The blue diamond shrimp is a selectively bred variety of Neocaridina davidi, which is a dwarf shrimp species that's naturally greenish-brown but now exists in many different colours. In fact, there are multiple blue varieties. The blue diamond is characterized by its particularly dark, sapphire blue coloration. The eyes can be gold or dark.
Aside from blue diamonds, there are also blue jelly shrimp, blue velvet shrimp, blue dream shrimp and more. You can find them all in our list of blue aquarium shrimp! Neocaridina davidi shrimp grow to a maximum size of around 1", with the females being larger.
The great thing about blue diamond shrimp and their other Neocaridina cousins is that they're not too fussy about their environment. You can keep a colony in an aquarium of 5 gallons or up as long as it has a filter and is fully cycled. A heater isn't usually necessary as these guys thrive at room temperature, but can be a handy addition if there is a risk of temperature swings.
In terms of décor, you're pretty much free to do whatever you like as long as the tank isn't too bare. Shrimp are prey animals after all, meaning they appreciate some hides. This especially applies when they're molting and feeling vulnerable. Live plants are a great choice as well. A black substrate is ideal to really make this variety's blue colour pop.
Although Neocaridina shrimp don't tend to be too particular about water values and can be kept in tap water unless it's very low in quality, it is important to properly cycle the aquarium before introducing any livestock.
Use a liquid water test kit to ensure ammonia and nitrite values are at 0. Nitrates should be kept low (preferably <10) by means of weekly water changes.
pH: 6.2-8.0
Temperature: 65-85 °F
Hardness: 4-12
Total Dissolved Solids: 150-250
Dwarf shrimp are omnivores; part of what makes them so fun to keep is being able to watch them pass their days scurrying around the aquarium using their tiny claws to test everywhere for tiny morsels. Because there isn't enough detritus and biofilm available in our home aquarium for a blue dream shrimp colony to sustain itself, you'll have to supplement their diet to ensure they stay well-fed. You can feed a few pieces of high-quality shrimp food daily and add variety with all sorts of other foods. Normal fish food, frozen food, blanched veggies, algae tablets and much more will be happily gobbled up.