Perpetual Novice
Active Member
- Joined
- May 16, 2019
- Messages
- 423
- Reaction score
- 335
- What state or country do you live in
- Delaware
Ok. so I'm trying to see if it's possible to give my peacock mantis shrimp some tank mates. Will it probably work? No. But I believe it is possible and Im going to give it a try.
my plan involves some trial and error on the part of the fish. I can see how that may sound cruel. But as I see it, mantis shrimp are predators and part of keeping one is acknowledging that and accepting that It will kill and eat other animals and that is just its natural way. I feed my mantis a mix of live and prepared foods as it is so any failures are really just an expensive meal on my part.
I have had my tank for only a couple of months. Its a 20 gallon with a 5-inch rubble sand bed and lots of large and small rocks for the mantis to build with. I have had the peacock mantis for about a month now. He's nearly full-grown from what I can tell (roughly 5 inches). he has a long deep burrow and seems content so I am happy with this tank size for now.
Now onto my plan. I want to add a fish. I know peacock mantis shrimp don't normally eat fish, but I also know they are territorial and may kill things seemingly for sport.
My first idea is to add a very small clown triggerfish. I know it will outgrow the tank and need to be rehomed (if it lives) and I am prepared to do that when the time comes. My thought is that a triggerfish is a natural predator to mantis shrimp. A small one (1-2 inches) won't pose a threat to my large mantis. But because it instinctively feeds on mantis shrimp it stands to reason that it would instinctively be familiar with mantis shrimp. The theory is that an animal trained to find mantis shrimp for food will probably notice the mantis more easily and be aware of its location at all times. Also, the triggerfish will probably be aware of the threat the mantis shrimp poses since it must be able to make a judgment call whether or not it can take the mantis shrimp on as a prey item.
In all, I have chosen the trigger because it seems like the fish with the best chance of avoiding the mantis and keeping itself safe. The rest is up to the mantis's discretion.
Before adding the triggerfish I will be adding an abundance of hermit crabs and snails. 10 or more in total. The mantis shouldn't eat them all right away. And the mantis receives regular feedings which don't require nearly as much effort to hunt so I expect that it will consume the hermits and snails more slowly as the mantis will try to conserve energy. an added bonus is that the triggerfish will eat the snails and hermits as well and will need them to wear down its teeth as I understand.
In total, the abundance of food should curb the feeding response of the mantis shrimp and the natural behavior of the triggerfish should help it avoid the mantis shrimp so I think this is the best plan I can think of. I think it could work but I don't exactly expect success. I know others have kept fish with a peacock mantis shrimp and I want to see if I can have a tank like that.
I'm not worried about my wallet. And I've already decided to give it a try. But tweaking the plan is definitely open. Let me know what you think. Any recommendations or experience are greatly appreciated. Criticism is expected as well.
my plan involves some trial and error on the part of the fish. I can see how that may sound cruel. But as I see it, mantis shrimp are predators and part of keeping one is acknowledging that and accepting that It will kill and eat other animals and that is just its natural way. I feed my mantis a mix of live and prepared foods as it is so any failures are really just an expensive meal on my part.
I have had my tank for only a couple of months. Its a 20 gallon with a 5-inch rubble sand bed and lots of large and small rocks for the mantis to build with. I have had the peacock mantis for about a month now. He's nearly full-grown from what I can tell (roughly 5 inches). he has a long deep burrow and seems content so I am happy with this tank size for now.
Now onto my plan. I want to add a fish. I know peacock mantis shrimp don't normally eat fish, but I also know they are territorial and may kill things seemingly for sport.
My first idea is to add a very small clown triggerfish. I know it will outgrow the tank and need to be rehomed (if it lives) and I am prepared to do that when the time comes. My thought is that a triggerfish is a natural predator to mantis shrimp. A small one (1-2 inches) won't pose a threat to my large mantis. But because it instinctively feeds on mantis shrimp it stands to reason that it would instinctively be familiar with mantis shrimp. The theory is that an animal trained to find mantis shrimp for food will probably notice the mantis more easily and be aware of its location at all times. Also, the triggerfish will probably be aware of the threat the mantis shrimp poses since it must be able to make a judgment call whether or not it can take the mantis shrimp on as a prey item.
In all, I have chosen the trigger because it seems like the fish with the best chance of avoiding the mantis and keeping itself safe. The rest is up to the mantis's discretion.
Before adding the triggerfish I will be adding an abundance of hermit crabs and snails. 10 or more in total. The mantis shouldn't eat them all right away. And the mantis receives regular feedings which don't require nearly as much effort to hunt so I expect that it will consume the hermits and snails more slowly as the mantis will try to conserve energy. an added bonus is that the triggerfish will eat the snails and hermits as well and will need them to wear down its teeth as I understand.
In total, the abundance of food should curb the feeding response of the mantis shrimp and the natural behavior of the triggerfish should help it avoid the mantis shrimp so I think this is the best plan I can think of. I think it could work but I don't exactly expect success. I know others have kept fish with a peacock mantis shrimp and I want to see if I can have a tank like that.
I'm not worried about my wallet. And I've already decided to give it a try. But tweaking the plan is definitely open. Let me know what you think. Any recommendations or experience are greatly appreciated. Criticism is expected as well.
