Name: Zebra Orchid - Tép Sulawesi - Caridina Glaubrechti
Brand: Jack Shrimp

Sulawesi Shrimp · Lake Towuti

Caridina glaubrechti

Zebra Orchid

Bold white bands running across a violet-pink body — a rare zebra-style pattern, endemic to the western shore of Lake Towuti.

Lake Towuti endemicCrisp cross-bandingCaridina glaubrechti

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 Zebra Orchid

🦓White cross bandsStrong white bands cutting across the body — crisp and evenly spaced, not the scattered dots of the Matano species.

🌸Violet-pink baseA soft violet-pink body that sets off the white banding.

🏞️Poso bloodlineLake Poso is fully isolated from the Malili system, so its shrimp evolved on their own path.

🪨Wants limestoneLives over limestone and gravel — include limestone in the scape to hold a high buffer.

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

Zebra Orchid profile

Strain data

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

Wild species — natural profile

Zebra Orchid (Caridina glaubrechti) is a wild endemic of Lake Towuti — mainly its western part, in the Malili system, not Lake Poso. In the hobby it also circulates as Red Orchid or Blue Dot Red Line Bee.

Home lake: Towuti — the largest lake of the Malili system; the holotype was collected on the west shore, south of Cape Timbalo.

Natural habitat: Rock and gravel shoreline in Lake Towuti, in very clear, strongly alkaline water year round.

Behaviour: Grazes over gravel and limestone, active by day and moving in small groups.

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 with limestone or crushed coral — this one is more sensitive to a pH drop.

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.