Hello and welcome to Arizona Inverts a site dedicated to Freshwater Dwarf Shrimp for your home aquarium as well as other interesting Freshwater Invertebrates like Crayfish, Snails and Crabs. I have been keeping, raising, and breeding Freshwater Dwarf Shrimp for just over 2 years as I write this and am now successfully keeping 16 different species of these fascinating little creatures. I got started as many do by happening upon Freshwater Shrimp at the local pet store while shopping for fish for the family's 29 gallon community tank. The pet store had what they were calling "Ghost Shrimp" which I learned later was a generic name used by sellers for any clear bodied shrimp and many times will be the American Glass Shrimp (Palaemonetes paludosus). My Daughter and I thought they were really cool so we bought some, little did I know what this one innocent purchase would lead to....

Soon after getting our new Ghost Shrimp we did a search online for more information about how to care for and perhaps breed our new shrimp and that is when my eyes were opened to the amazing and colorful world of Freshwater Dwarf Shrimp. Not only did I find our Ghost Shrimp, but a host of other species available in a wide range of colors, sizes and keeping conditions. Many Dwarf Shrimp I also learned would breed in fresh water as long as a clean safe environment is provided with proper water parameters. OK I admit it can get a little tricky with some species, but keeping and breeding these animals is very educational as well as just plain fun and hopefully by sharing my experiences I can help you along in this hobby as well.

Shrimp keeping is not exactly new to the aquarium circle and shrimp have been kept as pets for many years in Japan, Asia, and Europe with many of the colorful species we keep today having been selectively bred in these countries. Now more recently with the exposure the internet offers these little creatures have become very popular with several websites as well as forums dedicated to the sharing of information to better help you understand the dos and don't's for keeping Dwarf Shrimp. All photos you will see at this site are my own unless otherwise stated and are actual shrimp from my tanks. Selective breeding of these little crustations is also still ongoing throughout the world with new color morphs of established species showing up from time to time as well as new species being discovered which really creates excitement in the hobby.

There are plenty of sites out there in cyber space listing the many different species of shrimp, but here and at my forum I will try to gather and present only reliable information gaind through my experiences as well as the many members of the Arizona Inverts Forums that submit articles and other helpful information.

I am not what you would call a "Shrimp Store", but from time to time as my population grows I will offer tank raised shrimp for sale. My main interest is establishing breeding colonies of the various shrimp I keep to share with others and lessen abuse of wild species and habitat. As this hobby catches on these habitats are quickly being devastated by collecting, but more so by their habitat being destroyed as man advances into areas the inhabit for various reasons. Establishing breeding colonies by those keeping these shrimp is very important and one day some of the shrimp kept in the hobby may be the only left of their species as habitats are destroyed.

Simply click on the species you are interested in on the left of this page and you will be taken to a description page and info on how to care that particular species with water parameters etc. clearly listed to help you set up your new aquarium. Again some pages are still being built so please check back often to see what new information is available. I am also updating each species description as I gain more knowledge by raising and breeding them myself and I will also share tricks and tips I learn as I gain experience with each species I am keeping.

Along with shrimp I will be adding information about snails and other invertebrates either being kept in the aquarium intentionally or those that show up seemingly on their own. There are a host of small "critters" that one sees in a shrimp only tank that you may never have seen before due to your fish keeping them eaten or hiding in the substrate.

This site is still fairly new just having gone on line in late June 2008 and I will be doing a lot of work yet so bear with me as I continue to update and add more of my new experiences raising and breeding what I already keep as well as new species I acquire from time to time.

If you want live updates and info about shrimp that become available for sale as I have extras please go to my subscription form on this page and fill out the form to receive website updates by eMail. I will not use this for spam! You will however get updates and info on special sales I have not offered elsewhere, only to subscribers! There are already some new shrimp owners very happy they took a few minutes to fill out the form and are now first to know about new shrimp I have to share. I also have a very active Shrimp forum where you can ask questions and get fast info about your Freshwater Shrimp and their care called the AZ INVERTS FORUM This forum is already well respected in the invert keeping world and filled with good information and knowledgeable folks wanting to help and talk shrimp.

Bill Southern

Please be aware that all photo's and articles are are the sole property of Arizona Inverts and or the creator. To reproduce or use any photo's or articles from this site requires permission.