Can Scuds and Shrimp Live Together?

Can Scuds live with shrimp? It's a question I get almost on a daily basis. There are a ton of hype videos out there about scuds. It's very disappointing when people spread information without first-hand experience or they have misinterpreted observations. Some of the statistics I have heard people say are ridiculous. I have only raised scuds and shrimp together. I received my starting brood stock of scuds and shrimp from the same source. They raised them together as well. Every barrel, tank and vat I have has scuds and shrimp in them. I know it's confusing because there is so much contradicting information on the internet. I can only share my personal experience. I have raised and sold thousands of shrimp and who knows how many scuds. I do not have separate tanks for them.... I'm not saying there isn't a possibility of a large scud eating a baby shrimp. But if they were eating the baby shrimp like they make it out to be in some of these hate videos, I wouldn't have any shrimp at all. To me, scuds are so valuable to have in a system, I wouldn't go without them.
Scuds, also known as amphipods, are small shrimp like crustations that have made their way into practically every aquatic environment there is. From the ocean to freshwater ponds, lakes, streams, caves, you name it! These little detritivores play a major role in the breakdown of dead organic material, especially plant detritus and leaf litter. By consuming this material, the scud frees up the locked away nutrients in the decaying plant which then become more accessible to other organisms in the food web.
Not only do scuds do a great job at eating leftover fish food and hair algae, but like many small aquatic invertebrates they are a highly nutritious live food! Scuds reproduce quickly and can easily be cultured in a variety of separate containers to provide an endless live food source for many small to medium sized fish.
Scuds typically live in the substrate of your aquarium but can regularly be seen swimming about and hanging out on the roots of floating plants, if there is cover or no fish in the system. They will establish a growing population in most fish tanks so long as they have the habitat to do so. An area of coarse gravel, seashells, live plants, leaf litter or other natural cover will make it easier for the scuds to find a safe home among hungry fish. Introducing them to the tank at night will also help them get to safety before they are gobbled up. You can easily make a separate scud tank to grow out the population, so you have a steady supply of live food for your fish. This can be done in a spare tank, bucket, storage tote or plastic trash can.
As mentioned before scuds are detritivores and they’re not too picky on the food they eat. They love decaying plant material, many types of algae, leaf litter, over ripe fruits/veggies, fish food and much more. They typically don’t bother your aquarium plants but if their population grows too large and they run out of food they may start nibbling on tender plants and mosses. This is typically only a problem in tanks without fish. If there are fish in the system, it is extremely unlikely for the scud population to get out of control and become a problem. On the contrary, the scud population will help feed the fish population as they find a balance with each other.
If you want to learn more about scuds, live fish food or would like to purchase a scud or microfauna culture check out our website.
https://www.phillipsfishworks.com
Thanks for watching!