Six Banded

Six evenly spaced bands across the body — one of the most balanced patterns in the Malili lake shrimp fauna.

Malili lake systemSix even bandsCaridina holthuisi

A great strain isn't one beautiful shrimp — it's the whole colony looking the same.

— Jack Shrimp Farm

ORIGIN

An ancient cradle

DISTRIBUTION MAP

An ancient cradle

Sulawesi shrimp are endemic to a handful of ancient tectonic lakes — 1–4 million years old, among the oldest freshwater lakes on earth.

Lake MatanoHome of Cardinal & White Sock (C. dennerli)

Lake PosoHome of White Orchid, Blue Legs (C. “Poso”)

Towuti · MahalonaThe Malili lake system, linked by rivers

IDENTIFICATION

How to identify a Six Banded

6️⃣Six cross bandsSix light bands spaced along the body — good specimens show them crisp and evenly spaced.

🎯Symmetry is the gradeHow even the banding sits is the main selection criterion for this line.

🏞️Poso bloodlineA Lake Poso endemic that evolved separately from the Malili species.

🪨Limestone scapeUse limestone or coral so the buffer stays as steady as it is in the wild.

WATER

Ideal keeping conditions

27–30°

Temp C

7.8–8.5

150–250

TDS ppm

6–8

3–6

The golden rule: stability beats perfect numbers. A swinging parameter does more damage than one that sits slightly off but never moves. Use a Sula Sand substrate and a dedicated bacteria culture to keep the buffer rock-solid.

STRAIN DATA

Six Banded profile

Strain data

Strain code: SB-01
Selected grade: SS+
Home lake: Matano (Malili system)
Scientific name: Caridina holthuisi
Adult size: 2–2.5cm

Wild species — natural profile

Six Banded (Caridina holthuisi) is a wild species of the Malili lake system — not Lake Poso. It occurs across Matano, Mahalona and Towuti plus the connecting rivers; hobby stock is conventionally Matano.

Home lake: The Malili system — Matano, Mahalona and Towuti plus the Petea and Ponsoa rivers. Trade stock usually originates from Lake Matano.

Natural habitat: Rocky and gravel shorelines across the Malili lakes, in very clear alkaline water at a year-round stable temperature.

Behaviour: Lives in groups over gravel and limestone crevices, grazing biofilm all day.

Conservation: An extremely narrow natural range under pressure from mining and invasive species. Captive-bred stock takes pressure off the wild population.

Keeping note: Hold a high KH and a steady 27–30°C; more crevice-forming rock in the scape means more stable parameters.

FOOD & SET-UP

The matching set-up

FEEDING

Omnivorous, but mostly grazing on biofilm and algae growing on rock. Add the White Powder + Yellow Powder pair for colour and steady breeding, and set the tank on Sula Sand to hold an alkaline pH long-term.