Help! What is it??

lisao_01

lisao_01

New Member
Hi,
I'm new to this sight. Hope someone responds to this. I have a reef tank.
I have something living in my live rock. Not sure what it is. It's body is similar to a caterpillar. It is about an inch long. Very slender. It has stripes like a bee that are yellow and black. It has goggly eyes. Whenever food or any fish go by it, it shoots out of the little hole it's in. I also am pretty sure it has claws because I think I've heard them snap shut. I've looked under all types of invertibrates. Can't find anything similar.
Any ideas?
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Welcome to SWF :)
Could be a type of pistol shrimp....have you googled them???
Or Mantis shrimp.....something like that
 
lisao_01

lisao_01

New Member
I looked them up, but the "thing" I have is more black than any of the photos I can find online. And what I've read also states that they are reef safe which concerns me because anytime anything gets close, he shoots out and I hear the claws.
 
lisao_01

lisao_01

New Member
Thanks :) I have a pistol shrimp, so it's def not that.
I looked up the mantis and it looks more like that then the bumble bee, Especially with the crazy googly eyes. It has the whiskers/tentacle thingies too.
 
hunt

hunt

Active Member
if you have a peacful tank, you should prabably get rid of the thing if it is a mantis shrimp, they can and will kill fish and inverts
 
lisao_01

lisao_01

New Member
I think it's the tiger striped mantis. So now my next problem is how the heck to get it out? From what I read, it'll pretty much destroy my tank and fish/crab/s shrimp. I have 2 clowns, 3 damsels, a yellow and a orange tip tangs, 3 wrasses, a bi-colored blenny, royal gramma, fire and purple fire fish, sally crab, 2 emerald crabs, about 8 hermits, about 8 snails, 3 star fish, 2 cleaners, 2 blood and 1 pepermint shrimp, and a goby and pistol in my 145 gallon. It must've came in with some coral I picked up.
Also, I have another smaller 40 gallon tank that has a toad fish and a baby snow flake....I couldn't put him in there with the eel, right?
 
hunt

hunt

Active Member
not sure about the 40g (someone else will have to help you there)
cut off enough of the top of a 2 liter bottle, put some shrimp/food in there, set it down in front of the cave and when it goes in to get food, take the bottle with the shrimp out, or when it comes out for food try and net it. Those are just two ways, if you want, google it and im sure youll find some others
 
madhatter9382

madhatter9382

Member
I've read that they are very hard to catch with a net, they are also very smart.
def get him out, maybe someone on here or somewhere will take him off of your hands? He will kill everything in your tank that he can get too.
as a last resort you can maybe cover the opening to the cave he's in and hope theres not a second exit and take the rock out and
 
madhatter9382

madhatter9382

Member
i've read that the chance of them actually breaking the glass is slim to none but i guess its always a possibility...
I do know that you absolutely don't want to put your fingers or any other body part within striking distance.
They are usually the only animal in the tank...
 
ernestpolska

ernestpolska

Member
wow 1!!!!! those things are killers take him out! lols
i wouldnt even put my hand in there !!!! hell eat it!!!!!!! dont let it grow to full size(i think you said it was small)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mu6yrC6bjNo
watch the vid poor crabs and shrimp nothing left of them ! hes the terminator the same thing will happen to your fish(expensive meals i would by a small tank and keep it alone! or get rid of it (but i think theyre cool like the reall mantis,i had the bug for a pet
had to get rid of it when it attacked my hand when i was feeding it crickets.... meat eater lols)
if you want your fish to live take it out lols maybe take a stick putit in his cave to attack it and then leed him out and hopefully youll be able to put a net by its cave then when itll notice wats happening hell turn back try to get back but just end up in your net..... but i dont now if thisll work never tried it.....worth a shot though... eh
 
lisao_01

lisao_01

New Member
Yeah, that's def what it is. I've tried to get it out of the rock with no luck. I tried taking a pop bottle, putting some food in it and putting it up against the hole but he won't go for it. I just took the rock out and placed him in my other tank with my eel and toad fish.
I have no clue how to get him out.
 
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