Betta And Cherries?

[nikkifro8994]

I have a male betta in a 5 gallon tank. I added 2 ghost shrimp on Monday thinking he'd eat them. They are both still there. He hasn't shown any interest at all. He has snails in his tank (came with the plants) that he doesn't pay any attention to. I'm going to add the other 2 ghost shrimp that I have and see if he still shows no interest. If he doesn't care about the ghosts, can I try adding cherries? How many cherries should I add? Will they thrive in this tank? If he starts to pick at them, I have 2 10 gallon tanks I could move them to (stock in sig).

Tank specifications:
Size: 5 gallons (20 litres?)
Temp: 78 F (26 C)
Filter: Tetra Whisper 10i (up to 10 gallons)
Ammonia and nitrite: 0
Nitrate: ~20

Thanks!
Nikki

 

[JenCliBee]

It's hit and miss with betta's, some will just attack from the offset where as some take no notice at all.... adding cherries wouldn't be a bad idea if he is ignoring the ghosts but like you are doing with the ghosts, i would add a few at a time to ensure he still wont bother.


There is no reason why the wouldn't thrive in that tank either

 

[nikkifro8994]

Ok. Provided he is fine with the 2-3 I add at first, how many should I add up to? And, if he isn't, will 2-3 be ok in a 10 gallon or do they like groups?

 

[Chad]

In my experience they just go after the smaller ones though we recently had this same discussion in another thread and someone said their betta went after larger ones as well. I would say ghost shrimp are too large but small males cherrys and juveniles would be food. My scarlet badis go after the shrimp fry and they are much smaller than their one time relatives the betta.

 

[phoenixgsd]

my betta ignored mine for months then all of a sudden started taking a fancy to them, he ate a large adult female right under my nose

 

[Baccus]

Shrimp are naturally on a fighters food list, I find I am able to get away with keeping cherry shrimp and fighters together because my fighters are in large tanks well planted with established shrimp populations. That way if the fighter decides to have a taste of the tempting shrimp and finds he likes them, there is less chance of him eating the entire population in his tank.

 

[Sweeden]

I added 30 to my tank other day and he chased them around for a while then gave up and hasnt gone near them in a week

 

[nikkifro8994]

I have a lot of plants for the shrimp to hide in.

 

[Better is Betta]

I think its a good idea having shrimps in with bettas. They benefit each other. Make sure you have nice hidey places and plants in the tank. The betta is stimulated with knowing theres a feed when he wants one and makes for a happy betta. The shrimps have their time at night to forage around on scruds while the betta is asleep. I think it should balance out nicely.

 

[Better is Betta]

I think its a good idea having shrimps in with bettas. They benefit each other. Make sure you have nice hidey places and plants in the tank. The betta is stimulated with knowing theres a feed when he wants one and makes for a happy betta. The shrimps have their time at night to forage around on scruds while the betta is asleep. I think it should balance out nicely.

Whats with the word scruds? I type in ( s c r a p s) and it gets translated to scruds! who uses that word?

 

[Chad]

I don't know...it's not in the "bad words" filter of the site. I just checked. Must be something with your autocorrect.

 

[KuronoEnyo]

They'll probably do great! Plus if you find yourself in an excess I know of many people who sell there shrimp or give them to there local aquarium for some in store credit.

 

[nikkifro8994]

A local store is getting a new shipment tomorrow (or today? IDK. It's 1:30 AM). I'll check it out in the afternoon. The betta seems great with the ghosts. If they look healthy, I'll get 3 cherries and add them to the tank. Should I take out the 4 ghosts and put them in the 1.5 or one of the 10's? My stock is in my sig.

 

[nikkifro8994]

Pyro is sulking. He's mad at me for putting these little annoying shrimp in his home. But hasn't even tried to pick at them. He just sits in the corner and mopes.

 

[Baccus]

If he stays in one spot to long just watch that the shrimp dont decide to have a nibble at him. They are usually pretty good with other fish, but if they think a fish is dead to a shrimp thats an all you can eat buffet.