The Official R2R Mantis Shrimp Thread!

bobbyM · Sep 20, 2012

Thanks! Yea, I have a deep sand bed 4-5 inches for him to dig in. I am worried about the bull dozer effect me may have on my tank. Is it a good idea to have a lot of rubble in the tank for him to build with? Maybe keep him occupied?

By no means would I put expensive LE fish in with him (lol) but a school full of damsel's shouldn't be a problem maybe a small hawk fish? Do any other fish seam like they may work out? Or just too risky? What worked for you?

ritter6788 · Sep 20, 2012

The more rubble in there the better. You really can't add too much and you never know what they will use and what they won't. Even if it's not being used at the moment, stomatopods will rebuild burrows as they molt and grow.

Open water swimming fish are better choices for a mantis tank to minimize contact with the mantis and his burrow. Damsels are really the best choice. Perching fish like blennies, gobies and hawfish may be a bad idea. I kept blue damsels with mine and Sgt. Majors I caught myself. It's better to add the fish first and then the mantis so the fish can acclimate to the tank and establish territory.

mainereefer · Sep 20, 2012

here is the mantis I had a few years ago and her tank

one of my favorite pics

and her tank,. 20g long

ritter6788 · Sep 20, 2012

Those are great pics. I like the macroalgae in the tank.

bobbyM · Sep 20, 2012

Wow! That does look good! Great looking tank!!

bobbyM · Sep 20, 2012

ritter6788 said:
The more rubble in there the better. You really can't add too much and you never know what they will use and what they won't. Even if it's not being used at the moment, stomatopods will rebuild burrows as they molt and grow.

Open water swimming fish are better choices for a mantis tank to minimize contact with the mantis and his burrow. Damsels are really the best choice. Perching fish like blennies, gobies and hawfish may be a bad idea. I kept blue damsels with mine and Sgt. Majors I caught myself. It's better to add the fish first and then the mantis so the fish can acclimate to the tank and establish territory.

Thanks for the advice!

bobbyM · Sep 20, 2012

Wow! Look what I just found at the store I work at.

Crappy iPhone camera, but he is about half an inch and dark grey. Any ideas about an ID?

bobbyM · Sep 21, 2012

Anyways, I'm feeding standard pe mysis and flakes right now. This evening, I'm going to see if he will come out for some beef heart.

M@! · Sep 21, 2012

Sorry, I can't really tell. Any idea where the rocks were from that he hitchhiked on?

ritter6788 · Sep 21, 2012

M@! said:
Sorry, I can't really tell. Any idea where the rocks were from that he hitchhiked on?

+1

If you can, get a good look at the meral spots and see what color they are.

bobbyM · Sep 21, 2012

M@! said:
Sorry, I can't really tell. Any idea where the rocks were from that he hitchhiked on?

Ah, fail. The store has been around for 20 years and for the last 3 we have been recycling rock from people getting out of the hobby or buying RealReef. I cleaned 9 tanks yesterday, worked 14 hrs. I didn't get that great of a look at him before I acclimated and dropped him in my tank.

Hopefully tonight, I can talk him out of his hiding spot.

bobbyM · Sep 21, 2012

M@! said:
Sorry, I can't really tell. Any idea where the rocks were from that he hitchhiked on?

Ah, fail. The store has been around for 20 years and for the last 3 we have been recycling rock from people getting out of the hobby or buying RealReef. I cleaned 9 tanks yesterday, worked 14 hrs. I didn't get that great of a look at him before I acclimated and dropped him in my tank.

Hopefully tonight, I can talk him out of his hiding spot.

M@! · Sep 23, 2012

Gotcha, hopefully you can get a better shot.

My Peacock molted and lost her raps. :cry: When I first got her she had a rough molt and it looked some of her rap molt got stuck. I was worried this might happen but just glad she didn't die.

M@! · Oct 3, 2012

Short video of feeding my Peacock.
[video=youtube;9ZsTROBqbgQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZsTROBqbgQ[/video]

ritter6788 · Oct 3, 2012

M@! said:
Short video of feeding my Peacock.
[video=youtube;9ZsTROBqbgQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZsTROBqbgQ[/video]

Nice mantis! Any idea if it's male or female? Makes me miss my peacocks.

I think my little one is dying from a bad molt. She was curled up in a hole for a over a week and barely moved. After MACNA she was at the back of the tank twitching and looked stretched out. I checked last night and she was in the same position but not moving so I thought she was dead. When I lifted the lid to get her out she moved a little bit so I left her. I'm still hoping for a miracle but it doesn't look good. I've had her over 2 years.

M@! · Oct 3, 2012

Based on it's size and aggressiveness I would guess female. Crossing my fingers for your little one. Molting is the worst. My Oerstedii took over two weeks and was barely moving for the last few days. I hope it pulls through for you!