Kissed By The Sun
The Orange Sunkist Shrimp (Neocaridina denticulata) is a brilliant orange shrimp that goes is also frequently called Orange Pumpkin Shrimp and like other Neocaridinia shrimp, are amazing shrimp in the home aquarium. All the different Neocardinia colors have been bred from fairly drab colored wild shrimp of the same species. All these color forms are easy to breed, and nearly impossible to stop as long as there is at least one male and one female in the display. Any shrimp in this genus will readily cross breed with other shrimp of any other shrimp in the genus regardless of color form. It seems like a great idea to mix them for diversity in the display and see what wonderful hybrids you could make, unfortunately, Housing multiple species of them in a display does usually end in hybrids, but the offspring tend strongly toward reverting back to their wild color forms (generally a mottled and quite unexciting grey).
Orange Sunkist Shrimp are wildly easy to keep, as pretty much all Neocaridina are. They can be kept in displays that range in temperature all the way from the mid 50s to the low 80s, though in temperatures under 60 degrees, they seem to function more slowly and and are very unlikely to breed. They seem unaffected by pretty much any pH or hardness level relatively common in aquarium keeping, in fact, they will likely thrive in it. In very established aquarium with heavy biofilms and algal growth, they will likely not even need much in the way of feeding! In fact, these displays are the best for raising the young shrimp as they are pretty much dependent on biofilm until they get large enough to eat other foods. In tanks that are maintained with less biofilm or just generally less mature mature aquariums, supplemental foods will be required. We feed them Nutramar's Algae & Color Boost Shots and this is the perfect food for them unless your display also has bottom feeding fish (who will eat these shots before the shrimp have a chance – but then again, most fish won't hesitate to eat a shrimp this tasty). Their diet can also be supplemented with organic blanched vegetables, but be attentive to not overdo this and remove uneaten food, or you risk overloading your system's filtration.
Orange Sunkist Shrimp are very peaceful and can be kept with other shrimp species, but as previously mentioned, will interbreed with shrimp from the same genus. If you're interested in keeping them with other shrimp, we suggest trying Bamboo, Vampire, Amano and Chameleon shrimp. They also do well with pretty much every kind of snail common in freshwater aquariums. As with any decorative shrimp, they are likely to become food if kept with most fish. For those of you interested in trying this anyway, be sure to have an ample population of shrimp in the aquarium before adding any fish, and choose your fish wisely. The world abounds will bad choices, so do some research before you start and be prepared for some losses, especially of the juveniles (and yes, there are going to be juveniles!) All Neocaridina Shrimp also perfect for planted tanks, and generally seem to do better in aquariums with a lot of plants. Plants offer cover for them, as well as offering more surfaces for biofilm to grow (which, obviously, makes for more food.)
If you're interested in keeping freshwater shrimp, Neocaridina denticulata has our highest recommendation. They are a captivating element of any planted aquarium. They are incredibly effective algae / biofilm eaters and their penchant for breeding adds more shrimp and constant intrigue. Ask your LFS about getting you some Orange Sunkist Shrimp from Aquatropic today!