Just wanted to share… Shrinking Shrimp, predatory Brittlestar?
This weekend I purchased four small peppermint shrimp hoping they would clean up some pesky Aiptasia in my tank. I read all that I could find to try to make sure they would be safe, but alas, they became the most expensive food I’ve ever put in my tank! I believe the green brittle star is the culprit. All of the shrimp were gone within a few hours. They were fairly small shrimp, but all of my fish are smaller than 3 inches long, so I’m pretty sure the brittle star got them. My husband keeps trying to convince me that maybe the shrimp are hiding, but my tank is only 55 gallons and I would expect to see at least one of them around feeding time. Anyway, I just thought that I would share with other hobbyists that small shrimp are not necessarily safe with a medium to large size brittle star, regardless of what the LFS tells you! Keep up the good work WWM crew!
