help! Mantis shrimp!

[florida joe]

Originally Posted by wcroft987
I GOT the bloody buger, i put the coral in fresh water for 5 minutes and broke some of the rock up to get him out. i tryed the bamboo skewer but i couldnt get him to come out. thank you guys for all your help
the idea was not to get him all the way out but to push the skewer all the way in

 

[wcroft987]

hahaha i tryed but the hole he was in was more like a cavern but next time i will try and skewer it

 

[reefkprz]

Originally Posted by lovecraft
That's life....
Somedays you're the bug, somedays the windshield.

 

[wcroft987]

dang it we found another mantis shrimp in my tank this one is dark green or brown but only about an inch idk where he is hiding, but being as small as he is will he kill anything in the tank i have 4 damesls, coral banded, hermits, snails and pepermint shrimp any one know what they eat or kill?

 

[jtrzerocool]

i would not be buying live rock from that LFS anymore

sorry to hear that by the way

 

[cjworkman]

he will kill your shrimp for sure.. also small snails and hermits.
In my original shipment of LR... i had 3 of those suckers.
I've had it all for 1.5 years now.. caught 2 of them. 1 still remains. I've tried three times to put shrimp or small snails in and he always kills them.
I'm waiting for the day.............
only good thing is he's never messed with any fish.

 

[bbailey231]

Originally Posted by cjworkman
he will kill your shrimp for sure.. also small snails and hermits.
In my original shipment of LR... i had 3 of those suckers.
I've had it all for 1.5 years now.. caught 2 of them. 1 still remains. I've tried three times to put shrimp or small snails in and he always kills them.
I'm waiting for the day.............
only good thing is he's never messed with any fish.
I wonder..... in the last 6 months I have lost 3 cleaner shrimp and one arrow crab and ALL snails. I have "assumed" it was my hermits...how the heck would I know if I have a mantis without seeing it? Is there a special way to lure it out into the open or do I have to watch the tank all night long? Are there signs to look for?

 

[cjworkman]

Originally Posted by bbailey231
I wonder..... in the last 6 months I have lost 3 cleaner shrimp and one arrow crab and ALL snails. I have "assumed" it was my hermits...how the heck would I know if I have a mantis without seeing it? Is there a special way to lure it out into the open or do I have to watch the tank all night long? Are there signs to look for?
I'm an expert on this subject, you're talking to the right person. hahahahhaa
I had a ton of predators in my rock shipment, as it came packed in water so was full of live creatures.
Mantis shrimp make a distinctive snapping sound. Sounds like a loud clicking. It will come in waves, mostly at night. If you never hear any clicking/snapping noises, it's not a mantis.
However, I also had 3 predatory crabs in my shipment that also helped in decimating my snail/hermit population. 2 were larger blue crabs with striped legs and white spots, one other is a smaller gorilla crab that still lives in the tank.
So if no clicking you might have a predatory crab hiding somewhere in there. They are difficult to find, especially if they are smaller in size and hide in the rocks. They also hunt at night.

 

[bbailey231]

Originally Posted by cjworkman
I'm an expert on this subject, you're talking to the right person. hahahahhaa
I had a ton of predators in my rock shipment, as it came packed in water so was full of live creatures.
Mantis shrimp make a distinctive snapping sound. Sounds like a loud clicking. It will come in waves, mostly at night. If you never hear any clicking/snapping noises, it's not a mantis.
However, I also had 3 predatory crabs in my shipment that also helped in decimating my snail/hermit population. 2 were larger blue crabs with striped legs and white spots, one other is a smaller gorilla crab that still lives in the tank.
So if no clicking you might have a predatory crab hiding somewhere in there. They are difficult to find, especially if they are smaller in size and hide in the rocks. They also hunt at night.
I hear some sort of clicking...I assumed it was the hermits' shells tapping the glass. It is ALWAYS at night. I got my live rock from my lfs straight out of the water...a holding vat or whatever its called. It had all sorts of life on it...little bugs, brissle worms, some small corals, snails. Do the mantis move fast or slow? A couple of times I thought I saw something move rather quickly when trying to peek at everything at night, but thought it was my imagination. I think I will put on my camouflage tonight and go hunting

 

[groupergenius]

The clicking or snapping can also be pistol shrimp.

 

[cjworkman]

Originally Posted by bbailey231
I hear some sort of clicking...I assumed it was the hermits' shells tapping the glass. It is ALWAYS at night. I got my live rock from my lfs straight out of the water...a holding vat or whatever its called. It had all sorts of life on it...little bugs, brissle worms, some small corals, snails. Do the mantis move fast or slow? A couple of times I thought I saw something move rather quickly when trying to peek at everything at night, but thought it was my imagination. I think I will put on my camouflage tonight and go hunting

If it's a pretty loud clicking and mainly at night, it could only be 2 things. A pistol shrimp or a mantis. And because Pistol's are harmless, the dead snails and hermits point straight to a mantis.
They are extremely fast. They hide in the rock most of the time, you will rarely seem them out. If you do it'll be in some dark corner of rock.
The dunk the rock in fresh water method is the best to get rid of them I think. My problem was the rock the last one lives in is a big piece at the base of my whole set up.
DO NOT put your bare hands anywhere near it. They are said to have a strike that is as quick and powerful as a 22 caliber bullet. They can severely hurt you. Try the dunk rock method or try a trap.. however I never had any lucks with the traps.. seem to be a waste of money.

 

[bbailey231]

Originally Posted by cjworkman
If it's a pretty loud clicking and mainly at night, it could only be 2 things. A pistol shrimp or a mantis. And because Pistol's are harmless, the dead snails and hermits point straight to a mantis.
They are extremely fast. They hide in the rock most of the time, you will rarely seem them out. If you do it'll be in some dark corner of rock.
The dunk the rock in fresh water method is the best to get rid of them I think. My problem was the rock the last one lives in is a big piece at the base of my whole set up.
DO NOT put your bare hands anywhere near it. They are said to have a strike that is as quick and powerful as a 22 caliber bullet. They can severely hurt you. Try the dunk rock method or try a trap.. however I never had any lucks with the traps.. seem to be a waste of money.
So the clicking can't be my hermits' shell hitting the tank?

What are the chances of it actually being a mantis...probably pretty slim I would think. I will do a stake out tonight

 

[earlybird]

Originally Posted by Kilhullen
I don't think anyone would WANT a Mantis. Can't imagine it anyway.
I want one just not yet. Very pretty shrimp and would be great in a species only acrylic tank. There are a few on here that have them and there are even some videos on here. Very cool.