Ghost Shrimp (Palaemonetes sp.)

Ghost Shrimp (Palaemonetes sp.), also called glass or grass shrimp, are clear little freshwater shrimp that spend the day picking through the gravel for leftover food. They are cheap, hardy and easy, which makes them a good first invertebrate, a busy scavenger for a small community tank, or a live treat for bigger fish and axolotls. Sold each: one shrimp per quantity, so order as many as your tank needs. Browse the rest of our freshwater invertebrates.

Pet or Feeder?

Both, and it is worth deciding before you get home. As tank residents they need peaceful, small-mouthed tank mates; anything that can fit a shrimp in its mouth will eventually eat them. As feeders they are a natural, whole-food treat that gets predators hunting. Either way, keep them fed while you hold them: hungry ghost shrimp will pick on each other.

Care Guide

• Tank size: 5 gallons is enough for a few. A larger group does better in 10 gallons or more, where they have room to spread out and fewer squabbles.
• Water: freshwater only, 65 to 80°F, pH 6.5 to 8. Plain dechlorinated tap water is fine. Medium to hard water helps them molt.
• Diet: omnivore and scavenger. They eat leftover flake and pellets, plus a shrimp pellet or algae wafer a few times a week. They are not real algae eaters.
• No copper, ever. Copper and many fish medications kill shrimp. Move them out before you treat a tank, and run carbon before they go back.
• Acclimate slowly. Drip or add small cups of tank water over 30 to 60 minutes.
• Molting: they shed their whole shell as they grow. The empty clear shell looks like a dead shrimp. Leave it, they eat it back for the minerals.
• Cover and substrate: sand or fine gravel, plants and a cave or two help them feel safe. A lid helps too, since they can climb out.
• Filter intakes: a sponge filter or a sponge over the intake keeps small shrimp from getting pulled in.

Specifications

Compatibility

As tank residents they do well with small, peaceful fish: tetras, rasboras, livebearers, corys, otos and small plecos, along with nerite snails. They get along with Amano Shrimp, but they can pick off baby Cherry Shrimp, so keep them out of a tank where you are raising shrimplets.

Anything with a big enough mouth will treat them as food: cichlids, angelfish, larger gouramis, puffers, loaches, goldfish and bettas often do. That is exactly why they work as feeders. If you want them to live in the tank, choose tank mates small enough that a shrimp is not a meal.

Recommended Foods & Supplies

• Vitalis Freshwater Shrimp Pellets as a staple
• Hikari Mini Algae Wafers for variety
• Hikari Bacto-Surge Foam Filter, a shrimp-safe sponge filter
• Browse our water care for a dechlorinator

FAQ

How many should I get?
Price is per shrimp. For a clean-up crew, a few in a 5 gallon or around a dozen in a 10 gallon or larger. As feeders, buy only what you will use in a few days and keep them fed until then.

I found a dead shrimp, or is it?
Look closely. A clear, empty, shrimp-shaped shell is a molt, which means the shrimp is growing. Leave it in; they eat it back. A dead shrimp turns white or pink and does not move.

Will they clean my algae?
Not really. They eat leftover food and bits in the gravel. For algae, look at Amano Shrimp, otos or nerite snails.

Will my fish eat them?
If the fish can fit a shrimp in its mouth, probably. Small peaceful fish are safe; cichlids, puffers, bettas and goldfish usually are not.

Can I feed them to my axolotl?
Yes, many keepers use them as an occasional live treat. Keep them as a treat next to a staple axolotl food, not the whole diet.

Will they breed in my tank?
Females often carry eggs, but the babies are tiny and usually get eaten in a community tank. Raising them takes a separate tank.