CRS Cannibalism

[Summit MicroFarm]

I would just like to share an observation I just had:
I was watching my new batch of babies from 4 mothers in my high grade CRS tank. I noticed a baby born ~2 weeks ago fleeting from a leaf to a piece of driftwood...it landed on on the driftwood facing "off" the edge and in front of a small cavern in the wood. A very nice 3 month old SS Hino slowly cralled out of the cavern behind the 2week old baby and quickly snatched it off the wood!!! It then proceeded to eat the baby alive as the baby attempted to fend off its attacker and trying to grab the driftwood to get away. Now being a hunter, fisher and biologist, I had no problem with this as nature is nature...BUT I have NEVER heard of this ANYWHERE on ANY forum. Anyone else hear of this? Now a little background...my tank is a 20 g Long and has ~ 20 adults and ~25 sub adults (3 month olds) and ~80 babies (2 week olds). Everyone is healthy and breeding and growing well and often. WOW, it is SO cool and disturbing as well since it was a really nice SS No-Entry Hino that ate...not one of the lower S grades! Blasted cannibal!!!! LOL

[retardo]

This is the first I've heard of this happening. In general, CRS (and other dwarf shrimp species) will not cannibalize each other UNLESS the victim shrimp in question is weak and/or dying. Then it might be a free for all. Interesting observation. I'd be curious to know if you ever observe it happening again.

[RoryM]

haha expensive snack.

[killer007]

hahahaha ah...
never heard of this...
i might have to see if my low grade CRS eat babies too @.@....

but is it because the food in the tank is low?

[acer]

could be how they keep the population down. i heard they control their population size... but i'm not sure how they do it cause it can't be with hormones as water changes would take them out. and... well if there are more shrimp, more food would be put in. So best guess would be controlling population, and as you describe you have a fairly big population.

[lake_tuna]

Maybe be this is why I don't see many shrimp fry in the first place..

[paid2]

I've never seen this, but always assumed this happens, as shrimp will eat pretty much anything. Thanks for confirming it.

[Justin12345]

Submit bro yr shrimplets only seen one like this? its a very intersting find. I have never seen this kind of situation. Might be your shrimplet is dieing or weak?

[imke_j]

Hi Summit, I have made similar observations with my tiger shrimps. This concerns not only shrimplets but weaker shrimps in general. Try feeding a little more protein like frozen artemia once a week.

[AquaDean]

Hi Summit,
I saw something like this once early on when I wasn't giving my newly purchase CRS the correct water parameters. I had a young half grown shrimp that had molted partway and was frantically trying to get the rest of the exoskeleton off itself. It looked almost like trying to pull a wet T-shirt over you head. As the shrimp lay struggling three of the other young shrimp came up and ate it to death so to speak. I was in shock as I watched the massacre but I've seen many fish eat fish in the past so just watched nature take its course. Still I was thinking there goes fifteen bucks and set out the next day to be sure that everything else in the tank was right.