Isopod Question???

L

lockemup

Guest
I know I have at least 1 Isopod in my tank. I also have a clicking noise that I can head at night. My tank is going through its cycle nicely and diatoms are currently on the sand and rock and have been for a little over a week. My question(s);
1. If I remove the rock and dip them in sodawater to flush out the pests, will the limpets, porcelain crabs and other stuff die?
2. Will the cycle have to start all over?
My main reason for holding off at this point is because there is no guarentee the pests will vacate the rock by dipping. I put in a makeshift mantis trap I made from an old spice bottle and will give it a few more days.
:help:
 
fish sense

fish sense

Member
Just get rid of the clicker, mantis or pistol, and isopod before you get any more life. You can pick off snails and crabs before you dip or rinse with fresh water over a bucket. Trust me, you will be glad you did!
Try to trap, dip, exorcise, whatever it takes! You will suffer endless grief if you do not, i.e., waste life and money, not to mention sleep!
Good luck!
 
L

lockemup

Guest
Mr isopod, I find you guilty of being a worthless creature who merely exists to cause grief and heartache to all the good people who enjoy this hobby. I sentence you to death!
 
L

lockemup

Guest
It took me about 15 minutes to get him. What I did was wedge a net in the tank lid allowing the net to hang about half way down the tank. The little bugger came out and was moving around and got comfortable with seeing the net. I used a blue LED flashlight (streamlight tactical pen light) and lit him up while moving in with the net. I think he was checking out the light while I snuck up on him with the net...
Now for that little clicking #$^@&*(!
 
L

lockemup

Guest
LOL i don't know. I think my tank was a slice of heaven for him though. I am coming on the end of my cycle and hope to get the clicker out real soon. I just put my first dose of medication in tonight.(traces of cyanobacteria forming) I should have that gone by the end of the cycle though... :)
 
qwiksilver360

qwiksilver360

Member
do a hypersaline solution to flush out that shrimp so you can figure out what kind it is mantis or pistol
you'll probably find some other goodies
like more cirolanid ispods or fireworms
dont do a freshwater dip like mentioned above you'll kill all your good bacteria
 
L

lockemup

Guest
what is a hypersaline solution and how would I do that for a 90 gallon setup?
 
qwiksilver360

qwiksilver360

Member
take the rock out and place it in a solution of around 1.040sg for around 30-60 secondsand watch all the critters come flying out
pick out the ones you want toss the rest
pick off the stuff you want beforehand like crabs and snails
 
L

lockemup

Guest
Ill definitely have to consider doing that. Will it mess with the sponge and diamond tip corals? also, What about the worms and any crabs that are hidden inside? I also have some clams on the rocks that I don't want killed. I was going to just re insert my trap I have. It is one of those spring loaded trap doors designed for crabs and shrimp...
 
qwiksilver360

qwiksilver360

Member
if your talking about those yellow sponges those things are tough i had one on a piece of rock stay out of water for 24 hours and didnt die it lived for around 1and1/2 years before my flame angel ate it
im not sure what the coral your talking about but if its one of those hard corals like a cup , tube or star they are all pretty tough
the worms and crabs hidden inside wont die as long as when they come out of the rock you place them back in your tank
if you want to keep them
the clam im not sure how it will effect them but i hate the ones i have i also have mussels and i had one die and when it dies it stays shut so nothing can get to it and eat it and it pollutes the water so need less to say i took a hammer and chisel to the rest
those traps work sometimes i tried one it didnt i ended up catching hermits and other stuff besides the mantis so its hit and miss
also the trap wont catch mantis larvae and they are rather hardy so if you have those then you'll have to deal with them later when they grow up
 
arjayl

arjayl

Member
lockemup
Where did you get the trap? I have a hitchhiker crab that I've been trying to catch for weeks:mad:
I've tried the shrimp in a glass at a 45 degree angle no luck...HELP PLEASE
 
L

lockemup

Guest
I got mine from the LFS. when the shrimp goes in to the far end to get the piece of dead fresh shrimp, he steps on a platform that actuates a lever and the entrance door closes. It didn't work yet. I also tried putting a piece of shrimp in a nylon but he didn't come for that either. Mantis have hooks in the ends of their feet which will get caught in the nylon. I am thinking that will work better, except I have way too much flow for the nylon to stay in one place.
 
grndhog

grndhog

New Member
Gotta love that Fl aquacultured rock uh? As I was reading this I was thinking that I wrote the post. I purchased 140lbs of rock from someplaceelse.com which are based in Tarpon Springs and wound up with 7 mantis and still hunting my 4th isopod. Heres an example.
 
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