Can Cherry Barb live with Crystal Red Shrimp?
Caution — with care
Why
- Cherry Barb is not on the verified shrimp-safe list, so we will not recommend it over a breeding Crystal Red Shrimp colony. It may well be fine — it simply has not been confirmed by a source, and an unverified guess is not worth the colony.
- Cherry Barb is roughly twice the length of Crystal Red Shrimp. Adults are usually left alone in a well-planted tank, but the odd one gets taken.
- Cherry Barb will eat Crystal Red Shrimp shrimplets. The colony still grows if there is moss or another dense hiding place for the babies.
Sweet spot: both do well at 73–76°F and pH 6–6.8 — aim there.
Side-by-side
| Cherry Barb | Crystal Red Shrimp | |
|---|---|---|
| Temperature | 73–81°F | 68–76°F |
| pH | 6–7.5 | 5.8–6.8 |
| Hardness (GH) | 2–15 dGH | 3–6 dGH |
| Adult size | 2" | 1" |
| Temperament | Peaceful | Peaceful |
| Min tank | 15 gal | 5 gal |
Together, plan on at least 15 gallons.
How to make it work
- Keep a large, established shrimp colony in a heavily planted tank with moss and cover so enough survive to breed.
Sort it with: A larger tank · GH remineraliser
Design the whole tank, not just the stocking
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Design a tank with Cherry Barb, Crystal Red Shrimp →Everything compatible with Cherry Barb · …with Crystal Red Shrimp