crab csi

[buckeye88]

I woke up this morning to find that my sally light foot crab which was fine yesterday was dismembered! When I found it dead on the sand it had three of its legs ripped off.
I just want to know if anyone knows what could have happened. My first thought was maybe there's a mantis shrimp in there but I haven't heared clicking. Is there anyother way to know if there's a Mantis shrimp in your tank? If it is a MS, how do I get it out?!?
Thanks!
PS;
-16 gallon tank
-Ammonia 0 ppm
-Nitrate 20 ppm
-Nitrite 0 ppm

 

[trainfever]

What else is in the tank?

 

[darknes]

You sure it wasn't a molt?

 

[braydonosu]

Are you sure that it wasn't just a molt? If it is a mantis shrimp, they make traps to get them out.

 

[buckeye88]

the only other things in the tank is two snails, two hermits, and some corals and featherdusters. I had a goby and two more hermits but they mysteriously dissappeared which makes me think it is a mantis or something like that.

 

[buckeye88]

I heared that if you did your LR into extra salty water everything on that piece will come off... will that get a mantis out if that's what it is?

 

[buckeye88]

I have had crabs in that past and I'm 100% sure that it was not just molting.
Supposing I was to dip my LR in exra salty water would that rill the colony of tiny tiny feather dusters that I have on one of my pieces of LR (which I really don't want them to die)

 

[prk543]

Originally Posted by Buckeye88
I have had crabs in that past and I'm 100% sure that it was not just molting.
Supposing I was to dip my LR in exra salty water would that rill the colony of tiny tiny feather dusters that I have on one of my pieces of LR (which I really don't want them to die)
are your dusters all over the rock or are they just in one location on the rock? If they are all one one location, just don't dip that part of the LR in the extra salty water, then you can still check that rock. If the duster colony is spread all over the rock than put that piece of LR in a bucket of tank water and use something similar to a turkey baster to squirt the extra salty water into any holes on that rock. just watch your fingers.

 

[buckeye88]

ok, I took my LR out piece by piece and dipped it and no mantis. I did however rid my tank of a couple bristle worms

. They were small though so I doubt it was them that killed anything. The goby and crabs probably just fell victom to my extremeley bad bad luck

.
Is it possible that the crab that died last night could have been crushed by a peice of rock that came loose or something? I really am confused at what happened.