sea horse / harelquin shrimp question

[djbacon]

Any reason these 2 could not co habitate in the same tank?

Thinking of what to do with my 14g when I upgrade. Love sea horses and the harlequins - would they make acceptable tank mates?

 

[SeahorseBT]

I dont know, but thats awesome that you are getting seahorses! They are my favorite fish.

 

[panmanmatt]

First off a 14 gallon is too small for seahorses. Minimum tank size for a medium sized seahorse is 29 gallons. Medium sized species would be H. barbouri, H. erectus, H. reidi, H. comes and H. kuda.

Second, seahorses eat shrimp so IMO adding harlequins is possibly adding a very expensive snack for the horses.

 

[GSELLERS]

I would say no for only one reason....you know harlequins are very messy eaters and unless you are a clean freak then i wouldnt jeopradise the water quality of the seahorses. But if you are a clean OCD type person then go for it, they'll be fine

 

[panmanmatt]

I would say no for only one reason....you know harlequins are very messy eaters and unless you are a clean freak then i wouldnt jeopradise the water quality of the seahorses. But if you are a clean OCD type person then go for it, they'll be fine

I have personally seen seahorse take out cleaner shrimp, peppermint shrimp, and 3/4-1" ghost shrimp. They don't really care how large the shrimp is, they will snick at it until it is i small enough pieces for them to eat. And these were captive bred seahorses that had never eaten or been exposed to live shrimp before. It is too much of a risk in my eyes, especially with something as gorgeous as harlequin shrimp.

I do keep both of these animals but not in the same tank.

 

[djbacon]

thanks for the feedback guys - my LFS has a couple in the 14g so I thought they would be fine. They seem to hang onto rocks rather than swim alot so it seemed like it could work. They also seemed real docile so I didnt think there would be any risk to the shrimp who mostly also sit around eating starfish all day.

 

[GSELLERS]

harlequin shrimp are nocturnal and will come out at night...they swill stay in the rocks during the day, unless.....they are hungry

 

[panmanmatt]

They hang onto the rock probably because there isn't enough room for them to move around. Seahorses will use all the room you will give them.

Not to mention that most of the all in one type tanks tend to run extremely hot for seahorses. You want a maximum temperature of 74 degrees. Anything higher and it will cause problems.

It may work for a month or so IF you get small juveniles but even they will out grow that tank in very short order.

 

[panmanmatt]

harlequin shrimp are nocturnal and will come out at night...they swill stay in the rocks during the day, unless.....they are hungry

Yes but seahorses are a natural predator of shrimp. They will do anything they possibly can to get at a meal, no matter how often you feed them. If they see even the slightest glimpse of a shrimp they will do what ever it takes to get to it. For a 50 cent ghost shrimp that is no big deal but not worth the risk with a $40-50 harlequin shrimp.

I am not saying it can't be done I am just saying that it is a huge risk that I wouldn't take myself.

 

[GSELLERS]

i dont blame you...never dealt with them but by the uniqueness of the harlequin shrimp it wouldnt strike the seahorse as a shrimp. I hope im wrong but we'll never know the resuly til it has been attempted. I have several harlequins now and have introduced them to over 100 tankmates as well as a orange seahorse for a week and saw no ill results, but if you dont want ot take the risk, i dont balme you.....good luck