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There are a lot of factors influencing the shrimp ability to breed from water parameter to food to shrimp genetics. However, today i would like to touch on a fairly common topic on Shrimp Food. The first question i get asked frequently is how often should i feed my shrimps? If you have a lot of shrimps like 20 or more, you might want to consider a daily staple feed fed twice daily and also a grazing material. Grazing material such as Lubao, Indian Almond leaves, Alder cone, cholla are some good examples.
The reason to feed them twice is so all your shrimps are fed and the female will ‘Think” that the tank have sufficient food to support their next generation. The whole idea is to feed lesser quantity but high frequency. So twice is good and if you can do 3 times it works as well.
If you feed in the morning and the shrimps are unable to finish it within 4 hours, then you’re not required to feed the second time in the evening Thats my general rule of thumb, Remove the food by then or if you have ramshorn snail, they will help with scavenging and foraging on the shrimp food. If the shrimps are not feeding, it could be there are still plenty of biofilm in the tank but do watch out if the shrimps are looking lethargic and not feeding.
A grazing material aids in building up biofilm for shrimps to consume between meals. Think of it like a snack and a good grazing material will be the food source between feeds.
There is a wide range of food in the market and i think we are spoiled for choice and which one is good for my shrimps? Personally i like using a good staple food and that is Hwa V1.
Staple Food
Basically shrimps are not that fussy eater, most of the staple food sold in aquarium shops today are basically ok to feed your shrimp. I personally prefer keeping things simple and to feed only 1 type of staple food but a variety of grazing material is very crucial.
I’m using Hwa Version 1 Shrimp food pad, this food is formulated with carefully selected ingredients to provide shrimp with all their requirements.
if you are using some shrimp food which you think they’re good for your shrimp, good! There is really no need to change.
Occasionally i feed Bacter AE and blanched spinach, they’re fairly good especially blanched spinach. if i’m feeling rich, i’ll order a pack of organic spinach and take out one serving for the shrimp while i consume the rest as a salad. For Bacter AE, i only dose them very minutely once a month to provide additional boost for creating biofilm.
Grazing material
Now here we get serious, grazing material in my opinion is equally important to daily feed. The amount of surface area for creating biofilm is important as it mimics the natural environment where Shrimps feed on biofilm.
Lubao, Indian Almond leaves and moss are three very popular and recommended grazing material. Alder cone and Cholla are not native to at least this part of the world, so i defer that information to those who have them. For Indian Almond leaves and Lubao we have very easy access to them hence we use them readily. I really like using Lubao because it is technically a microoganism food that produces food for cultivating microorganism for the shrimp to feed on and also biofilm. Indian almond leaves without going too deep into this topic has antibacteria properties, produces biofilm and are well liked by most shrimp. Grazing material is important because shrimp feed constantly and if there are not enough biofilm in the tank and daily feed is not consistent, the shrimps will not breed. They will start cannibalizing during molting. Hence, it is highly critical to have grazing material available.
A living grazing material that works very well is moss. Moss harbour a lot of microorganism which allow adults and shrimplets to graze on. Moss also provide cover for berried shrimp and shrimplets however it is also important not to over crowd the tank with moss because if it get too dense, some of the berried female may get stuck in there and die. Hence, always thin out the moss to a small bunch the size of your hand.
Summary
Taken together, it is vitally important for food to be readily present in the tank but this is also a fine balance between food availability and water parameters. As more food and grazing material is introduced into the tank, the water parameters changes so do choose a good staple food and grazing material into your shrimp breeding setup and it will go a long way. You will be rewarded with more berried shrimps and shrimplets in the months to come. In addition, as lubao is my favourite grazing material as it is easier to manage and control.
The bigger the water volume, the less fluctuation happens in an aquarium compared to one with a smaller water volume. This is certainly true as a general rule for all aquarist. However, does it mean that everyone need to have big tanks to keep shrimp?
Apparently not, shrimps can live comfortably in smaller tanks, they can even breed given that the challenge to house them in smaller tanks will be higher but definitely possible. I have tried on a very small tank at 8 litres and with 1 pair of shrimp. They manage to breed as well. It has a tiny little filter but it works well for them. It’s a pity I didn’t take any good pictures before i decommissioned the tank for a bigger one.,
With lesser shrimp, you would also have to feed smaller quantities and everything would be in smaller proportion. While i get the question if i can use lubao for smaller tanks? Yes you surely can provided there are sufficient shrimp in the tank that can consume the biofilm. From the pictures I have shared you can see that most of tanks I will use lubao. It has been part of my breeding process as there are many advantages that goes beyond a grazing material.
While there are many types of grazing material i like to keep my tank less busy so that i have space to see the shrimp do their day to day thing and easier from a selection process standpoint. However, i too have planted tanks which i too enjoy the additional greenery in it.
Ever since i have tried and fail many times on how to use lubao in different size tank, finally after many failed attempts i manage to get it right and wanted to share this valuable information on my other blog post.
While water parameters are indeed more stable in larger water volume, if one is able to control the fluctuation of the water in a smaller water volume, you will still be able to keep and breed shrimps! Hope this post shared some valuable information.
https://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.png00benetayhttps://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.pngbenetay2021-04-23 02:32:382021-04-23 16:54:24Can my tank be too small for shrimp breeding?
A breeder shared with me his analogy and i really like it as it matches to my other blog post Michelin Star. In other words, in the hands of a Chef/Painter they are able to create outstanding food/painting but not everyone given the same set of things will be able to deliver the same result. The eye for detail, the dash of salt, and so on is what make a great chef even better.
I have got quite a number of questions on how i use Lubao and i’ll share how i use them however again there is no definite way and i’ll share what i learn from Taiwan.
Before i use the lubao, i’ll soak them for 3-6 days to leech out the coloration and then kick start the biofilm process. While soaking, remember to change the water daily in the container that you are using it to soak. Please do not pour the water that you soak your lubao into the shrimp tank (there is a reason why we soak it outside the tank first). Lubao if kept dry can last a very long time since the high quality content are all dehydrated. The lubao that i pack are measured to a certain proportion and it has to be hardpacked individually to ensure every one are made correctly.
Soaking the ball 3-6 days, change water daily, do not pour the water use for soaking into the shrimp tank
During the soaking process, normally i’ll change water daily in the container to help speed up the process. Once the soaking is done, i’ll drop them into the tank and leave them 1 month for best result and than change out when either it floats up or after 1 month
Lubao are generally used for tanks that have more than 10-15 shrimp as personally anything lesser don’t quite benefit from it since the tank would be able to produce biofilm for them to graze. So from a tank size standpoint, even smaller tanks are able to use lubao just that the number of shrimp in that tank will still need to be of a certain number. In other words, if i have tanks with 5 shrimp, than i’ll not use it until they start throwing out shrimplets, i’ll then start introducing.
i generally use 40L tanks to do selective breeding 2M 6-10F and then transfer the shrimplets to grow up tank which are generally 80-100L. So in both those tanks i’ll use Lubao. As long as the tank is properly cycled, using Lubao will have no negative impact on water quality.
i have seen drastic difference when Lubao is use, females in general are more ready to saddle and berry. Cannibalism is greatly reduced which protects the female from getting eaten after molt. Taken together, i have seen a lot of advantage in using such a small yet important ball which helps breeders with a lot of tank and also those who are very busy with their daily work to be able to enjoy their hobby when they can.
There are a myriad of different type of food available in the market and also plenty of home made recipe that shrimps consume as well. However, what really is important is providing good quality feed for your shrimp. if you are currently feeding a good staple and it’s doing well, keep going.
Feeding quality feed for your shrimp is like what the old adage says, you are what you eat. This is true for your shrimps as well and also for overall water quality. It is highly critical that the food fed in the tank does not negatively impact the water quality. Hence, it is important that the quality of the food are fed also in an appropriate amount, sufficient for the shrimp to consume within a few hours and then the rest of the food either taken out or consume by snails.
Personally after trying so many types of food, the draw factor is the highest for Hwa Version 1. What is a draw factor? It means that the shrimp are drawn to the food like honey to bee, it’s very quick resulting in shrimps able to quickly get their daily nutritional uptake. Hwa Version 1 feed has always been my favourite as it comprises of all the nutritional factor to maintain a healthy shrimp.
With the right staple food like Hwa v1 coupled with Lubao will set the stage for the shrimps to breed more and live healthily. The lubao that i use are individually hand packed by myself to ensure the correct portion and freshness are in every ball. Instead of me rambling on, please enjoy the below videos on the testimonials of Hwa V1.
The last 6 months was a total train wreaked with my work schedule however i still make it a point to have Google meet with overseas shrimp hobbyist! A shout out to those who we have met face to face on Google meet. Sharing has always been me, and has work thus far.
Diving straight into the topic on Lubao, i have got many questions from hobbyist asking why the name Lubao? What is it all about? Lubao is actually the Chinese word we say (滷包). What does it mean? if you google this, you will find that it is actually a Chinese method of combining different herbs or ingredients wrapped into a net wrap ball and boil over long period of time. The longer you boil the ‘ball’ the goodness will be absorbed by the food you are braising it with. This is how the origin of the word lubao came about. In English i think it does a better description of being a microorganism ball.
Microorganism ball like in all cooking, the secret lies in the preparation, ingredients, control of fire and many elements to cook up a delicious meal. Every lubao is hand packed myself with carefully selected ingredients which took many learning and failure before knowing how to use appropriately hence delivering exception benefits in terms of better water parameters and certainly more berried shrimp.
Lubao need to be soak 3-6 days in a small container separately and water change done on a daily basis before it is being placed into the tank. After it is being placed into the tank, the biofilm starts to form and this is where shrimp start feasting/grazing on them on top of their usual place/food that they graze on. In normal tank condition, if there are a lot of shrimp, apart from constantly feeding them it is important to have a dedicated grazing material such as lubao for them to graze upon. Other grazing material like leaves are also possible and beneficial.
biofilm occurs everywhere in the tank but grows very slowly which shrimp can strip them off very quickly (i’m sure you’ve seen how a school of shrimp strip a leaf down within hours), hence it is important to have a constant source of biofilm which has the ability to draw the shrimp to the grazing material to graze on. Another important factor is the lubao is able to remain in the tank for 1-2 months (depending on shrimp population).
When shrimp is able to know there are sufficient food available for the shrimplets to feed on, the female shrimps will start saddling with other conditions met. If you have a very busy schedule like me, lubao is God Send. It even beats having an automatic feeder which i have but eventually lubao beats the automatic feeder hands down.
Alright! i’ll keep this post short so i can get back to looking at my shrimps! Happy Easter! Enjoy the video too.
I have got some questions regarding how i do my water change and how do i reminerize. In this short post i’ll share with you how i do mine the easy and effective way. There are other ways to do water change, i just want to ensure they are the quickest possible methodology so i can enjoy my shrimps more.
The main reason for doing water change is really about remove nitrates in the water
With the filtration that i’m using a sophisticated hang on back which works very well after trying many other brands like Fluval, Ehiem, Gex, etc. http://www.totto.co.jp/en/test.php
This filter have the ability to remove nitrates from the water column as indicated by the Tokyo Institute of Technology (https://www.titech.ac.jp/english/). The correlation between lowering of pH caused by Nitrate is usually unspoken of causing lots of shrimp death unknowingly. Conventional filters don’t have the ability to remove nitrates and hence water change is required to remove it. Hence, it means if your filter don’t have the ability to remove nitrates than it is important that your water changes are done religiously to ensure the front end process such as feeding etc are still kept up because the entire process from feeding to water change are all interlinked and cannot be separated individually to be resolved when a problem arises.
During water change, what i’ll do is remove water from the tank and add in TDS 0 water directly into the tank. After it is filled, i’ll reminerize it to 85-90 TDS using Hwa Reminerizer. I normally change 5-10% of the tank water depending on the bioload and tank volume. For my denser tank with more shrimp, i’ll do up to 25-30% water change weekly. This will help reduce the amount of nitrate in the water. I have used all sorts of filter, from hang on, canister, sponge etc, even the best filter still require water change. So don’t skip that water change and make sure the water change is reminerized with a good reminerizer because there are many in the market where the GH and TDS value doesn’t hit the mark.
The reminerizer for example i’m using will get GH 2.x at TDS 85 and GH3 at TDS 90. Some reminerizer may only achieve GH 3 at TDS 120. So it’s important to know what we are adding in the tank. For my case i want to achieve at GH of 2-3 at TDS 85-90.
A shoutout to those out there who have given me very good feedback on the post and i’ll continue to pen down my thoughts.
Ben enjoys spending time browsing through online restaurant reviews and take down notes on which restaurant he like to visit. He called up a restaurant reserving a seat for himself on Friday for one. He told himself for this Christmas day, he will treat himself for once. As the day approaches, Ben was very excited as he knew that the quality will be top notch. The Christmas decoration of the restaurant and the table setting is immaculate. As he enters the restaurant he was greeted with finest and then the waiter came over and shared the menu.
Ben loves his steak so he browse through the selections and different cuts, all were very tempting. He narrowed down to two choices either a Wagyu beef from Japan or the same cut but from another country. However, the price difference is quite substantial at the higher grade. Eventually he went ahead with the Japan Wagyu selection. When he was done with dinner, he told the waiter to book him another seat next week as he wanted to try out another steak but from another country. A few good steak wrapped up his Christmas celebration!
so what am i driving at?
There are plenty of restaurant in the world like there are plenty of shrimp breeder globally. There are some breeders who does very well for a certain type of shrimp as they created the shrimp whereas for some they take on others to create their own line. If we take an example of the Japan Wagyu, the prices could be 3-4x higher compared to other country beef but does the price difference justify the quality? if you ask me personally, it does. Anybody who have tried it will understand. However, everyone have their own budget and it is perfectly fine to work within it. What is more important is you enjoy the hobby and when you see that prize shrimp collection that feel good feeling is like a foodie having a ‘mouth-gasm’. https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=mouthgasm
There is really no short cut to success, even given a colony of high grade shrimps does not guarantee success. Ignorance and short cut only result in the demise of the shrimp hobby. The root cause in my opinion is the sharing of knowledge and information where truth become twisted. If every breeder and hobbyist are on the up and up with each other, i believe this great hobby will be even greater. I have personally experience hobbyist dumping poor grade shrimp to enthusiastic hobbyist who have just entered the hobby and eventually calling it quits when they found out the truth. This also stems from unethical shops where shrimps advertise were not actually from the source they claim they are from. Hence, the source (a detailed explanation in another post) of where the shrimp comes from far outweigh the benefit of low prices. The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.
Boa shrimp
As i sink in deeper to further understand this the more i learn about where misconception can arise. Boa in itself is a selective bred shrimp and while anybody can ‘copy’ or create Boa from Stardust it is however important to note the selection process, starting shrimp used, culling process, tank parameters, food, etc far differs from breeder to breeder. The original shrimp to create Boa is already different and any slight deviation would result in strikingly different outcome. Hence, it is safe to say that i wouldn’t be receiving a mouth watering Japan Wagyu A5 steak if i order another country Wagyu A5, they may look the same (at least to me) but the grading, keeping, etc are all different. Even at grade A5, there are a wide band to the quality of wagyu.
While everyone has the right to deem how their grading is based on their shrimp, relying on a reputable grading system based out of a renowned lineage is my preference. Taking guidance from a reputable breeder is far better than spreading rumors of how grading should be done just because you want to sell your shrimp. For example, if i’m going to keep Boa from a reputable breeder than certainly I’ll use their grading as a benchmark to determine the different grade. Grading is tricky as it take time and experience to learn how to grade and a point system will help with it. For example a Grade 2 or Grade 3 shrimp would mean a certain criteria to be met and if it falls within the band it will be graded as is.
However, within a grade, there is a continuum which allow the breeder to grade two different shrimp that may look slightly different but having the same grade. This can either be done through descriptive or point system or both. If descriptive, it can mean that a check box of criteria once met will be assigned to the grade.
S Grade for Golden Boa. Thin facial lines, very few to no body spots, slightly transparent at certain parts. Spider legs.
SS Female Boa. Colors on this may have bluish hue to it however in this grade there is a possibility that the colors are not fully display yet. These are young female and will grow up stunning (note the body pattern) it is important that the body have some spots in this grade. Having a lot of spots on the body are usually more desirable compared to fewer spots. Facial spots and pattern are big instead of thin lines and rather numerous. Spider legs coloration. This will generalize the grading for SS especially having heavier weightage on body spots.
SS Male Boa on the other hand due to the smaller body area results in fewer of the criteria being met at a given grade. Within the same grading methodology a SS male will not look as nice as a SS female. Reason being is the lower part of the male body doesn’t have sufficient area to have a lot of spots. A nice male is very difficult to come by and people are willing to shell out top dollars to get their hands on them.
A SSS Female Boa. The blue coloration resides ontop of the base color fishbone pattern with the blue tracing around the patterns on the body and face. Body spots are more obvious with abundant sprays of spot throughout the belly area. The facial pattern on this is modest with distinctive differentiation between the base color and face pattern. Spider legs with bluish tinge, swimmerets are colored as well.
A SSS (Competition grade) Female Boa. Color on this is uncontested where the colors illuminate the pattern on the shrimp. The golden hue mix with the metallic blue accentuate the overall shrimp coloration. The numerous body spots sprays across the mid section of the shrimp with high intense coverage. The facial pattern large but not overpowering giving it a sense of contrast between the black base color and face pattern. Here the facial pattern has to balance between big patterns but not covering the entire face. The legs are fully colored in the spider leg fashion. The back black line helps trace the shrimp framing itself into a beauty of it’s own.
Here is a picture where the Boa are grazing on the Lubao (Microorganism ball). It is vital to have a grazing material to help support the breeding program (Please read microorganism ball post here).
Color changes occur throughout the life of a Boa, when they’re happy through good water parameters without excessive feeding and grazing material than they will keep breeding and continue to look nicer with each molt. Here is one example of a female Boa where the first picture on the top is when i got it a month in and the bottom picture is in the 3rd month. The colors as you can clearly see intensifies to a darker shade of blue. Yes you are right both of the time when i took the picture she is berried.
People often ask me what i do to be successful in shrimp breeding? Keep it simple. No magic powder, nothing. I’m a plain old school aquarist where i do my regular water change, keeping things simple in the tank and don’t overfeed. There isn’t really a magic formula, the less i do, the better they breed and all i really do on a daily basis is to feed once or twice a day with Hwa version 1 food pad and have the microorganism ball to aid in grazing. That’s all. simple yet very effective. I find there are too many ‘bells & whistles’ in the market today that doesn’t contribute to the success of shrimp breeding. What it does is help is certainly confusing hobbyist and pulls them further away from success.
The grading are based off the grades printed on the certificates.
Right at the onset of this post i mentioned about enjoying the hobby and to me it is all about sharing with friends about my journey of keeping and breeding shrimp. Sharing the information, knowledge and the shrimps with everyone. More importantly i always believe to be inclusive in the hobby and to share the joy with immediate family.
Hope this post have shed some light on the Boa grading topic and stay safe wherever you are and wishing all breeders a happy 2021!
https://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.png00benetayhttps://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.pngbenetay2020-12-23 23:10:352021-04-22 10:08:58Boa Shrimp: Starting 2021 on the right track!
This is often overlooked when it comes to shrimp breeding because if a hobbyist keep them in a large colony and “Hope” for the best results will often be disappointed. The history of Caridina you see today with multiple colors and pattern are what we call selective breeding. *Disclaimer* i’m not a know all but a very passionate hobbyist trying to share as much accurate information as possible.
Today, i’ll touch on just 1 topic about genetic breeding known as backcrossing (Line breeding) and outcrossing . The whole idea of backcrossing is to strengthen the genetics of either side of the parent shrimp. For example, if you start off with a male and female and you would like to retain and enhance the male traits than backcrossing a F1 female to F0 Male is required. For outcrossing, it inject new genetic traits into the current pool to enhance new trait and also helps prevent deformation.
Backcrossing: I did a simplified chart with a Male and Female each carrying 100% of it’s own genetic pool and the F1 in ideal state will carry both 50% of the parents gene. (Please note that this will work optimally if the pair is of certain quality. matching a good male and a transparent female will have a higher cull % at BC1 resulting in a longer process)
Now taking the desired trait F1 Female and putting it back into the F0 Male tank to further build on the Male traits.
Now the BC1 shrimplet will carry 75% of the male genetics which is much nearer to the male F0 shrimp.
When we are in this stage, the F0 Male x BC1 Female will result in a higher % of trait similarity genetically to the F0 male.
F1
50
50
BC1
75
25
BC2
87.5
12.5
BC3
93.75
6.25
BC4
96.875
3.125
This is a very simplified outlook of the genetic makeup
The journey to create that ideal trait has it’s down side as well and after speaking to renown Taiwan breeder confirms my learning on the side effects of too much inbreeding.
Here are some of the effects where it’s classified as degeneration/deform:
When the female do not hold the eggs or keep kicking the eggs
Young shrimplet born out and keep dying given the correct parameters
shrimplets that never reach maturity and always remain small
big head and head to body ratio does not fit 1:3 deform growth in large numbers
Open skirt or some call it skirting where the carapace is too short.
decreased lifespan
Hunchback
To prevent deform shrimps and also to keep a good line of shrimp require diligence in ensuring the shrimp do not over in breed. When you do see any of the above effects, the shrimp had already reached a very late stage of inbreeding. You can use that as a gauge if not you can consider injecting new blood/genetics whenever you can and the method of doing so is call outcrossing.
Outcrossing: The idea for outcrossing on the other hand is to inject new genome to the current shrimp which has been line bred for some time. The reason this need to be done is because when line breeding get too excessive, deform start showing, shrimps stop breeding, growth stagnant, etc hence it is important for the health of the line to occasionally introduce new blood. There is no hard and fast rule when to introduce the new genetic into the pool because different people get the shrimp at different generation. If the shrimp i have gotten is already line bred for 5-6 generations it will reach the deform point faster if the shrimp has been already outcross before. A reputable breeder will be able to provide high quality new generation of shrimps when they have a large number of tanks to prevent too frequent inbreeding.
I hope this post provided you some insights into breeding high quality shrimp.
When I look through all the Brand that were tested there isn’t any from Taiwan. Didn’t most of our shrimp you keep today originated from Taiwan?
Why isn’t there any food secret being share?
Apparently there are a lot of safe guarded secrets within Taiwan but due to language barrier not many are being marketed outside and those who do are those who have a stronger command in language.
That being said what food do I use?
This is Hwa food version 1 which I have asked him to specially make it for me as it has phased out sometime ago. The reason for his newer version is the improvement in a lesser pungent smelling food.
Why did I even ask to have this specially made again ? Reason is fairly simple, his original ingredient is really good and the shrimps really devour all the good ingredients for a stronger brood in future.
1. Myth: shining strong light on your shrimp will make it look nicer
✓ Fact :no matter how much light you shine will not make your shrimp look better. You might as well cook it.
2. Myth: buying culls and slowly trying to breed and get good quality shrimp is achievable
✓ Fact: Good line breeding(selective breeding) is how nice shrimp traits are being pass on. The next time someone tells you that buying culls and slowly breed is trying to earn a fast one. Read up on selective breeding and you know none of the pedigrees are bred with culls.
3. Myth: A small amount of ADA Soil would be sufficient for shrimp and to be compensated by adding more bacteria
✓ Fact: a rule of thumb is that for every 16 litre of water you will need 1 litre of soil
4. Myth: Continuous culling of a Galaxy Tiger will eventually become Fancy Tiger
✓ Fact: Both are from different parentage, where a galaxy tiger has pinto gene in it whereas fancy tiger has prl/pbl in it. No matter how much culling is done, under a well trained eye, a GT will always be a GT. Walk away if they can’t openly tell you the difference. Look at their breeding tank and if there are any signs of pinto shrimplet in it or pinto gene if you are looking for FT. Alternatively, you can visit the blog link.
5. Myth: I only need 1 tank to achieve extraordinary results in shrimp breeding
✓ Fact: for selective breeding the general rule is that at least 3 tanks is required. main breeding tank, shrimplet grow up tank, grade 1 breeding tank. In general people will start with one main breeding tank with a male to female ratio of 4:20. This will generate higher success rate as the probability of all males molting at the same time is greatly reduced. This main breeding tank will keep generating shrimplet to be remove to the shrimplet grow up tank when they are 0.8cm. Once there is a good selection of male and female (1M 5F) that exceed expectation,they should be placed in the grade 1 breeding tank to continue the line. The grade 1 breeding tank and main breeding tank will continue to have more and more shrimplet to be placed in the shrimplet tank. The main breeding tank adults will not mix with the grade 1 breeding tank as the grade 1 breeding tank is to refine the excellent line, even better. If you have an additional tank (tank 4) this will greatly help to split the shrimplet male from female at a younger age to prevent unnecessary dilution of gene amongst the shrimplet.
Some of you have asked me to share about my breeding tank setup. It really is pretty straight forward.
Picture worth a thousand words.
I learn from Taiwanese breeder on the setup and modified a little but in general works the same. Here is a picture showing one of the most reputable Taiwanese breeder.
Pretty simple? Yes it really is pretty simple.
Tank dimension :60 x 45 x 38
Litres: 102
Thickness of glass 6mm
Ugf Glass partition height : 9cm
Sponge above ugf before soil is being laid on top
Soil : 6litres of ADA (1litre soil : 16litre water)
Soil 1cm in front
Ugf powered by hang on canister (totto and ehiem with powerhouse filter media)
sponge filter (optional)
Taiwan moss weighted down by large filter media
Temp 24-25
Chiller : Artica 1/4hp (up to 900+litres)
Water change: weekly 10%
Tds 80-90
pH:5.8
KH 0-2
GH 4
Food:
Spinach
Hwa shrimp food version 1. (There is version 3 but I prefer the version one which is limited edition)
New post right after Chinese New Year. For those who have been requesting me to write on some topics. These are for you.
Sharing some of the black fancy tiger picture with you.
Is the shrimp price bubble that will burst eventually. This blog post will be about the dark secrecy that underline prices peak period.
Have you wonder why are some prices of shrimp so high whereas some are Low? Actually this is all relative. When a new selective bred shrimp is new it often command a high price and after about 2 years the price will fall.
Take in the case of black King Kong, when it was firstly available in the market they are priced very high but because it is fairly easy to stablize the prices plummeted crazily over a short period of 1 year. Different shrimp have a different price cycle where it goes from high to Low.
There are some shrimp until today still command high prices because of the difficulty to get good graded quality due to instability of the breed.
The dark secret of some hobbyist who sell shrimp to fellow hobbyist is to prey on your new venture into shrimp hobby. They know that you have little knowledge and they will brainwash you and inflate the prices. Such behaviour is highly disregarded and totally lacking of integrity. They will tell you anything and everything despite their little knowledge. Shrimp keeping hobby started in Japan but in my opinion perfected in Taiwan. Some hobbyist continue to con newbies by creating groups to sell them their shrimp and wares without having sufficient knowledge learn from the source. This result in degradation of the shrimp keeping hobby. The degrading of knowledge twisting facts to sell their shrimp.
One example is that you can get graded shrimp from culls. Another example is that PRL will breed out Snow White. These are the very notion that created confusion and degradation of knowledge. Pure red line is term pure for a reason, whoever claim that Snow White is the end result of PRL has totally no idea of what they are talking about. If culls can get graded shrimp, it will be heavily guarded by breeders themselves.
Another example is the following.
This was sold to me by a Local hobbyist who at that time had 3 years of experience. He sold it to me as a black fancy tiger at an extravagant price due to my lack of knowledge and my weakness to trust. However, through this ordeal the “friendship” is only worth as much as the shrimp. It was after a year I realise he continue to prey on newbies and taught them poor shrimp keeping methods. How did I find out? It was through connection from FB that they shared their frustration with me.
This was sent to me from an irate hobbyist frustrated over his nonsense. Names are edited out to protect their identity but would leave the person who continue to prey on newbies. Caveat emptor. Buyer beware. Should a journey of fun and learning become derailed by someone unscrupulous is worth sharing with the community as we continue to stand tall to sellers who lack integrity.
Circling back to the topic, price is a tricky topic to discuss and only through examples highlighted above will hobbyist know that there are many dark secret behind it. Black fancy tiger pricing has been quite high for graded ones and the prices for BFT in Taiwan dollars:
Grade 1: 100,000 twd per pair
Grade 2: 70,000 twd per pair
Grade 3: 50,000 twd per pair
Some of the reasons for the high pricing is due to the difficult in breeding quality graded ones even after such a Long time.
This is a grade 1 male.
Happy Chinese New Year!
Should there be other questions on pricing etc feel free to leave a comment or look me up in FB.
Keep those request coming and I’ll blog it for you.
This section will discuss on grading Particularly the black fancy tiger but can generally use it as a methodology for grading. One of the reasons for sharing this article really is about how grading is done from a judge and seller perspective. I am honoured to have a judge and seller share with me on this.
Let us start with having the very best. Black fancy tiger grade 1.
Let’s look at where it has been circle.
Green circle denote a coloured rostrum indicating that Color is present. This is sometimes missed out by hobbyist and can easily be downgraded to grade 2
Blue circle denote spider leg or legs with Color. A black fancy with spider leg is highly sought after.
Orange circle denotes the three white spots against the black shell gives a 50:50 balance between white and black.
Grey circle denotes the black backbone area where it continue to provide a 50:50 black and white to the overall shrimp appearance.
Now that all the circles has been discussed, let’s look at the overall shrimp, it doesn’t have any transparent in the shell which makes it either a grade 1-2. However, what make this a grade 1 shrimp is due to the fact that it has all the above qualities with strong stripe marking and no transparency.
2nd grade : female
There are two kinds of 2nd grade for BFT, one of it have very nice stripes and the other have no transparency in the shell. This is the main difference between grade 1 and 2. Grade 1 have all the strong characteristic whereas grade 2 is short of one of those characteristic.
As you can see here that the stripes on this shrimp is considered full but it is lacking in fullness of colors. The black area isn’t black enough on the front part of the head and belly area make the shrimp appear a little patchy. This however is already considered a high grade shrimp where you can use this kind of female to breed out grade 1-2 shrimplets.
3rd grade: female
Reason why this is a 3rd grade female is due to lesser stripes on the last two line. It didn’t connect towards the top. However the face pattern and front portion is at least a grade 2 type. The black to white ratio is 40:60 hence it has dropped its grade from 2-3. This however is very subjective as the shrimp May become a 2nd grade in future after molting as this is still consider a young shrimp. I’m using ADA powder soil so shrimp may appear to look bigger. On the same shrimp the other side of the pattern does consist of transparent areas under the belly which is one of the most difficult areas to work on. On one side it’s grade 2 on the other side is grade 3 but to err on a safer side I will grade this as 3 instead of 2.
Gene shrimp:
These are shrimp that is use for breeding masses to increase female quantity for selective breeding. As you can see that the stripe pattern and transparency is obvious.
now that the brief understanding of grading is being laid out here is a picture of the grade 1-3 and the last one gene shrimp.
You can now clearly tell the differences between the grades.
What is the key to success in breeding these black fancy? Can we attribute to luck and close our eyes to randomly breed hoping something good may appear?
In line breeding, luck plays a small part. So what is the critical success factors?
There are many ways to achieve quality black fancy tiger and below is a few elements that will increase the probability:
Good genetic shrimps (top appearance)
Sex ratio 1M:7F, 2M:14F,3M:18F
Stringent culling (13% keep rate or 2 pairs @ first grade, 6% keep rate or 1 pair for 2nd grade shrimps, 3% keep rate or 1 shrimp for 3rd grade shrimps)
Be responsible and not dilute the gene by selling non-graded shrimp as graded
Know your source (ask tough questions)
Does the seller know how to differentiate between a shrimp with galaxy or pinto gene in fancy tiger
Can the seller show you his step by step shrimp in his breeding room how it was created
Does the seller have documents or article when he make claims of how it was done. If yes good if not maybe a reference to the article from the original breeder will be handy
With the above (not exhaustive) list, you should be able to steer towards the right direction. Often breeders would want a cheaper alternative and faster approach but this is line breeding, it takes time and a lot of trial and error. If you are looking for a faster approach, you will need to pay the price the breeder took to create or stabilise the line and the years it took.
Let us dig a little deeper to understand what goes behind the scene when breeding black fancy tigers.
According to the Taiwan shrimp book, there is a short paragraph mentioning about a reputable breeder who did a test between pure black line female x red tiger male and red tiger female x pure black line male. The results were astonishing as the output of the first cross PBL female x red tiger male has high success rate of getting the black fancy tiger.
Line breeding start after the F1 shrimplet begin to show sign of success and to get few better gene F1 to cross back to the parent. After many generations the gene strengthen to develop into the renowned black fancy tiger.
Are there variations?
Certainly, in the gene pool if the breeder do not cull their shrimps many variations may occur. One such variation is the white fancy tiger.
White fancy tiger?
It really is a washed out cross between the PBL and tiger whereby the lines are disappearing and also the hino or Sabre tooth PBL marking is gone.
As you can see from the above picture, the shrimplets from this female has a very high percentage of white fancy when bred with a similar male. Is this the outcome you are trying to achieve? There are breeders “marketing” this as mosura fancy tiger. Personally I think that depending on which variant or outcome you would like, you can breed it to your liking.
For example if using a “white fancy ” cross with a “black fancy” chances are you will get a split between the both and 25% chance of a cross that will look like the black fancy. This is how it work in general:
25% of the outcome will be black fancy 25% of the outcome will be white fancy 25% of the outcome will be mix (black and white fancy)25% of the outcome will be mix (white and black fancy)
This is in a very simple form of understanding of breeding but of cause in reality there is slight variations to it.
Coming back to variations, it is becoming difficult to ignore the fact that breeders (not commercial) who are in the know will share with you the outcome when they sell you the shrimp. If they are unable or trying to make a fast one, walk away. There are many reputable breeders who are more than willing to share.
Additionally, there are “black fancy tiger” lookalike but has pinto gene in it. The reason for doing so is to reduce the time to get the “black fancy”. However, with this the outcome of it will look like a black fancy but isn’t.
This picture is taken from a breeder and it does look like a black fancy, but the price is many times lower than black fancy because the shrimplets are more stable unlike the original. How do you even differentiate a lookalike black fancy and the original?
There will come a time where the difference could be difficult to discern but for now a few tell tale sign is that a pbl and tiger cross would have :
Hino or pbl pattern on the top
Black and white colors
Pinto will give off very white kind of shrimplet and is very stable
GT will have a vertical bar on the head
Degree of black differs between GT, Pinto and PBL/BFT
A warm invite to visit an overseas home breeder in Germany is really exciting. The thoughts of having to see the Number of tanks is like sending a kid into a candy store.
Turkish coffee with the newly acquired friends!
The boss catching shrimps!
the wall of fame where overseas guest sign their name on the back of the door. Overall it has been a really good experience for me to learn from different breeders in various countries.
What i have learnt from them really is their hospitality that anywhere in the world you visit as long as you have the same hobby, it is easy to connect. We spent a full day discussing mostly shrimp stuff and how to be better. It is my honor to have met David and Kuzey, and to share the passion of shrimps half way round the globe is intriguing and exhilarating. Different products was used in their part of the world with local brands difficult for other country to enter due to EU regulations. They do have a special ‘fly’ liquid to mimic the female breeding hormone that make the males ‘fly’.
Additionally, their shrimps are kept in TDS at 160 and above which is very high considering that in Asia we keep them at 100-120 range. Overall a very good trip and will certainly meet them again if i am back in Germany.
https://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.png00benetayhttps://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.pngbenetay2018-07-10 18:48:562018-07-10 18:48:56Visit to Germany
There are a lot of factors influencing the shrimp ability to breed from water parameter to food to shrimp genetics. However, today i would like to touch on a fairly common topic on Shrimp Food. The first question i get asked frequently is how often should i feed my shrimps? If you have a lot of shrimps like 20 or more, you might want to consider a daily staple feed fed twice daily and also a grazing material. Grazing material such as Lubao, Indian Almond leaves, Alder cone, cholla are some good examples.
The reason to feed them twice is so all your shrimps are fed and the female will ‘Think” that the tank have sufficient food to support their next generation. The whole idea is to feed lesser quantity but high frequency. So twice is good and if you can do 3 times it works as well.
If you feed in the morning and the shrimps are unable to finish it within 4 hours, then you’re not required to feed the second time in the evening Thats my general rule of thumb, Remove the food by then or if you have ramshorn snail, they will help with scavenging and foraging on the shrimp food. If the shrimps are not feeding, it could be there are still plenty of biofilm in the tank but do watch out if the shrimps are looking lethargic and not feeding.
A grazing material aids in building up biofilm for shrimps to consume between meals. Think of it like a snack and a good grazing material will be the food source between feeds.
There is a wide range of food in the market and i think we are spoiled for choice and which one is good for my shrimps? Personally i like using a good staple food and that is Hwa V1.
Staple Food
Basically shrimps are not that fussy eater, most of the staple food sold in aquarium shops today are basically ok to feed your shrimp. I personally prefer keeping things simple and to feed only 1 type of staple food but a variety of grazing material is very crucial.
I’m using Hwa Version 1 Shrimp food pad, this food is formulated with carefully selected ingredients to provide shrimp with all their requirements.
if you are using some shrimp food which you think they’re good for your shrimp, good! There is really no need to change.
Occasionally i feed Bacter AE and blanched spinach, they’re fairly good especially blanched spinach. if i’m feeling rich, i’ll order a pack of organic spinach and take out one serving for the shrimp while i consume the rest as a salad. For Bacter AE, i only dose them very minutely once a month to provide additional boost for creating biofilm.
Grazing material
Now here we get serious, grazing material in my opinion is equally important to daily feed. The amount of surface area for creating biofilm is important as it mimics the natural environment where Shrimps feed on biofilm.
Lubao, Indian Almond leaves and moss are three very popular and recommended grazing material. Alder cone and Cholla are not native to at least this part of the world, so i defer that information to those who have them. For Indian Almond leaves and Lubao we have very easy access to them hence we use them readily. I really like using Lubao because it is technically a microoganism food that produces food for cultivating microorganism for the shrimp to feed on and also biofilm. Indian almond leaves without going too deep into this topic has antibacteria properties, produces biofilm and are well liked by most shrimp. Grazing material is important because shrimp feed constantly and if there are not enough biofilm in the tank and daily feed is not consistent, the shrimps will not breed. They will start cannibalizing during molting. Hence, it is highly critical to have grazing material available.
A living grazing material that works very well is moss. Moss harbour a lot of microorganism which allow adults and shrimplets to graze on. Moss also provide cover for berried shrimp and shrimplets however it is also important not to over crowd the tank with moss because if it get too dense, some of the berried female may get stuck in there and die. Hence, always thin out the moss to a small bunch the size of your hand.
Summary
Taken together, it is vitally important for food to be readily present in the tank but this is also a fine balance between food availability and water parameters. As more food and grazing material is introduced into the tank, the water parameters changes so do choose a good staple food and grazing material into your shrimp breeding setup and it will go a long way. You will be rewarded with more berried shrimps and shrimplets in the months to come. In addition, as lubao is my favourite grazing material as it is easier to manage and control.
The bigger the water volume, the less fluctuation happens in an aquarium compared to one with a smaller water volume. This is certainly true as a general rule for all aquarist. However, does it mean that everyone need to have big tanks to keep shrimp?
Apparently not, shrimps can live comfortably in smaller tanks, they can even breed given that the challenge to house them in smaller tanks will be higher but definitely possible. I have tried on a very small tank at 8 litres and with 1 pair of shrimp. They manage to breed as well. It has a tiny little filter but it works well for them. It’s a pity I didn’t take any good pictures before i decommissioned the tank for a bigger one.,
With lesser shrimp, you would also have to feed smaller quantities and everything would be in smaller proportion. While i get the question if i can use lubao for smaller tanks? Yes you surely can provided there are sufficient shrimp in the tank that can consume the biofilm. From the pictures I have shared you can see that most of tanks I will use lubao. It has been part of my breeding process as there are many advantages that goes beyond a grazing material.
While there are many types of grazing material i like to keep my tank less busy so that i have space to see the shrimp do their day to day thing and easier from a selection process standpoint. However, i too have planted tanks which i too enjoy the additional greenery in it.
Ever since i have tried and fail many times on how to use lubao in different size tank, finally after many failed attempts i manage to get it right and wanted to share this valuable information on my other blog post.
While water parameters are indeed more stable in larger water volume, if one is able to control the fluctuation of the water in a smaller water volume, you will still be able to keep and breed shrimps! Hope this post shared some valuable information.
https://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.png00benetayhttps://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.pngbenetay2021-04-23 02:32:382021-04-23 16:54:24Can my tank be too small for shrimp breeding?
A breeder shared with me his analogy and i really like it as it matches to my other blog post Michelin Star. In other words, in the hands of a Chef/Painter they are able to create outstanding food/painting but not everyone given the same set of things will be able to deliver the same result. The eye for detail, the dash of salt, and so on is what make a great chef even better.
I have got quite a number of questions on how i use Lubao and i’ll share how i use them however again there is no definite way and i’ll share what i learn from Taiwan.
Before i use the lubao, i’ll soak them for 3-6 days to leech out the coloration and then kick start the biofilm process. While soaking, remember to change the water daily in the container that you are using it to soak. Please do not pour the water that you soak your lubao into the shrimp tank (there is a reason why we soak it outside the tank first). Lubao if kept dry can last a very long time since the high quality content are all dehydrated. The lubao that i pack are measured to a certain proportion and it has to be hardpacked individually to ensure every one are made correctly.
Soaking the ball 3-6 days, change water daily, do not pour the water use for soaking into the shrimp tank
During the soaking process, normally i’ll change water daily in the container to help speed up the process. Once the soaking is done, i’ll drop them into the tank and leave them 1 month for best result and than change out when either it floats up or after 1 month
Lubao are generally used for tanks that have more than 10-15 shrimp as personally anything lesser don’t quite benefit from it since the tank would be able to produce biofilm for them to graze. So from a tank size standpoint, even smaller tanks are able to use lubao just that the number of shrimp in that tank will still need to be of a certain number. In other words, if i have tanks with 5 shrimp, than i’ll not use it until they start throwing out shrimplets, i’ll then start introducing.
i generally use 40L tanks to do selective breeding 2M 6-10F and then transfer the shrimplets to grow up tank which are generally 80-100L. So in both those tanks i’ll use Lubao. As long as the tank is properly cycled, using Lubao will have no negative impact on water quality.
i have seen drastic difference when Lubao is use, females in general are more ready to saddle and berry. Cannibalism is greatly reduced which protects the female from getting eaten after molt. Taken together, i have seen a lot of advantage in using such a small yet important ball which helps breeders with a lot of tank and also those who are very busy with their daily work to be able to enjoy their hobby when they can.
There are a myriad of different type of food available in the market and also plenty of home made recipe that shrimps consume as well. However, what really is important is providing good quality feed for your shrimp. if you are currently feeding a good staple and it’s doing well, keep going.
Feeding quality feed for your shrimp is like what the old adage says, you are what you eat. This is true for your shrimps as well and also for overall water quality. It is highly critical that the food fed in the tank does not negatively impact the water quality. Hence, it is important that the quality of the food are fed also in an appropriate amount, sufficient for the shrimp to consume within a few hours and then the rest of the food either taken out or consume by snails.
Personally after trying so many types of food, the draw factor is the highest for Hwa Version 1. What is a draw factor? It means that the shrimp are drawn to the food like honey to bee, it’s very quick resulting in shrimps able to quickly get their daily nutritional uptake. Hwa Version 1 feed has always been my favourite as it comprises of all the nutritional factor to maintain a healthy shrimp.
With the right staple food like Hwa v1 coupled with Lubao will set the stage for the shrimps to breed more and live healthily. The lubao that i use are individually hand packed by myself to ensure the correct portion and freshness are in every ball. Instead of me rambling on, please enjoy the below videos on the testimonials of Hwa V1.
The last 6 months was a total train wreaked with my work schedule however i still make it a point to have Google meet with overseas shrimp hobbyist! A shout out to those who we have met face to face on Google meet. Sharing has always been me, and has work thus far.
Diving straight into the topic on Lubao, i have got many questions from hobbyist asking why the name Lubao? What is it all about? Lubao is actually the Chinese word we say (滷包). What does it mean? if you google this, you will find that it is actually a Chinese method of combining different herbs or ingredients wrapped into a net wrap ball and boil over long period of time. The longer you boil the ‘ball’ the goodness will be absorbed by the food you are braising it with. This is how the origin of the word lubao came about. In English i think it does a better description of being a microorganism ball.
Microorganism ball like in all cooking, the secret lies in the preparation, ingredients, control of fire and many elements to cook up a delicious meal. Every lubao is hand packed myself with carefully selected ingredients which took many learning and failure before knowing how to use appropriately hence delivering exception benefits in terms of better water parameters and certainly more berried shrimp.
Lubao need to be soak 3-6 days in a small container separately and water change done on a daily basis before it is being placed into the tank. After it is being placed into the tank, the biofilm starts to form and this is where shrimp start feasting/grazing on them on top of their usual place/food that they graze on. In normal tank condition, if there are a lot of shrimp, apart from constantly feeding them it is important to have a dedicated grazing material such as lubao for them to graze upon. Other grazing material like leaves are also possible and beneficial.
biofilm occurs everywhere in the tank but grows very slowly which shrimp can strip them off very quickly (i’m sure you’ve seen how a school of shrimp strip a leaf down within hours), hence it is important to have a constant source of biofilm which has the ability to draw the shrimp to the grazing material to graze on. Another important factor is the lubao is able to remain in the tank for 1-2 months (depending on shrimp population).
When shrimp is able to know there are sufficient food available for the shrimplets to feed on, the female shrimps will start saddling with other conditions met. If you have a very busy schedule like me, lubao is God Send. It even beats having an automatic feeder which i have but eventually lubao beats the automatic feeder hands down.
Alright! i’ll keep this post short so i can get back to looking at my shrimps! Happy Easter! Enjoy the video too.
I have got some questions regarding how i do my water change and how do i reminerize. In this short post i’ll share with you how i do mine the easy and effective way. There are other ways to do water change, i just want to ensure they are the quickest possible methodology so i can enjoy my shrimps more.
The main reason for doing water change is really about remove nitrates in the water
With the filtration that i’m using a sophisticated hang on back which works very well after trying many other brands like Fluval, Ehiem, Gex, etc. http://www.totto.co.jp/en/test.php
This filter have the ability to remove nitrates from the water column as indicated by the Tokyo Institute of Technology (https://www.titech.ac.jp/english/). The correlation between lowering of pH caused by Nitrate is usually unspoken of causing lots of shrimp death unknowingly. Conventional filters don’t have the ability to remove nitrates and hence water change is required to remove it. Hence, it means if your filter don’t have the ability to remove nitrates than it is important that your water changes are done religiously to ensure the front end process such as feeding etc are still kept up because the entire process from feeding to water change are all interlinked and cannot be separated individually to be resolved when a problem arises.
During water change, what i’ll do is remove water from the tank and add in TDS 0 water directly into the tank. After it is filled, i’ll reminerize it to 85-90 TDS using Hwa Reminerizer. I normally change 5-10% of the tank water depending on the bioload and tank volume. For my denser tank with more shrimp, i’ll do up to 25-30% water change weekly. This will help reduce the amount of nitrate in the water. I have used all sorts of filter, from hang on, canister, sponge etc, even the best filter still require water change. So don’t skip that water change and make sure the water change is reminerized with a good reminerizer because there are many in the market where the GH and TDS value doesn’t hit the mark.
The reminerizer for example i’m using will get GH 2.x at TDS 85 and GH3 at TDS 90. Some reminerizer may only achieve GH 3 at TDS 120. So it’s important to know what we are adding in the tank. For my case i want to achieve at GH of 2-3 at TDS 85-90.
A shoutout to those out there who have given me very good feedback on the post and i’ll continue to pen down my thoughts.
Ben enjoys spending time browsing through online restaurant reviews and take down notes on which restaurant he like to visit. He called up a restaurant reserving a seat for himself on Friday for one. He told himself for this Christmas day, he will treat himself for once. As the day approaches, Ben was very excited as he knew that the quality will be top notch. The Christmas decoration of the restaurant and the table setting is immaculate. As he enters the restaurant he was greeted with finest and then the waiter came over and shared the menu.
Ben loves his steak so he browse through the selections and different cuts, all were very tempting. He narrowed down to two choices either a Wagyu beef from Japan or the same cut but from another country. However, the price difference is quite substantial at the higher grade. Eventually he went ahead with the Japan Wagyu selection. When he was done with dinner, he told the waiter to book him another seat next week as he wanted to try out another steak but from another country. A few good steak wrapped up his Christmas celebration!
so what am i driving at?
There are plenty of restaurant in the world like there are plenty of shrimp breeder globally. There are some breeders who does very well for a certain type of shrimp as they created the shrimp whereas for some they take on others to create their own line. If we take an example of the Japan Wagyu, the prices could be 3-4x higher compared to other country beef but does the price difference justify the quality? if you ask me personally, it does. Anybody who have tried it will understand. However, everyone have their own budget and it is perfectly fine to work within it. What is more important is you enjoy the hobby and when you see that prize shrimp collection that feel good feeling is like a foodie having a ‘mouth-gasm’. https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=mouthgasm
There is really no short cut to success, even given a colony of high grade shrimps does not guarantee success. Ignorance and short cut only result in the demise of the shrimp hobby. The root cause in my opinion is the sharing of knowledge and information where truth become twisted. If every breeder and hobbyist are on the up and up with each other, i believe this great hobby will be even greater. I have personally experience hobbyist dumping poor grade shrimp to enthusiastic hobbyist who have just entered the hobby and eventually calling it quits when they found out the truth. This also stems from unethical shops where shrimps advertise were not actually from the source they claim they are from. Hence, the source (a detailed explanation in another post) of where the shrimp comes from far outweigh the benefit of low prices. The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.
Boa shrimp
As i sink in deeper to further understand this the more i learn about where misconception can arise. Boa in itself is a selective bred shrimp and while anybody can ‘copy’ or create Boa from Stardust it is however important to note the selection process, starting shrimp used, culling process, tank parameters, food, etc far differs from breeder to breeder. The original shrimp to create Boa is already different and any slight deviation would result in strikingly different outcome. Hence, it is safe to say that i wouldn’t be receiving a mouth watering Japan Wagyu A5 steak if i order another country Wagyu A5, they may look the same (at least to me) but the grading, keeping, etc are all different. Even at grade A5, there are a wide band to the quality of wagyu.
While everyone has the right to deem how their grading is based on their shrimp, relying on a reputable grading system based out of a renowned lineage is my preference. Taking guidance from a reputable breeder is far better than spreading rumors of how grading should be done just because you want to sell your shrimp. For example, if i’m going to keep Boa from a reputable breeder than certainly I’ll use their grading as a benchmark to determine the different grade. Grading is tricky as it take time and experience to learn how to grade and a point system will help with it. For example a Grade 2 or Grade 3 shrimp would mean a certain criteria to be met and if it falls within the band it will be graded as is.
However, within a grade, there is a continuum which allow the breeder to grade two different shrimp that may look slightly different but having the same grade. This can either be done through descriptive or point system or both. If descriptive, it can mean that a check box of criteria once met will be assigned to the grade.
S Grade for Golden Boa. Thin facial lines, very few to no body spots, slightly transparent at certain parts. Spider legs.
SS Female Boa. Colors on this may have bluish hue to it however in this grade there is a possibility that the colors are not fully display yet. These are young female and will grow up stunning (note the body pattern) it is important that the body have some spots in this grade. Having a lot of spots on the body are usually more desirable compared to fewer spots. Facial spots and pattern are big instead of thin lines and rather numerous. Spider legs coloration. This will generalize the grading for SS especially having heavier weightage on body spots.
SS Male Boa on the other hand due to the smaller body area results in fewer of the criteria being met at a given grade. Within the same grading methodology a SS male will not look as nice as a SS female. Reason being is the lower part of the male body doesn’t have sufficient area to have a lot of spots. A nice male is very difficult to come by and people are willing to shell out top dollars to get their hands on them.
A SSS Female Boa. The blue coloration resides ontop of the base color fishbone pattern with the blue tracing around the patterns on the body and face. Body spots are more obvious with abundant sprays of spot throughout the belly area. The facial pattern on this is modest with distinctive differentiation between the base color and face pattern. Spider legs with bluish tinge, swimmerets are colored as well.
A SSS (Competition grade) Female Boa. Color on this is uncontested where the colors illuminate the pattern on the shrimp. The golden hue mix with the metallic blue accentuate the overall shrimp coloration. The numerous body spots sprays across the mid section of the shrimp with high intense coverage. The facial pattern large but not overpowering giving it a sense of contrast between the black base color and face pattern. Here the facial pattern has to balance between big patterns but not covering the entire face. The legs are fully colored in the spider leg fashion. The back black line helps trace the shrimp framing itself into a beauty of it’s own.
Here is a picture where the Boa are grazing on the Lubao (Microorganism ball). It is vital to have a grazing material to help support the breeding program (Please read microorganism ball post here).
Color changes occur throughout the life of a Boa, when they’re happy through good water parameters without excessive feeding and grazing material than they will keep breeding and continue to look nicer with each molt. Here is one example of a female Boa where the first picture on the top is when i got it a month in and the bottom picture is in the 3rd month. The colors as you can clearly see intensifies to a darker shade of blue. Yes you are right both of the time when i took the picture she is berried.
People often ask me what i do to be successful in shrimp breeding? Keep it simple. No magic powder, nothing. I’m a plain old school aquarist where i do my regular water change, keeping things simple in the tank and don’t overfeed. There isn’t really a magic formula, the less i do, the better they breed and all i really do on a daily basis is to feed once or twice a day with Hwa version 1 food pad and have the microorganism ball to aid in grazing. That’s all. simple yet very effective. I find there are too many ‘bells & whistles’ in the market today that doesn’t contribute to the success of shrimp breeding. What it does is help is certainly confusing hobbyist and pulls them further away from success.
The grading are based off the grades printed on the certificates.
Right at the onset of this post i mentioned about enjoying the hobby and to me it is all about sharing with friends about my journey of keeping and breeding shrimp. Sharing the information, knowledge and the shrimps with everyone. More importantly i always believe to be inclusive in the hobby and to share the joy with immediate family.
Hope this post have shed some light on the Boa grading topic and stay safe wherever you are and wishing all breeders a happy 2021!
https://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.png00benetayhttps://shrimpsanctuary.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/shrimp2-1-300x300.pngbenetay2020-12-23 23:10:352021-04-22 10:08:58Boa Shrimp: Starting 2021 on the right track!
This is often overlooked when it comes to shrimp breeding because if a hobbyist keep them in a large colony and “Hope” for the best results will often be disappointed. The history of Caridina you see today with multiple colors and pattern are what we call selective breeding. *Disclaimer* i’m not a know all but a very passionate hobbyist trying to share as much accurate information as possible.
Today, i’ll touch on just 1 topic about genetic breeding known as backcrossing (Line breeding) and outcrossing . The whole idea of backcrossing is to strengthen the genetics of either side of the parent shrimp. For example, if you start off with a male and female and you would like to retain and enhance the male traits than backcrossing a F1 female to F0 Male is required. For outcrossing, it inject new genetic traits into the current pool to enhance new trait and also helps prevent deformation.
Backcrossing: I did a simplified chart with a Male and Female each carrying 100% of it’s own genetic pool and the F1 in ideal state will carry both 50% of the parents gene. (Please note that this will work optimally if the pair is of certain quality. matching a good male and a transparent female will have a higher cull % at BC1 resulting in a longer process)
Now taking the desired trait F1 Female and putting it back into the F0 Male tank to further build on the Male traits.
Now the BC1 shrimplet will carry 75% of the male genetics which is much nearer to the male F0 shrimp.
When we are in this stage, the F0 Male x BC1 Female will result in a higher % of trait similarity genetically to the F0 male.
F1
50
50
BC1
75
25
BC2
87.5
12.5
BC3
93.75
6.25
BC4
96.875
3.125
This is a very simplified outlook of the genetic makeup
The journey to create that ideal trait has it’s down side as well and after speaking to renown Taiwan breeder confirms my learning on the side effects of too much inbreeding.
Here are some of the effects where it’s classified as degeneration/deform:
When the female do not hold the eggs or keep kicking the eggs
Young shrimplet born out and keep dying given the correct parameters
shrimplets that never reach maturity and always remain small
big head and head to body ratio does not fit 1:3 deform growth in large numbers
Open skirt or some call it skirting where the carapace is too short.
decreased lifespan
Hunchback
To prevent deform shrimps and also to keep a good line of shrimp require diligence in ensuring the shrimp do not over in breed. When you do see any of the above effects, the shrimp had already reached a very late stage of inbreeding. You can use that as a gauge if not you can consider injecting new blood/genetics whenever you can and the method of doing so is call outcrossing.
Outcrossing: The idea for outcrossing on the other hand is to inject new genome to the current shrimp which has been line bred for some time. The reason this need to be done is because when line breeding get too excessive, deform start showing, shrimps stop breeding, growth stagnant, etc hence it is important for the health of the line to occasionally introduce new blood. There is no hard and fast rule when to introduce the new genetic into the pool because different people get the shrimp at different generation. If the shrimp i have gotten is already line bred for 5-6 generations it will reach the deform point faster if the shrimp has been already outcross before. A reputable breeder will be able to provide high quality new generation of shrimps when they have a large number of tanks to prevent too frequent inbreeding.
I hope this post provided you some insights into breeding high quality shrimp.