Caridina, Snowflake line

Black Snowflake Fishbone

A black shrimp under thick white markings, with snow-like speckling across its belly and a clean fishbone ladder down its back. Bred and graded in our Sunshine breeding room.

Sold as unsexed juveniles, 0.6 to 1.2 cm.

On this page
Choose grade

1. Choose your grade

A grade describes looks. Every grade is just as healthy.

The lightest spotting in the batch. Same genetics at the lowest price, and good shrimp to grow out.

  • BellyA sparse snow skirt.
  • HeadAround 30 to 50% spotted.
  • PatternA faint, broken fishbone.
  • Shell and sheenThinner porcelain.

Medium spotting, with some gaps.

  • BellyVisible snow across the skirt, with gaps.
  • HeadAround 50 to 70% spotted.
  • PatternA visible but broken fishbone.
  • Shell and sheenThicker porcelain than Entry, still building.

Much heavier, cleaner spotting than Mid.

  • BellyHeavy snow across the skirt.
  • HeadAround 50 to 70%, densely spotted.
  • PatternA cleaner fishbone down the back.
  • Shell and sheenThicker, shinier porcelain, shifting toward green or blue as it grows.

The best few Snowflakes in each batch.

  • BellyThe densest, most complete snow.
  • Head70% and above.
  • PatternThe cleanest fishbone.
  • Shell and sheenThe thickest, shiniest porcelain, shifting toward green or blue as it grows.

A grade describes looks, genetics, lineage and rarity. Every grade is just as hardy, and they all come from the same stock.

Compare the grading traits

2. Choose how many

CollectorIn stock

$180.00 AUD per shrimp

Shrimp total$180.00

1 shrimp · Collector grade

You get a clip of your shrimp before dispatch day.

ShipsMon or Tue ArrivesBy express post Covered96 h in transit

Dispatched on Mondays and Tuesdays.

$25 express, free over $250 Delivery details

We only ship live animals toACTNSWQLDSAVIC

We can't ship live animals toWANTTAS

Message us for further enquiries

Buying several, or after a particular grade?

A line worth getting to know

About the Snowflake line & photographs

The Black Snowflake Fishbone is a Caridina classic, with deep black tissue under thick white porcelain, the heavy, snow-like belly spotting that names the line and a fishbone dorsal down the back. What sets this colony apart is what the porcelain does with age. The black base stays black, and as the shrimp mature the white coverage takes on a luminous metallic finish, most often shifting toward green or blue....

Photographs show reference adults. As the supplied juveniles mature, shell density, head coverage and colour keep developing with each moult.

Explore colour, lineage & development

The details, when you need them

Appearance & grading

What this line looks like, how it develops, and how the grades differ.

Colour, lineage & development

Black Snowflake Fishbone Shrimp (Caridina) | Mid, High & Collector

A black shrimp under thick white markings, with snow-like speckling across its belly and a clean fishbone ladder down its back.

It arrives young, with the pattern roughed in and only a hint of the metallic sheen. Both sharpen and intensify as they mature, green on some and blue on others.

Three price levels, set by how dense the snow speckling is. It is already visible on arrival, and the dearer levels have more of it.

Caridina wants soft, slightly acidic water and a tank that has been running a while. It is not a first shrimp. Numbers in the FAQ.

The Black Snowflake Fishbone is a Caridina classic, with deep black tissue under thick white porcelain, the heavy, snow-like belly spotting that names the line and a fishbone dorsal down the back. What sets this colony apart is what the porcelain does with age. The black base stays black, and as the shrimp mature the white coverage takes on a luminous metallic finish, most often shifting toward green or blue.

About the photo. The shrimp pictured is High or Collector grade. We ship unsexed juveniles, so the main photo shows the target. The fishbone dorsal, the belly spotting and the metallic sheen all sharpen with maturity, and juveniles arrive with the pattern roughed in and the colour still coming.

Four traits define a true Snowflake Fishbone, and they sharpen as the shrimp matures.

  • Belly spotting: The hallmark of the line. The spotting is distinct, heavy and snow-like across the lower abdomen, and held separate from the dorsal pattern.
  • Fishbone dorsal: A clean ladder pattern down the back, finer and more decorative than the thick stripe on a Boa.
  • Metallic porcelain: Dense, opaque white coverage that shifts toward a glowing green or blue metallic as the shrimp grows. A thick shell looks shiny and solid, and a thin one looks dull, with see-through patches.
  • Spider legs: The body pattern carried onto the legs, with black patches and white. Leg colour follows shell thickness, so the higher grades show it first.

We grade on the traits that vary within a batch. A Snowflake Fishbone is graded first on its spotting, the snow-like coverage on the belly “skirt” and the head, and that density is readable at the size we ship. Belly spots and skirting are the main separator. Head spots are a looser guide than on a Boa (Mid and High around 50 to 70% of the head, Collector 70% and above). A cleaner fishbone and thicker, shinier white come with the higher grades.

Mid carries a medium spotting density, with visible snow across the belly skirt and head but with gaps. High carries much heavier spotting across both belly and head, with a cleaner fishbone dorsal behind it. Collector is the best of the batch: the densest snow coverage across belly and head with the cleanest dorsal. There are only ever a few. The metallic shift across the porcelain still builds with maturity on every grade.

Grading is done by eye at shipping size, on what the shrimp shows then. Shrimp rarely move a grade as they grow, but water matters: poor water costs colour and shell.

The photo shows a high-grade or best-looking adult from the batch. We ship unsexed juveniles, 0.6 to 1.2 cm, too young to tell male from female. Shrimp arrive pale from the trip and colour back up within days. For detailed water parameters, tank setup guides and our 100% Live Arrival Guarantee, see our FAQ.

How the 4 grades compare
EntryMidHighCollector
Price$20.00 each$40.00 each$80.00 each$180.00 each
Stock40 in stock10 in stock20 in stock10 in stock
At a glanceThe lightest spotting in the batch. Same genetics at the lowest price, and good shrimp to grow out.Medium spotting, with some gaps.Much heavier, cleaner spotting than Mid.The best few Snowflakes in each batch.
BellyA sparse snow skirt.Visible snow across the skirt, with gaps.Heavy snow across the skirt.The densest, most complete snow.
HeadAround 30 to 50% spotted.Around 50 to 70% spotted.Around 50 to 70%, densely spotted.70% and above.
PatternA faint, broken fishbone.A visible but broken fishbone.A cleaner fishbone down the back.The cleanest fishbone.
Shell and sheenThinner porcelain.Thicker porcelain than Entry, still building.Thicker, shinier porcelain, shifting toward green or blue as it grows.The thickest, shiniest porcelain, shifting toward green or blue as it grows.

A grade describes looks, genetics, lineage and rarity. Every grade is just as hardy, and they all come from the same stock. We grade by eye at shipping size, and shrimp rarely change grade as they grow.

See our grading standard, or compare the grades of other lines

Water & care

The water they need, how to settle them in, and the first few days.

Water, care & arrival acclimation
pH
5.5–6.5
GH
4–6 dGH
TDS
100–150 ppm
KH
0–1 dKH
Temperature
20–24 °C
Tank
30+ L

Buffered (RO water).

Drip-acclimate slowly, adding tank water a little at a time. Float the sealed bag for 10 to 15 minutes so the temperature matches, then drip tank water over an hour or two. Care & acclimation guide

Photograph and video any affected animals promptly and contact us within 8 hours of delivery. Arrival cover does not extend to deaths after acclimation begins.

First days & common questions
Before you buy 8 quick answers
What actually turns up in the bag?

Unsexed juveniles, 0.6 to 1.2 cm, about the size of a grain of rice and too young to tell male from female. Shipping at this size gives the best survival and the easiest adaptation to your water, and you always end up with both sexes. Adults are available on request at roughly twice the juvenile price.

Will they look like the photo?

Not on day one. The photo shows a high-grade or best-looking adult from the batch. The shrimp you receive is young and still filling in. The colour packs in with each moult, the white thickens, and on the patterned lines the tone the white takes on (blue, green, orange or pink) arrives with maturity. The body's base colour, red or black, never changes. Every shrimp is an individual, so no two carry exactly the same pattern.

What does the grade mean?

The grade describes appearance and says nothing about health. An Entry shrimp is as healthy as a Collector one and comes from the same parents. It shows less of the pattern and has more flaws in it. What we grade on differs by line, and the Grading panel above spells it out for this one. We grade by eye at shipping size, and shrimp rarely move a grade as they grow. If you know the hobby's letters, Entry is roughly S, Mid SS, High SSS.

Can I keep them in my water?

If your tank matches the water card above, yes. Caridina want soft, slightly acidic water, which in practice means purified (RO) water with a shrimp mineral added back, over an active buffering soil that holds the pH down, in a tank that has been running a while. A near-zero KH is normal for this water. They are a step up from a first shrimp and very stable once the tank is right.

Full care & acclimation guide
They arrived pale and barely moving. Is that normal?

Yes. Every shrimp arrives pale from the trip and colours back up within hours to a few days. Float the bag, then drip your tank water into it slowly over an hour or two before releasing them, so the water changes gradually. If any animal is dead on arrival, photograph it in the unopened bag and contact us within 8 hours of delivery. The Live Arrival Guarantee covers it.

Live arrival guarantee and DOA policy
How do they travel?

Express post only, bagged with oxygen and insulated, dispatched on Mondays and Tuesdays so no animal sits in a depot over a weekend. We deliver to your door, a PO box or a parcel locker; collect it the day it arrives. Parcels left by safe-drop are not covered. We cannot send live animals to Western Australia, the Northern Territory or Tasmania.

Shipping policy
How many should I start with?

Ten is the sensible minimum for a colony that breeds. With unsexed juveniles it all but guarantees both sexes, and a group settles faster than a pair. Our volume prices are built around that. Mixing colours of the same genus in one tank looks fine, but they will interbreed and the offspring drift back toward wild colouring. Keep one colour per tank if you want to keep the line.

What do I do in the first 24 hours?

Lights off, bag closed. Float the sealed bag in the tank for 10 to 15 minutes so the temperature matches. Darkness lowers stress.

Drip, don’t pour. Drip tank water into the bag slowly. A sudden change in TDS, GH or pH is the number-one cause of losses in the first week.

Something wrong? Photograph and video the unopened bag and email us within 8 hours. The Live Arrival Guarantee covers a replacement or a refund of the livestock value.

Full care & acclimation guide

Delivery & ordering

Where we send, how it travels, arrival cover and pre-orders.

Delivery, restrictions & live-arrival cover

$25.00 Express delivery. Free delivery on orders $250.00+ (excludes soil, stone and wood).

We deliver to your door, a PO box or a parcel locker. Collect it the day it arrives, because any claim needs to reach us within 8 hours of the delivery scan. Parcels left by safe-drop are not covered.

Packed insulated, with a heat or cold pack when the weather needs it. We dispatch on Mondays and Tuesdays. Express delivery usually takes 1 to 3 business days, though Australia Post does not guarantee it. Dry goods ordered with livestock travel in the same box, for the one Express post price.

If any animals arrive dead, send your order number, clear photos and a short video within 8 hours of the delivery scan, ideally of the sealed bag. You choose a refund, free replacements with your next order, or store credit.

  • Under 96 hours (4 days) in transit: full cover
  • More than 96 hours: outside the guarantee, but contact us and we will work something out

Full DOA & missing items policy

Pre-order costs, timing & cancellation

A pre-order is a one-off purchase, not a subscription. You can pay a deposit or pay in full. If you pay a deposit, we email you before charging the balance to the same card ahead of your shipping date.

Tell us when your tank is ready (reply to your order email or email support@shrimpzone.com.au) and we dispatch on the next Monday. The weather has to be safe to travel, and we tell you if it delays it.

Cancel any time before dispatch for a full refund of your deposit. To cancel, email support@shrimpzone.com.au with your order number.

Full policies: Shipping Arrival & missing items Refunds

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