Fire Red Shrimp care guide
Fire Red Shrimp (Neocaridina davidi var. 'Fire Red') — minimum tank 20 L, temperature 20-26 °C, pH 6.5-7.8.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
The Fire Red Shrimp is a high-grade selectively bred line of Neocaridina davidi. It is selected for solid, opaque deep red colouration extending uniformly across the body including the legs and rostrum.
Taxonomy
- Family: Atyidae
- Genus: Neocaridina
- Scientific name: Neocaridina davidi var. 'Fire Red'
- Common synonyms: Fire Red, High-grade Cherry
Habitat
Wild Neocaridina davidi originates from Taiwan and southern China. Fire Red stock is captive-bred for several decades and adapts well to standard mature planted aquariums with neutral, moderately mineralised water.
Tank requirements
- Minimum tank volume: 20 L (5.3 US gal)
- Adult size: 2-3 cm
- Temperature: 20-26 °C (68-79 °F)
- pH: 6.5-7.8
- GH: 6-12 °dGH
- KH: 2-8 °dKH
- Lifespan: 1-2 years
Diet
A continuous biofilm grazer. The diet is supplemented with prepared shrimp food, blanched vegetables (spinach, zucchini, kale) and very occasional protein in the form of frozen daphnia or specialised granules.
Compatibility
Peaceful and best housed alone or with small, non-predatory companions. Suitable tankmates include Otocinclus, Pygmy Cory and Nerite Snails. Larger fish, cichlids and crayfish should be avoided as they will predate on adults and shrimplets.
Breeding
Prolific breeders. Berried females carry 20-30 eggs for roughly 30 days; juveniles emerge fully formed and feed on biofilm. Stable parameters and the presence of moss provide reliable cover for the shrimplets.
Fire Red Shrimp Breeding Guide
Overview
Fire Red is a high-grade red line of Neocaridina davidi selected for solid, opaque deep red that covers the whole body including the legs. Breeding works exactly as in other Neocaridina morphs and is straightforward in a mature tank: a sexed pair, stable water and food are enough. The female carries eggs externally and the young develop directly, with no larval stage.
Sexing
Females are larger with a deeper, full red and a broad downward-curved tail for holding eggs; males are smaller and visibly paler. A yellow or green saddle on the back of a mature female shows eggs forming in the ovaries before they pass to the swimmerets.
Conditioning
Hold parameters steady in the species range: temperature about 22-26 °C and pH near 6.5-7.8 with stable hardness. The shrimp are detritivores that graze biofilm, algae and detritus and consume their molts, so a settled planted tank supplies most of their nutrition with modest supplemental feeding.
Breeding Setup
A dedicated species tank with gentle filtration and dense moss best supports a Fire Red colony. The intense red is a recessive, selectively bred trait, and crossing different Neocaridina davidi morphs reverts the offspring to brown wild-type. Keep Fire Red strictly separate from other color lines to maintain the saturation.
Spawning & Berried Females
Mating follows a molt, with pheromone signaling and external fertilization as eggs move to the pleopods. A berried female carries roughly 20-30 eggs and fans them under the tail for about two to three weeks until they hatch. Steady parameters reduce the risk of a dropped clutch, which is more common in first-time or stressed females.
Shrimplet Care
Shrimplets hatch at about 1 mm as fully formed copies of the adults and feed on biofilm immediately. They mature in roughly two to three months and live one to two years. Maintaining the high grade requires firm culling each generation, keeping only shrimp with full, opaque red coloring extending onto the legs.
Common Challenges
Even within a Fire Red line some offspring show thinner or patchy color and are removed from breeding stock. The main threats are mixing with other morphs, which dilutes toward wild-type, and unstable water or copper exposure, which stress berried females and harm developing eggs.