Green Pearl Shrimp (Neocaridina davidi)

Meet the Green Pearl Shrimp, a soft green cherry shrimp

The Green Pearl Shrimp is a green colour line of Neocaridina davidi, the small freshwater shrimp sold in many colours as the cherry shrimp. Rather than a solid, painted green, the shrimp in our photographs has a semi-translucent leaf-green body flecked with tiny pale, pearly dots and finer dark speckles, with clear, lightly speckled legs and long fine antennae. It suits a natural planted tank, where it looks like part of the moss and wood rather than a splash of colour.

Wikipedia's account of the species describes wild Neocaridina davidi, from Taiwan, eastern China, the Korean Peninsula and Vietnam, as a mottled, greenish-brown or brown shrimp. Its colour sits in pigment cells in the flesh and shell, and Wikipedia explains that green shrimp get their colour from a mix of blue-reflecting iridophores and yellow xanthophores. Wikipedia also notes that little has been published on how these colour traits are inherited, which is why every colour line throws some off-colour young.

Sort out the green and pearl names

Because green trade names are used loosely, we describe exactly what the photographs show. Whatever the label, a green N. davidi is cared for like every cherry shrimp.

See what your order contains

One purchase quantity supplies one live Green Pearl Shrimp, unsexed at sale size. The photographs show the colour form; each shrimp differs a little in shade and in how many pale flecks it carries, and newly moved shrimp are often paler until they settle.

Build a group that breeds

• Numbers: OATA recommends at least five shrimp, and Practical Fishkeeping's Neocaridina FAQ at least six, since smaller groups can become shy.
• Sexes: Wikipedia describes females as larger, with wider tails for carrying eggs, and more richly coloured; males are smaller and paler.
• Size: adults reach about 3–4 cm (Wikipedia); OATA gives about 3 cm for cherry-type shrimp.

Check our delivery details for live animals before ordering, and have the tank fully cycled first.

Choose a tank size and a planted layout

Green Pearl Shrimp suit small aquariums, but small is not the same as tiny. OATA's minimum is 10 litres for a group of small shrimp, and the Practical Fishkeeping FAQ says about 15 litres can work if the tank is well planted and filtered. We recommend 20 litres or more, because larger volumes stay stable for longer. Work out your real volume with our tank volume calculator.

Plan the planting zone by zone

A dark background and substrate make a translucent green shrimp stand out far better than pale sand.

Set water values for Green Pearl Shrimp

Like every cherry shrimp, the Green Pearl wants clean, stable, medium-hard water more than any particular number. The two UK sources agree closely; the table sets them out parameter by parameter.

Read the values side by side

Most medium-hard tap water suits Green Pearl Shrimp once it has been treated with a conditioner that removes chlorine or chloramine, as OATA advises. If your water is very soft, the FAQ recommends a calcium supplement so moults form properly. The FAQ also notes that warmer water speeds growth and breeding but shortens life, so aim for the middle of the range rather than the top.

Filter gently and keep a routine

The Practical Fishkeeping FAQ suggests air-driven sponge filters or Hamburg mat filters for shrimp. With a power filter, cover the intake with fine foam or a stocking held with an elastic band, or pack it with filter wool, so young shrimp stay out.

Keep to a simple maintenance table

Our shrimp-keeping guide walks through every step for a first shrimp tank.

Feed a little and let them graze

Watch a Green Pearl for a minute and you will see it picking at every surface. Wikipedia explains that the species feeds on biofilm, algae and detritus, grabbing food with the small claws on its first two pairs of legs, and does not eat vascular plants. OATA suggests algae wafers or shrimp pellets two or three times a week, left in for at least 30 minutes, and warns against overfeeding.

Follow a measured feeding plan

• Two or three times a week: a few of our nano shrimp sticks or a fragment of our green algae wafers.
• Now and then: a slice of blanched courgette, spinach or cucumber, as Practical Fishkeeping's author uses.
• Shrimp-only tanks: the FAQ notes there are no fish leftovers, so target feed rather than rely on scraps.
• Always: lift out what is left the same day, and leave shed shells in place, because Wikipedia notes shrimp eat them to recover nutrients.

Acclimatise and settle the group

Cherry shrimp cope with transport well if they are introduced slowly. OATA's method: switch the lights off, float the sealed bag for 10 minutes, add tank water to the bag gradually over at least 30 minutes, then net the shrimp out and leave the bag water behind. Practical Fishkeeping's introduction offers a slower drip at one to two drops a second for about an hour if your water is very different.

Watch these first-week checkpoints

Recognise moults and health warnings

Shrimp moult often, and juveniles more often than adults, as Wikipedia notes. Practical Fishkeeping's introduction has a reliable rule for nervous new keepers: a moult is never coloured and a dead shrimp is never transparent. In a translucent green line, check closely: a moult is an empty, hollow shell with no green flesh inside.

Turn each sign into an action

OATA describes shrimp as very sensitive to copper, which can kill them at low levels; check every medicine and fertiliser label before use.

Choose between a community tank and a shrimp tank

Green Pearl Shrimp can live with fish, but Practical Fishkeeping's introduction notes that shrimp breed better in a dedicated shrimp tank. OATA's rule is to avoid fish that can fit a shrimp in their mouth and any predatory species. The FAQ rates Otocinclus as completely shrimp-safe, even with newborns, and smaller Corydoras and small plecs as possibly safe.

Screen companions with this table

Check any other fish with our tank mates tool before adding it, and see more invertebrates in shrimps and crustaceans.

Keep the green line separate

Every cherry shrimp colour is one species, and Practical Fishkeeping is clear that the colour forms all crossbreed and that crossed colonies revert to the brownish wild type within a few generations. With a green line that drift can be hard to spot at first, because the wild type is itself greenish-brown.

Plan one colour per tank

• Keep Green Pearl Shrimp away from red, orange, yellow and blue lines such as our Blue Dream Shrimp or Orange Green Shrimp.
• Mixing with Green Jade gives green young of mixed shade; fine if you like a varied green colony.
• Move the brownest young to another tank as they grow, as Practical Fishkeeping suggests for keeping a strain pure.
• Bee and tiger shrimp (Caridina) will not cross with them, says Neale Monks in a Practical Fishkeeping answer, but they prefer much softer water.

Browse every colour in our cherry shrimp range and the Neocaridina category.

Breed Green Pearl Shrimp

A translucent shrimp makes breeding easy to follow. Wikipedia notes that in transparent forms the female's developing ovary shows as a "saddle" on her back when she is ready to mate. Every egg-carrying female has mated, because the eggs are fertilised as they leave her body. The eggs are green or yellow, depending on the colour of the saddle, and darken as they develop.

Follow the breeding timeline

First-time or stressed females sometimes drop their eggs, Wikipedia adds, so keep conditions steady. Never release surplus shrimp outdoors: a peer-reviewed study in Aquatic Invasions found Neocaridina davidi established in a warmed stream system in Germany and suggested it may tolerate much colder conditions. Our cherry shrimp care guide covers colony management, our freshwater shrimp guide compares the main groups, and all freshwater shrimp are listed in one place.

Answer Green Pearl Shrimp buying questions

Is the Green Pearl Shrimp the same as Green Jade?

Both are green lines of Neocaridina davidi and they interbreed. The Green Pearl in our photographs is light and translucent with pale flecks; compare it with the Green Jade photographs, because green trade names overlap.

Is it related to the Blue Pearl or Snowball shrimp?

Only by name. Practical Fishkeeping lists Blue Pearl and Snowball as Neocaridina cf. zhangjiajiensis. Our Green Pearl is sold as Neocaridina davidi and is cared for exactly like any cherry shrimp.

How many should I buy?

Six or more. OATA asks for at least five shrimp and Practical Fishkeeping suggests six, because small groups become shy and a larger group widens the gene pool.

Will Green Pearl Shrimp eat my plants?

No. Wikipedia notes that the species feeds on biofilm, algae and detritus and does not eat vascular plants. It will clean the leaves rather than damage them.

Can I tell males from females?

Yes, once adult. Females are larger, with a wider tail for carrying eggs, and are more richly coloured. In this translucent line you can often see the female's egg saddle behind the head.

Do they need a heater?

Not in a warm room. They tolerate about 18–28°C, but Practical Fishkeeping says they live longest and breed best at 21–26°C, so heat a tank that sits in a cool room.

Can they live in a community tank?

Yes, with small, peaceful fish such as Otocinclus and small Corydoras. Practical Fishkeeping notes shrimp breed better in a dedicated tank, because even small fish take the young.

Why did my shrimp turn pale after arriving?

Colour often fades after a move or under stress and returns as the shrimp settle. A darker substrate and a varied diet help the green show.

Consult the care references

• Wikipedia: Neocaridina davidi — wild colour, pigment cells, size, diet, sexing, moulting, eggs and breeding.
• OATA: How to look after freshwater shrimp and snails — water values, tank size, feeding, maintenance, acclimatisation and copper.
• Practical Fishkeeping: Frequently asked questions on Neocaridina shrimps — breeding temperatures, tank size, filters, tank mates, Blue Pearl and Snowball names, and causes of death.
• Practical Fishkeeping: An introduction to shrimp — water values, crossbreeding, substrate, feeding and moulting.
• Practical Fishkeeping: Will my shrimp hybridise? — hardness for breeding and Neocaridina x Caridina.
• Klotz, W., Miesen, F. W., Hüllen, S. & Herder, F. (2013). Aquatic Invasions 8: 333–339 — cherry shrimp established in a warmed German stream system.