Do cherry shrimp absolutely require a filter, or would it be ok to change the water frequently?

Question

I have a 1 gallon bowl that is temporarily housing a betta. I'm moving him to a bigger tank soon, and I'm thinking about putting some plants and a pair of cherry shrimp into his old bowl. Since the bowl is so small, I would rather just do water changes if possible. However, I read on a forum that shrimp require some water movement in order to breathe. Does anyone know if this is the case?

Answer 1

I really only deal with saltwater, but have been told that the cherry shrimp are fairly easy to care for. A couple of things could be problems for you with this, first not having a filter would make it really difficult to keep your water at a relatively constant pH and second cherry shrimp eat algae and any left over food your fish may leave behind. They do best with lots of plants as well. That might be difficult in a 1 gallon bowl.

Answer 2

I think you should try to put a small sponge filter in the 1 gallon bowl.  You'd be surprised at how small a sponge filter can be and still be very effective.  Not to mention which, you'd probably be surprised and how much poo a single red cherry shrimp can produce!  

I had a colony of them in my 10 gallon and now most of them have died and there is only 1 left (the others died of old age) and she mostly hangs out on top of the sponge filter and in the java moss.  I vacuum the bottom of that tank every day because it has some juvenile ABN plecos in it and I am always amazed at how much RCS poo I get off of the sponge from just one little old shrimp.  So get a little sponge filter & air pump and a clump of java moss for your little one gallon bowl and I think your red cherry shrimp will be much happier.  Besides, then you won't have to do so many water changes.

Answer 3

I would really not recommend it.  While a sponge filter will help with the ammonia levels (which you could fix with water changes every few days and some fast growing live plants), the temperature swing from the day-night change will quickly kill the shrimp.  If you want to something in the bowl, try some Java Moss, a Ghost Shrimp or Two, and some small snails (Ramshorns, Malaysian Trumpets, etc.).  Ghost Shrimps are FAR more tolerant of cooler water than RCS, and will be much better equipped for life in a bowl.