What kind of crustacean can I put in with my tank?

Question

Ok, my better-half and I have been butting heads about our tank, we ( I claim more right to the tank cause I'm the main caretaker! ) have a 55 gallon tank, and I have Tiger Barbs, Tetras, Jellybeans, CoryCats and Blood Cichlids residing in my tank, my betterhalf wants one thing to call his own in the tank....but he wants things that are going to eat my buddies!! I don't think so......so to end this argument (that he's not going to win) is thier any kind of crustation that can get along with with the current residents? If not, I'm fine with that.....but I guess I gotta be fair to him too....I did get him a 5 gallon tank with a fiddler crab in it...men are never happy!!...lol...

Answer 1

I agree with the 2nd answerer... for the most part. If you put 1 ghost shrimp in a 55 gallon tank- chances are you will never see it. They are such efficient little cleaners that they add almost nothing to your bioload- so go ahead and throw 40-50 in! They are cheap- usually sold as feeders, a few of yours may get gobbled up as well- so son't get too attached.

Bamboo shrimp are really interesting, you'd have to give them places to hide while molting though and they are neither as cheap, nor as easy to find as the ghosts. They are more interesting though. Instead of claws and picking at their food, they have large feathery dusters that they use to filter food out of the water and sweep off of the substrate and plants.

Other than that there are the standard cherry or Amano shrimp, colorful and peaceful, but not always easy to find in stores.

Answer 2

Woah, Cichlids with Barbs and Tetras, good luck with that set-up First off. Second, get a ghost shrimp. They're fast and they clean.

I have one.

Answer 3

Your only option with that tank set up is shrimp.  You can try ghost shrimp or one of the other types of shrimp, such as amano shrimp, red cherry shrimp or crystal shrimp.  Amano shrimp might be your best bet as they are a bit larger than the other varieties.  They are pretty good algae cleaners, too.  Any type of shrimp may end up as fish food for your cichlids, though.  

No other larger crustacean is going to be safe for your fish.  The problem with them is that they stick to the bottom of the tank and seem ok with the fish for a while, but then eventually one night when the lights go out and the fish try to get some sleep they get snatched up, dragged down to the bottom and eaten.  Kind of like a horror movie for fish!

Answer 4

please get rid of the jellybeans these fish are painted

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_fis...

and will not live a long time

http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pf...

Answer 5

you answered all my questions i think this might be a good time to repay you

does it look like this                           http://www.aquascape.co.uk/convict4.jpg

this is a blood parrot cichlid mixed with a convict cichlid there called jelly bean fish

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2010/2198...

this one is marked as a heart parrot cichlid

hoped that helped