Bring your home aquarium alive with Neocaridina shrimp.
Colorful, hardy, affordable, and genuinely fun to watch, Neocaridina shrimp are one of the easiest ways to transform a planted aquarium into a living ecosystem. Aguatastic helps hobbyists choose better foods, safer accessories, shrimp-friendly plants, and proven beginner gear.
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Choosing the right Neocaridina variety
Neocaridina davidi is the species behind most of the colorful freshwater shrimp found online and in local fish stores. Through selective breeding, hobbyists have created lines with very different visual personalities.
Cherry Red
A perfect starting point for beginners. Active, easy to care for, and bright enough to pop against dark substrate and green plants.
Blue Dream
Electric blue coloration makes this one of the most striking options for aquascapes with mosses, ferns, and epiphytes.
Bloody Mary
A translucent, rich red line that looks especially vivid under clean lighting and in mature planted tanks.
Orange Rili
Great for hobbyists who want contrast and visual movement, with clear sections paired against vibrant orange.
Mixing different Neocaridina color lines can lead to duller offspring over time. If you want to preserve strong color integrity, keep morphs in separate tanks.
How to set up the perfect shrimp tank
A simple planted aquarium with gentle filtration, stable water, and lots of grazing surfaces beats a flashy setup every time.
Tank size and filtration
- 5 gallons can work for a small starter colony
- 10 gallons gives better stability and room for growth
- Sponge filters are a top choice because they protect shrimplets
- Hang-on-back filters should use a pre-filter sponge on the intake
Plants that help shrimp thrive
- Java moss for hiding places and biofilm
- Anubias for easy low-maintenance greenery
- Monte Carlo for dense foreground cover
- Hornwort for fast growth and extra nutrient uptake
Water parameters that matter
Neocaridina shrimp are forgiving compared with Caridina, but stability still matters. Good shrimp keeping is usually about avoiding sudden swings, not chasing perfect numbers.
pH
Target 6.8–7.8. Stable is better than constantly adjusting.
GH / KH
Aim for 6–8 dGH and 2–4 dKH to support healthy molts and water stability.
TDS
A practical working range is 150–300 ppm in most setups.
Cycle first
Never add shrimp to an uncycled tank. Ammonia and nitrite should always read 0 ppm.
Diet, breeding, and tank mates
Healthy Neocaridina colonies come down to three simple things: quality grazing surfaces, modest feeding, and calm tank conditions.
Diet and nutrition
- Use high-quality shrimp pellets or wafers as a staple
- Offer blanched vegetables like zucchini, spinach, kale, or cucumber
- Add botanicals such as Indian almond leaves or mulberry leaves
- Feed protein-rich treats lightly to support breeding and growth
- Do not overfeed; remove leftovers after a few hours
Breeding and compatibility
- Females mature around 4–6 months
- Berried females usually carry eggs for about 21–28 days
- Dense moss and plants help protect shrimplets
- Great companions include Otocinclus, Corydoras, chili rasboras, and ramshorn snails
- A shrimp-only tank is still the safest option for maximum survival
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Shrimp pellets, wafers, and botanicals
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