Red Rili Shrimp
Neocaridina davidi
Also known as: Rili shrimp, Red Rili, Rili Neocaridina
Quick Facts
- Adult size: 3 cm (1.25 inches)
- Minimum tank size: 19 litres (5 gallons)
- Lifespan: 1–2 years
- Temperament: peaceful
- Swimming level: bottom-and-middle
- Diet: omnivore
- Minimum group size: 10
- Difficulty: beginner
Water Parameters
- Temperature: 18–26°C
- pH: 6.5–7.5
- Hardness (GH): 125–250 ppm (7–14 dGH)
Values above are general hardness (GH). For carbonate hardness (KH), the buffer that keeps pH stable, see the water parameters guide.
Care Summary
A striking patterned morph of Neocaridina davidi, the Red Rili carries solid red over the head and tail with a clear, glassy midsection, a break in the colour that is the whole look. It comes from the same hardy species as the cherry shrimp and is kept exactly the same way: peaceful, easy, and well suited to the moderately hard, slightly alkaline water of most Australian taps, breeding readily in a stable, mature, planted, copper-free tank. The rili pattern is not fully fixed, so a colony throws some plainer and some more transparent young, and holding the look over time means removing the off-type shrimp. As with all Neocaridina, keep one colour per tank so the morphs do not cross to wild brown, and keep copper out of the water entirely.
Tankmates
Like all dwarf shrimp, Red Rilis are tiny and defenceless, so adults are easily eaten and shrimplets picked off by most fish, even species sold as shrimp-safe. For a thriving colony, keep them in a shrimp-only tank or with only very small, gentle fish such as otocinclus and ember tetras, and plant densely with mosses for cover. Being Neocaridina, they want the opposite water to the Caridina bee shrimp: moderately hard and neutral to slightly alkaline, which suits most Australian tap water. Keep one Neocaridina colour per tank, since different colours interbreed and revert to wild brown. Killed by copper, so avoid copper-based medications and fertilisers.
Compatible with
Avoid keeping with
- Betta
- Angelfish
- Guppy Fry Predators
- Large Cichlids
- Loaches
- Gourami
- Kuhli Loach
- Dwarf Chain Loach
- Assassin Snail
- Tiger Barb
- Electric Yellow Cichlid
- Bumblebee Goby
Common Problems
- copper poisoning from medications or fertilisers
- colony collapse from ammonia or nitrite spikes in an immature tank
- drift in the rili pattern without selective culling
- loss of colour if mixed with other Neocaridina morphs, whose offspring revert to wild brown
- predation by fish tankmates
Sources: seriouslyfish.com, shrimpscience.com · Last updated: 2026-10-05