Enter the Dreaded Mantis

[yote]

Hey Guys
I just got done going through some LR rubble and mud that I got from the LFS I help at.Well while going through and picking out the hitch hikers I wanted,I came upon 3 good sized Mantis Shrimp(3/4 to 1 inch long),that was already dead.
Well to make a long story short,I found about 15 little Mantis Shrimp that are alive.I put the baby shrimps in a 30 gallon tank that only has a dwarf lionfish and a small amount of LR.
What I'm wandering is,Just how diffcult are the Mantis to keep?I'm planning on setting up a whole different system for them.I'm just not real sure how hard its goiing to be to raise these babies I got.
Any help would be appreicated.
Joe

 

[some1fishy]

these guys are mean suckers! Good luck. If you can, search "u" tube for em, their is a couple of cool videos on there. lol.

 

[yote]

Thanks some1fishy
Yeah,I've seen the videos on u tube.Thats why I want to try to keep them.They will be the first additions to my new tank when I get it.

 

[the j.o.p.]

you will have to keep them separated or they will fight to the death. but they are super entertaining to keep. i love mine!!!!!!!

 

[bizkitpug]

From what I have read, you should keep them in an acrylic tank or they could break a glass one. That is just based on what I have seen here.

 

[phoenixofthepyre]

There is a low chance that you got one of the species that are able to break glass when they are adults. Still the chance of your glass being shattered is low because I know of noone who has actually had their mantis break their tank.
You will need seperate tanks for all your mantids because like J.O.P. said they will fight and are cannibals. Try to get some pictures up for I.D.'s so you can lern more about the specific species(') yours are.

 

[shinobi9119]

Originally Posted by PhoenixOfThePyre
There is a low chance that you got one of the species that are able to break glass when they are adults. Still the chance of your glass being shattered is low because I know of noone who has actually had their mantis break their tank.
You will need seperate tanks for all your mantids because like J.O.P. said they will fight and are cannibals. Try to get some pictures up for I.D.'s so you can lern more about the specific species(') yours are.

I knew they would fight to the death but i had no idea they were cannabalistic

 

[goober_hunter]

if you want to get rid of 1 ill take it off your hands............

 

[yote]

As of tonight,I still have 13 of the little guys.2 made the mistake of swimming across the tank right in front of my lionfish.The others are all scattered out all over the tank.
Goober,If I can keep a couple of them alive long enough for them to get some size,I'll take you up that offer.Right now there only about 1/4 inch long.
I am going to have to break down and invest in a better camera,so I can get pics of the smaller critters that live in my tanks.

 

[goober_hunter]

okay cool, i have a 55 set up with nothing in it but live rock and 1 chromie, iam tring to get a mantis if it, so that would be great...

 

[phoenixofthepyre]

Originally Posted by Shinobi9119
I knew they would fight to the death but i had no idea they were cannabalistic
Yes, one of the main problems with breeding mantis shrimp is they will eat eachother, so you'd need to seperate each one and care for them all.
For such a small mantis I'd suggest putting them in a 5-10g so you could see them better. Catch them all before your lion hungers for more!