Mantis Shrimp Tankmates???

yearofthenick

Active Member
I have a 10g tank at the moment with a mantis that will supposedly grow up to 8 inches. it's the smasher kind, but it's only about 1.5 inches at the moment. I'd like to set up a 65g aggressive tank and would love to add him into the mix... but wanted to ask if anyone knew what might be compatible with a mantis that size? I wanted to get a few triggers and maybe a tang or two. Would that work?
 
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usirchchris

Guest
Originally Posted by YearOfTheNick
http:///forum/post/2894360
I have a 10g tank at the moment with a mantis that will supposedly grow up to 8 inches. it's the smasher kind, but it's only about 1.5 inches at the moment. I'd like to set up a 65g aggressive tank and would love to add him into the mix... but wanted to ask if anyone knew what might be compatible with a mantis that size? I wanted to get a few triggers and maybe a tang or two. Would that work?
Sure would
. The mantis would love to eat them
. I honestly don't know, but I would not think a mantis to be compatible with anything. I would assume if the mantis did not get the trigger, then the trigger would get the mantis.
 

yearofthenick

Active Member
But isn't that what makes them compatible? Formidable foes? For example, if I had a trigger in with a mandarin goby, the trigger would eat the goby because the goby doesn't know how to defend itself. Same with corals... they are just not on the same defensive/offensive level. But the mantis and the trigger are similar in aggressive behavior. I think they'll just leave each other alone.
I know of a friend who keeps maroon clowns with his mantis and everyone is fine. It's also my understanding that in some cases (Not ALL cases), so long as you keep everyone's stomach full, you can keep any fish with any fish.
Yes? No? Thoughts? Comments? Concerns? Gripes?
 

sepulatian

Moderator
Originally Posted by YearOfTheNick
http:///forum/post/2894385
But isn't that what makes them compatible? Formidable foes? For example, if I had a trigger in with a mandarin goby, the trigger would eat the goby because the goby doesn't know how to defend itself. Same with corals... they are just not on the same defensive/offensive level. But the mantis and the trigger are similar in aggressive behavior. I think they'll just leave each other alone.
I know of a friend who keeps maroon clowns with his mantis and everyone is fine. It's also my understanding that in some cases (Not ALL cases), so long as you keep everyone's stomach full, you can keep any fish with any fish.
Yes? No? Thoughts? Comments? Concerns? Gripes?
Please tell me you are kidding here. There are people that fight dogs too. It doesn't make it right.
 

yearofthenick

Active Member
Originally Posted by sepulatian
http:///forum/post/2894390
Please tell me you are kidding here. There are people that fight dogs too. It doesn't make it right.
This is an honest question. I am a little surprised you are so demeaning in your response. What's the deal? What did I do to deserve this kind of response?
 

-tara33-

Member
there was a video around the net somewhare about a mantis taking down a adult clown trigger, cant memba where tho.
 

sepulatian

Moderator
Nick, you are talking about "formidable foes". That isn't how it works in the salt world or in any animal world. You cannot put two fierce animals together and hope that they will just be strong enough to leave each other alone.
 

yearofthenick

Active Member
But it has happened in the past, successfully. I wasn't making up the story about a guy who has a maroon clown in with his mantis, and yes, they coexist. I read about it on another forum. I was asking this question to see if anyone else has had success with a similar scenario, or if people have experience in this area.
Is there anyone that can provide some experiential input in addition to what's been said already?
 
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usirchchris

Guest
IMO there are small successes with any scenario, but overall (most of the time) these scenarios end badly when tested. I personally would not try it. I would think if your mantis can get up to the 8" mark, at that point it could take down any fish we commonly hold. Not to say it absolutely cannot work, but poor fish or mantis if it does not work. Imagine the stress involved with the "hold their own" situation, be like sending us to prison. As far as keeping the fish "full" IME this does not apply with the aggressives. My puffers and triggers will bite anything even if not for food. Even each other.
 

aquaknight

Active Member
Triggers and Mantis shrimp kill fish in different ways. Just because they can kill other fish, doesn't mean that they can't defend themselves with that means. Triggers obivously use their mouths and mantis either spe@r, or grab and smash. A larger aggressive Trigger will grab and rip pieces of the mantis off one by one if he can't get him in one shot. If the mantis is large enough, it will grab the trigger and either spe@r or club the trigger to death. The way some clownfish have managed to survive being housed with mantis shrimp is avoidence. They know to stay away from a smasher mantis, who probably isn't too interested in a clownfish anyways.
Have you ever seen a zoo exhibit, where they lions and tigers together? Or lions and alligators? They are capable of defending themselves, but they eventually kill each other. Of course you could point out some random scenerio where some tiger club was raised with a lion or dog or something, but of course there's always an exception to every rule.
FWIW with a 65gal, I would stick to a reef, with smaller fish. IIRC 65's are 3' long? Not suitable for tangs, and I certainly wouldn't recommend keeping multiple triggers in there. You could house a smaller Humu or another small Rhinecanthus for a bit, before they outgrow the tank. But you'll be quite limited on other fish to put in there.
 

hlcroghan

Active Member
I guess I could see the large clowns being okay especially if they are hosting an anemone. They have their own protection from the mantis. They also don't tend to swim back and forth a a lot so maybe the mantis would not get attracted to them as a food source. I believe the mantis works off of movement?? You would also have to keep the mantis well-fed so that it didn't attack the clown out of hunger. I don't know though. It would be a shame to lose a pet clown that you have had for a long time because the mantis got big enough to eat it......Just my thoughts.
 

donald

Member
id like to ask him how many times he got the "business end" of that mantis before that was possible. A good tankmate for a mantis shrimp is Live rock! I wouldnt put anything in the tank with a mantis that i wanted to live.
 

yearofthenick

Active Member
that is on the larger size for a mantis. The video said he is 10 inches, but 8 inches is the standard length for a mantis shrimp.
 
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