Can Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish Live Together?

If you have an aquarium, you’re probably keen to keep it filled with interesting fish species. Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish are two popular considerations for aquariums but you might worry about keeping them together due to the angelfish’s large size.

Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish can live together, but this is very risky. Angelfish are large and aggressive, and enjoy snacking on the dwarf shrimp varieties, including Crystal Red Shrimp. You must, therefore, observe certain precautions if you want to keep them together.

Read further to discover why it’s risky keeping Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish in the same tank. I’ll also explain some ways to keep your Crystal Red Shrimp safe, and what fish species can live with them safely.

Can Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish Live Together?

Why Is It Risky for Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish To Live Together?

Angelfish are large and hostile, and will happily feed on tiny water organisms, including the small crystal red shrimp. These aggressive fish are notorious for feeding on small organisms that can fit in their jaws. They can also attack bigger fish that are larger than their mouths, causing significant damage.

Angelfish eat Crystal Red Shrimp due to the following reasons:

They are omnivorous. Angelfish feed on both plants and biological matter. Hence, they consume plants, shrimp, small fish, insects, crustaceans, and other tiny organisms found in their environment.
They are larger than shrimp. Crystal Red Shrimp are tiny compared to Angelfish, and can fit into an angelfish’s large mouth, making them easy prey.
Crystal red shrimp enjoy staying at the bottom of the aquarium. Crystal Red Shrimp prefer the bottom of the aquarium, hiding in small plants, crevices, and mosses. On the other hand, Angelfish are mid-water or surface water swimmers, and they hunt downwards.

How To Stop Angelfish From Eating Your Crystal Red Shrimp

You must take precautions if you want to keep Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish together. Here’s how you can prevent your Angelfish from eating your Crystal Red Shrimp:

Introduce the Crystal Red Shrimp Before the Angelfish

Angelfish tend to be less aggressive and gentler in unfamiliar territories. Therefore, introducing Angelfish in a shrimp tank will increase your shrimps’ chances of survival.

On the flip side, if you introduce your Crystal Red Shrimp after Angelfish, they will be easy prey and may not survive.

Feed the Angelfish Adequately

An effective way to prevent your Angelfish from preying on the Crystal Red Shrimp is to feed them enough. This will make them less likely to look around for food. Suitable food for Angelfish includes:

Flakes
Pellets
Granules
Vegetables

Provide Enough Hiding Places for the Crystal Red Shrimp

Having a large enough aquarium for your fish can help keep both species away from each other. In addition, the aquarium should contain plenty of hiding spots for the Crystal Red Shrimp, including:

Decorative plants
Moss
Rocks with crevices

Other Ways To Take Care of Your Crystal Red Shrimp

Other than protecting them from the predatory Angelfish, there are other things you can do to take good care of your Crystal Red Shrimp.

Crystal Red Shrimp have a short lifespan (18 to 24 months), and they require a lot of care to reach the two-year mark.

Although their small size makes Crystal Red Shrimp naturally vulnerable to larger fish, their vulnerability increases further after molting when their new exoskeleton is exposed. This makes them weak and easy prey to larger fish.

Right after molting, Crystal Red Shrimp will spend most of their time hiding to protect themselves, and it’s not a good idea to change the conditions in the tank or move them to another one at this time.

Keeping the aquarium conditions similar to the Crystal Red Shrimp’s natural habitat also helps them to live a long and happy life. These include:

Keeping the water warm (ideally between 71 to 77 °F/22 to 25 °C)
Keeping the tank slightly acidic (5.8 – 7.4 pH)
Providing plenty of oxygen by introducing aquatic plants
Reducing pollutants

What Fish Species Can Live With Crystal Red Shrimp?

Most small and peaceful fish species are ideal Crystal Red Shrimp tank mates. Some options you can try include Zebrafish, Neon Tetra, and Otocinclus. Other less aggressive shrimp species can also happily live with Crystal Red Shrimp.

You can also mix your Crystal Red Shrimp with other harmless invertebrates like snails. Moreover, male and female Crystal Red Shrimp don’t attack each other, and the male-to-female ratio in your aquarium shouldn’t worry you.

Final Thoughts

Keeping Crystal Red Shrimp and Angelfish together is pretty risky. However, the two can be tank mates only if you take some precautionary measures, such as:

Introducing the Angelfish to the tank after the Crystal Red Shrimp
Feeding your Angelfish adequately
Providing enough hiding places for the Crystal Red Shrimp