Cardinal Shrimp
Caridina dennerli
The Cardinal Shrimp (Caridina dennerli) is a peaceful shrimp that's best left to experienced keepers. Give it a tank of at least 30 litres (8 US gallons), water held at 81-86°F, and a pH of 7.5-8.5. Always keep a group of at least 6 - they feel safest in numbers.
Captive lifespan reflects typical experience in a home aquarium, not maximum recorded age; genetics, sourcing, and care vary.
Natural distribution
Southeast Asia
- East & Southeast Asia
Regional colours match the stocking calculator's origin map.
Cardinal Shrimp Tank Setup
A tank of 30 litres (8 US gallons) or more with rock-steady water suits them best - keep it at 81-86°F with a pH around 7.5-8.5. Stable conditions matter most, as shrimp struggle to moult and breed when parameters bounce around. Always keep a group of at least 6 of their own kind - kept alone or in pairs they tend to turn shy, nippy, or wash out in colour.
What Do Cardinal Shrimp Eat?
They're grazers, so base their diet on algae, blanched vegetables, and spirulina-based foods rather than high-protein flake. A spotless tank with nothing to graze on leaves them thin and underfed.
Cardinal Shrimp Tank Mates
Sulawesi endemic; requires very specific water parameters (hard, alkaline, warm). No margin for error. Species-only tank strongly recommended. The Cardinal Shrimp is peaceful, which is the first thing to weigh up when you choose tank mates. It's a shoaling fish, so settle a group of 6 or more of its own kind before adding anything else - a stressed, lonely fish is far more likely to nip or hide. Before you buy, run your full stocking list through our stocking calculator. It weighs temperament, adult size, and water needs together, which a single species page can't do on its own.
Are Cardinal Shrimp Good for Beginners?
Not a sensible first purchase. Get the tank cycled, keep easier fish stable for a year, then revisit if you still want the extra work this species demands.
Cardinal Shrimp - frequently asked questions
What size tank do Cardinal Shrimp need?
Cardinal Shrimp need a tank of at least 30 litres (8 US gallons). A bigger tank is always easier to keep stable, and gives them more room to settle in and behave naturally.
How many Cardinal Shrimp should I keep together?
Keep a group of at least 6. Cardinal Shrimp are a shoaling species and become stressed, lose their colour, or hide when kept singly or in pairs.
What water parameters do Cardinal Shrimp need?
Keep them at 81-86°F with a pH of 7.5-8.5, steady rather than chased to an exact figure. In a cycled tank, ammonia and nitrite should both read 0 ppm, with nitrate kept low through regular water changes.
What do Cardinal Shrimp eat?
Cardinal Shrimp are grazers. Base their diet on algae, blanched vegetables, and spirulina-based foods rather than high-protein flake. Feed small amounts once or twice a day, and remove anything they don't eat.
Are Cardinal Shrimp good for beginners?
Cardinal Shrimp are not a beginner species. They need precise conditions and consistent maintenance, so build experience with hardier fish before keeping them.
Common mistakes with Cardinal Shrimp
- Buying fewer than 6 - Cardinal Shrimps need a proper school to feel secure; isolated individuals hide, fail to colour up, or become stressed.
- Cool tap water - this species needs 81-86°F; cold acclimation suppresses immune response and often triggers disease outbreaks.
Building a community? Run the full list through the stocking calculator before you add anything else.
Great tank mates
Chosen from temperament, overlapping temperature/pH bands, plausible minimum tank footprints, and size versus yours in App-aquatic data. Hobby nuance always wins - verify stocking and temperament before purchasing.
Fish to avoid mixing with Cardinal Shrimp
These well-known species are commonly sold alongside this fish but are not recommended tank mates - verify before purchasing.
- Flowerhorn CichlidPredator - Flowerhorn Cichlid will eat or injure smaller tank mates
- Common GoldfishGoldfish - prefer cooler, harder water that tropical fish cannot tolerate
