mantis shrimp

[82coz]

I might have got one in a live rock I just got are the good or bad not sure it is hiding in the rock one seen head

 

[82coz]

Pics I got

 

[Best Fish-Jake]

Yep, that's definetly a mantis shrimp.. that one in particular looks to be a 'spearer' but a clearer pic will be needed to say for sure. They are INCREDIBLE creatures but are not good additions to most reef tanks. If it is a spearing mantis, your medium/ smaller sized fish will be at risk. If it's a smashing mantis (you would've probably heard a bunch of ticking noises by now) your inverts and bottom dwelling fish will be at risk.

 

[Daddy-o]

Yup, Its a Mantis. We have one that we keep in a little 3 gallon plastic tank by itself. They are awesome little killing machines with really complex vision. Ours is a "smasher" and there are spots on the tank that are destroyed.
Cheers! Mark

 

[82coz]

How do you trap it

 

[82coz]

Will it eat my clownfish

 

[Daddy-o]

If it is spearer it might. Pull out the rock it is under and net it? A piece of shrimp in some kind of tube with a cap on one end?

 

[Orm Embar]

You can try the glass jar tilted at an angle with the lip next to its rock, and food/bait at the bottom. I've tried putting Saran wrap over most of the mouth of a jar to keep fish out. You can also check out commercial plastic mantis traps (I think that someone makes one, but I'm not sure). Regardless, good luck - they are quite intelligent! You could also literally feed it like a pet, and over time as it gets to trust you, lead it to a glass jar trap.

Don't put your fingers anywhere near it!

 

[82coz]

Got it out removed the rock it was living in

 

[ThunderGoose]

If you don't want it post it for sale - lots of folks like these critters.