Familia: Atyidae
King Kong Shrimp: un morfo selectivo de Caridina cantonensis con fully jet-black opaque body. Requiere agua blanda y ácida a 20-26 °C (pH 5,8-6,8, 3-8 dGH) con nitrato casi nulo; reproduce en agua dulce pero lento, para aficionados dedicados.
King Kong Shrimp is a high-grade selective-bred morph of Caridina cantonensis, the Hong Kong hill-stream atyid whose famous red-and-white 'Crystal Red' form revolutionized the shrimp hobby after Japanese breeder Hisaaki Suzuki stabilized it in 1996 from bee shrimp × tiger shrimp hybrids. The King Kong Shrimp wears a fully jet-black opaque body — one of the darkest shrimp in the hobby, occasionally with tiny white antenna tips or a faint white tail glow. Like every cantonensis-line shrimp it demands soft, acidic, ultra-stable water: 20-26 °C, pH 5.8-6.8 and 3-8 dGH, ideally over active soil that buffers the chemistry, with nitrate kept near zero through gentle filtration and small, regular water changes. It grows to 2-2.5 cm, grazes biofilm and specialized bee-shrimp foods, and breeds in freshwater — but slowly and sensitively: the female carries only 20-30 eggs, larvae are smaller and slower than neocaridinas, and swings in parameters trigger molting failures. This is a connoisseur's shrimp — dazzling in a dark, mossy tank, but happiest with a keeper who measures rather than guesses.
Dificultad: avanzada. Very peaceful.
20–26 °C con estabilidad; pH 5.8–6.8, GH 3–8 dGH.
Tamaño adulto: 2–2.5 cm. Mínimo 30 L.
Biofilm grazer; specialized bee-shrimp foods. Dos pequeñas comidas al día.
Sí, con criterio. Very peaceful — combínalo con Other soft-water Caridina morphs — Same chemistry; interbreed — keep lines separate, Otocinclus catfish — Safe, gentle, same soft water, Taiwan bee / shadow bee lines — Close relatives with identical needs. Aleja Neocaridina (cherry-type) shrimp — Different water chemistry; one side will suffer, Copper-based medications — Lethal to all invertebrates, Large or boisterous fish — Stress and predation; shrimp need calm.
Originario de Selective-bred form of the Hong Kong hill-stream Caridina; vive en soft, acidic, ultra-stable aquariums. Gentle current; moderate oxygen.
Breeds in freshwater but slowly and sensitively. After mating the female carries 20-30 eggs for about four weeks; hatchlings are tiny and appreciate powdered food and mature biofilm. Stable parameters matter more than any single number — swings cause failed molts.. Females are deeper-bodied with a curved, rounded underbelly and a visible saddle; males are slim, smaller and less intensely colored..