hypnotic as they do their 'fan dance'.

Either way, they seem happiest in tanks with a powerhead to create a strong current. If you have a HOB filter, you may want to take precautions to keep them/it from climbing into the filter. If one climbs in and dies, and you don't catch it quickly, it could foul the tank water. Plus, I know know many who keep other scavengers in their HOB filters to eat the corpses. I only have one tank that gets critters in the HOB filter. It's my snail only tank, and baby MTS get sucked in and crushed by the impeller.
 
I know I have seen a lot more of my shrimp Mei after I got her a lady friend, Neo. I don't think it is mandatory that they be kept in groups/pairs, but she does seem to be a lot more socially-inclined these days. I totally agree with pixl8r that it is wonderful to see both girls doing their fanning for food.
 
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