Magenta Dottyback ATE Cleaner Shrimp?

[fkshiu]

Dottybacks have been known to eat small shrimp so it's not surprising if he's the culprit.

[digital-audiophile]

It's possible. Allthough in my experience I find that shrimp are very sensitive creatures to acclimate. When I do a long slow drip they seem to have a better chance of survival as opposed to when I did a quick acclimation and into the tank.

[Pier Pressure]

Well both shrimp had the same acclimation and one is still alive and well so it could not be that. Not to mention the suspicious weight gain the dotty put on overnight. She darn near doubled in size! So I think we have a culprit - my shrimp-eating magenta dottyback. I think the other one is too big but I guess I will have to wait and see. Not much else I can do. That was an expensive little meal she had!

[untamed]

IME, shrimp often get eaten when first added to the tank...frequently not completing the drop from surface to sand! However, if they survive that experience, they are often fine after that.

Your 2nd one may not get eaten now that it has settled in a bit.

[Delphinus]

+1 on the slow acclimation. A 2 point difference in salinity (ie. 1.023 and 1.025) is enough to kill them instantly if not drip acclimated over at least a half hour. Shrimps with their thin exoskeletons are incredibly sensitive to osmotic pressures.

There is the possibility that the shrimp is hiding. I think they know they taste good. It's not unusual at all for them hide incredibly well at first. Of course, it's possible he was someone's lunch too. Hard to say. You never know he might show up in the coming weeks. Or ... not.

[Pier Pressure]

I am pretty positive the dottyback ate it at this point. That would explain her weight gain. No way it was acclimation otherwise both would have died and not just one of them. They came out of the same tank at Golds and were acclimatized in the same bucket, then scooped up into the same net and released into the tank.