Fish disappearing one by one.

Kworker · Jan 2, 2013

skinz78 said:
That looks like a pod to me?

If they would shoot out of their burrow and rip mysis shrimp from my tweezers than I could see that. Im unsure im new at saltwater, i research a lot but still have ton of learning to do...

Kworker · Jan 2, 2013

always reefin said:
That's what I was thinking and they will eat mysis like right now

okay, looks like i have more watching to do... ahhh..

ritter6788 · Jan 2, 2013

It's hard for me to tell on my phone but it does look like a small mantis to me at one point in the video.

What I'm saying is a mantis that size won't be able to haul away and eat/bury a fish several times it's size. There would be a carcass in the tank somewhere. I had a damsel get whacked by a small mantis and it swam around dizzy for a few days before it died. It's the only fish I've ever lost to a mantis. I always keep fish in my mantis tanks.

Anything is possible but mantis shrimp tend to get a bad rep in the hobby. A hitchhiking mantis is several times more likely to eat a snail, shrimp or crab than a fish. Plus they are lazy when prepared foods are available in aquariums. They would rather snatch a quick mysis than crack open a snail or waste energy trying to catch a fish.

Where is your liverock from?

scooterc268 · Jan 2, 2013

Quick question. Do you have a green star fish? Sometimes referred to by green bristle star

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skinz78 · Jan 2, 2013

My first thought wasn't a Mantis shrimp at all, but maybe a Gorilla Crab. I've had them in the past and had the same exact issue that you are having.

Alwaysalty · Jan 2, 2013

You didn't get a color,or shape, or size? Anything?

Kworker · Jan 2, 2013

scooterc268 said:
Quick question. Do you have a green star fish? Sometimes referred to by green bristle star

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No, only small white and brownish striped colored ones. theyre small though.

Kworker · Jan 2, 2013

skinz78 said:
My first thought wasn't a Mantis shrimp at all, but maybe a Gorilla Crab. I've had them in the past and had the same exact issue that you are having.

guy at lfs said gorilla crab is possibility, thing is i had 2 emeralds in the dt (put in sump) yet things still disappearing but i would think the gorilla would look to attack other crabs? but they were untouched.

skinz78 · Jan 3, 2013

The one I had didn't bother inverts.

Kworker · Jan 3, 2013

skinz78 said:
The one I had didn't bother inverts.

ill keep looking...

SNAKEMANVET · Jan 3, 2013

The vid you posted is a amphipod they are harmless,does your tank have a top on it,and do you have a cat.I had a friend that had fish diappearing,later found the cat was getting them.

svt stang · Jan 3, 2013

A few years back i had a 60 gallon display tank and fish started disapering, got sick of it started looking around at night and low and behold i found a 3 foot bobit worm it was crazy something that big and you would never known it was in there.

Zack · Jan 3, 2013

3 Feet!?! That's insane!

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Kworker · Jan 3, 2013

SNAKEMANVET said:
The vid you posted is a amphipod they are harmless,does your tank have a top on it,and do you have a cat.I had a friend that had fish diappearing,later found the cat was getting them.

No cat so that is not possible, I do have a top. But either way I still check the floor behind the tank because there is a bit of an opening but none of any of the 4 fish and 2 shrimp that disappeared ever appeared on the floor.

Kworker · Jan 3, 2013

svt stang said:
A few years back i had a 60 gallon display tank and fish started disapering, got sick of it started looking around at night and low and behold i found a 3 foot bobit worm it was crazy something that big and you would never known it was in there.

I'm still looking, found nothing new last night.

ritter6788 · Jan 3, 2013

I looked at it again on my PC and it does look like a small mantis. At about :05 into the video it stretches out and looks exactly like a mantis.

Kworker · Jan 3, 2013

Anyone else have any suggestions? I go away Saturday morning for a week so I'm kind of scared to see what I will come back to, My parents will be taking care of the tank but that only includes topping off evap water and feeding.. If things are disappearing there is nothing they could do.

There does seem to be something common on one side of the tank, Under most of my rocks I have egg crate but the aragonite sand at the base of one rock always seems to be set as a COVE like area to uncover the base of it. I'm not sure if something did it or Its just the way i place the sand around the rocks. But I've moved the rock several times nothing is under it. There used to be something similar to it towards the front of the rock but now the back. I may just be making things up in my mind but If it sounds like anything a suspect may do, any ideas please.

scooterc268 · Jan 3, 2013

Get a piece of shrimp or something. Put it on the sand bed and with lights outs, see if anything will come out to eat it. Use a red lens flashlight to help yourself see. The emerald crabs will go after the bait to.

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Kworker · Jan 3, 2013

That second peppermint shrimp that was thought to of disappeared has reappeared. I've seen pieces of molt so I guess he was molting yesterday when I was looking for him.