The Amano shrimp (Caridina multidentata, formerly known as C. japonica) is one of the most popular freshwater shrimp for the aquarium. It feeds on Aufwuchs, eg microorganisms and is therefore absolutely harmless to fish and plants. Instead, through its grazing activity, it frees plants and decoration from annoying algae growth or ensures that algae do not appear at all. The species is native in Japan and Taiwan; from Taiwan we receive wild catches of this species. Important note: according to the International Red List (IUCN: https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/198258/147797329) this shrimp species is not endangered.
Up to now we have only received wild collected Amano shrimp from Taiwan, because for hobby breeders the rearing of the larvae of this shrimp, which are living in the sea, is too costly. We are very pleased now be able to offer Amano shrimp from the company “Rheingarnelen” (https://www.rheingarnelen.de), which are completely bred in Germany. This company breeds shrimp with the highest ecological, holistic standards and – this is a decisive plus – with a part of the proceeds tree plantations (mainly) in Africa are supported! (see https://www.rheingarnelen.de/baum-partner/)
By the possibility to buy now also German offspring of the Amano shrimp, you, dear customer, become independent of seasonal supply shortages, as they can occur with wild catches e.g. during the typhoon season. Although we support the “Rhine Shrimp” project 100%, we will continue to work with our long-time trading partners in Taiwan, as loyalty dictates, so that we can offer both captive bred and wild caught shrimp in parallel. In similar cases, for example with Cardinal tetras, this has been working without any problems for many years. In this way we can meet both main demands of the animal trade, i.e. species protection locally through sustainable income from nature (wild catch) and environmental protection through local production and short transport routes (offspring).
For our customers: the animals have code 481494 (md) and 481495 (lg) on our stocklist. Please note that we supply exclusively to wholesalers.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
