Can Cardinal Shrimp live with Slender Rasbora?
Caution — with care
Why
- Almost no shared temperature: Cardinal Shrimp wants 79–84°F and Slender Rasbora wants 72–79°F, so only 79°F suits both — too fine a margin to actually hold.
- No overlapping pH: Cardinal Shrimp wants 7.5–8.5 but Slender Rasbora wants 5–7.
- Adult Cardinal Shrimp are safe with Slender Rasbora, but it will take newly hatched shrimplets. Give the colony a thick mat of moss and let it reach 30-50 adults before adding fish, and it will still grow — just slower.
- Slender Rasbora will eat Cardinal Shrimp shrimplets. The colony still grows if there is moss or another dense hiding place for the babies.
- Only a narrow water hardness overlap — keep both around 8–8 dGH.
Side-by-side
| Cardinal Shrimp | Slender Rasbora | |
|---|---|---|
| Temperature | 79–84°F | 72–79°F |
| pH | 7.5–8.5 | 5–7 |
| Hardness (GH) | 8–18 dGH | 1–8 dGH |
| Adult size | 0.8" | 1.5" |
| Temperament | Peaceful | Peaceful |
| Min tank | 15 gal | 15 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.
- Target the overlapping water-parameter range and acclimate slowly.
Sort it with: An adjustable heater · GH remineraliser
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Design a tank with Cardinal Shrimp, Slender Rasbora →Everything compatible with Cardinal Shrimp · …with Slender Rasbora