''Caridina gracilirostris'' is a species of brackishwater

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...

belong to genus ''

Caridina ''Caridina'' is a genus of freshwater atyid shrimp. They are widely found in tropical or subtropical water in Asia, Oceania and Africa. They are filter-feeders and omnivorous scavengers. They range from 0.9–9.8 mm ('' C. cantonensis'') t ...

'' in the family

Atyidae Atyidae is a family of shrimp, present in all tropical and most temperate waters of the world. Adults of this family are almost always confined to fresh water. This is the only family in the superfamily Atyoidea. Genera and species The follow ...

. It has a wide native range extending from

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

through

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

.De Grave, S., Wowor, D. & Klotz, W. 2013
''Caridina gracilirostris''.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013. Downloaded on 14 June 2016. It is an algae-eating species that lives in

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evoluti ...

s and

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

es. Its common names include red front shrimp, red rhinoceros shrimp, red nosed phantom shrimp, and needlenose caridina, red nosed shrimp.

Description

''Caridina gracilirostris'' has a nearly transparent body, and with an elongated red rostrum on its head. This red rostrum is the basis for many of the common names given to it, like the rhino shrimp and the mosquito shrimp. On the rostrum, there are clusters small and tight spikes on the ventral side of the rostrum, and the dorsal side is covered with larger and more dispersed spikes. If the shrimp's rostrum is broken off, it will regenerate. Males have red lines running laterally down the body, while females are less colorful and more transparent. Both genders have a distinct hump on their

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

. An adult can reach .

Behavior

''Caridina gracilirostris'' is peaceful and coexists with most other similarly sized shrimps. The swimming of the shrimp has been described as "entertaining".

Reproduction

It is difficult to breed, because it will only mate in

brackish water Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estua ...

. It will grow to . It prefers water temperature from and a pH 6.5 to 7.5. Females of ''Caridina gracilirostris'' often have hundreds of green eggs under their bodies.Females of Caridina gracilirostris bearing eggs, reproduction.
/ref> The larvae requires brackish water to grow.

In captivity

These shrimp are favorites in

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

s and often kept as a pet in

freshwater aquarium A freshwater aquarium is a receptacle that holds one or more freshwater aquatic organisms for decorative, pet-keeping, or research purposes. Modern aquariums are most often made from transparent glass or acrylic glass. Typical inhabitants include ...

s due to * Their unique red

rostrum Rostrum may refer to: * Any kind of a platform for a speaker: **dais **pulpit * Rostrum (anatomy), a beak, or anatomical structure resembling a beak, as in the mouthparts of many sucking insects * Rostrum (ship), a form of bow on naval ships * Ros ...

, which gives it an unusual appearance. * They interact well with other shrimp of similar size and temperament. * They are

algae eater Algae eater or algivore is a common name for any bottom-dwelling or filter-feeding aquatic animal species that specialize in feeding on algae and phytoplanktons. Algae eaters are important for the fishkeeping hobby and many are commonly kept by ...

s, which many aquarium owners find beneficial. They prefer brackish water conditions but will do fine in clear freshwater aquariums if provided with enough food and vegetation.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3932817 Atyidae Fishkeeping Freshwater crustaceans of Africa Crustaceans described in 1892 Taxa named by Johannes Govertus de Man Freshwater crustaceans of Asia