Family: Palaemonidae
Stripe Shrimp — Palaemon paucidens, the 5-8 cm river prawn of Japan, Korea and eastern China, named for the dark stripe along its back. Hardy at 15-26 °C, omnivorous including fry; needs a tight lid — it climbs.
Stripe Shrimp is Palaemon paucidens, the familiar river prawn of East Asia — from Japan and Korea through eastern China — where it creeps through weeds in slow rivers and ponds, picking at whatever it finds. It is a true prawn of the family Palaemonidae, larger and longer-armed than the aquarium shrimp most keepers know: adults reach 5-8 cm with slender claws, semi-transparent grey-brown bodies and the broken dark stripe along the back that gives it its name. In East Asia it is better known as food and bait than as an aquarium animal, but it makes a fascinating native-species display: hardy from 15-26 °C, unfussy about water chemistry, and active by day, constantly working the plants and substrate with its claws. It is an opportunistic omnivore — algae, detritus, dead fish and, yes, live fry — so tankmates must be chosen with care. Keep it in cool-water setups with strong cover; it is an expert climber, so a tight lid is mandatory. A group in a China-native biotope tank, perhaps with Chinese medaka and bitterlings, is a uniquely local display no imported shrimp can match.
Intermediate difficulty. Opportunistic predator — peaceful only with equals; solitary or a pair; territorial perches.
Aim for 15–26 °C. Stable 15–26 °C; tolerates an unheated native tank; 15–26 °C stable range.
Full size is 5–7 cm. Minimum tank: 60 L, with open swimming space along its bottom to middle — patrolling with claws half-raised habits.
Omnivore-scavenger; will catch tiny fish and shrimp. It forages naturally over sand with leaf litter and shelters, so let some food reach the bottom.
Yes, with care. Opportunistic predator — peaceful only with equals — pair it with Fast-moving native fish (medaka, bitterling) — Too quick and large to be caught, Other cool-water native species — Shares the East-Asian biotope theme and skip Small fry and tiny fish — Will be eaten by this opportunistic prawn, Slow long-finned fish — Nipped fins and stress, Tanks without a lid — Escapes within days.
Native to East Asia — Japan, Korea, China, Russia (Amur), where it lives in rivers, lakes and ponds with vegetation and cover. Still to gentle current; Moderate oxygen; tolerates cool water.
It can jump when startled — keep the tank tightly covered, especially at night and during maintenance.
In the aquarium: breeds in freshwater in spring and summer. The female carries a few hundred small greenish eggs under her abdomen; hatchlings are planktonic larvae that drift in the water column and rarely survive in a community tank.. Females carry the eggs and grow broader; males have noticeably longer claws relative to body size..