MANTIS SHRIMP!
- Thread starter RobD23
- Start date
I think the other part of the boogey man myth is that sometimes it is not planned to have them! When I was reading up on Marine tanks I read some interesting stories about people finding out a bit late that they had either Mantis Shrimp or Pistols in the tank from a random shipment of rock or other items. They said the way to know is look for fish to suddenly come up missing! I would love to own a marine tank in the first place and Mantis Shrimp are amazing creatures so I would even love to keep them but the fact is if you have a thin walled tank they can generate enough force to shatter the glass so I would be careful what I put them in.
I think 5g is a bit small, unless it's a youngin. Here's mine:
He lives in a 15g tank:
His name is Dozer, because he is like a tiny bulldozer. He dug out the rock on the right, into a nice cave for himself. Took about 2 weeks to punch out a burrow itno the rock & he keeps it clean by removing large armfulls of sand & takes it all the way to the other end ot the tank. He takes rubble to shore up the sides, so no sand falls back in. If the piece is too heavy to pick up, he take a running start, grabs it & flips over it, causing it to move with the action. He then does a flip in the air & right into his home.
Very acrobatic. A blast to watch!
He lives in a 15g tank:
His name is Dozer, because he is like a tiny bulldozer. He dug out the rock on the right, into a nice cave for himself. Took about 2 weeks to punch out a burrow itno the rock & he keeps it clean by removing large armfulls of sand & takes it all the way to the other end ot the tank. He takes rubble to shore up the sides, so no sand falls back in. If the piece is too heavy to pick up, he take a running start, grabs it & flips over it, causing it to move with the action. He then does a flip in the air & right into his home.
Very acrobatic. A blast to watch!
13" ?
Seriously, where do you people get this type of WRONG information?
Species: Odontodactylus scyllarus
Common name: Peacock Mantis, Painted Mantis, Harlequin Mantis
Functional type: Smasher
Range: Indo-Pacific from Guam to East Africa
Habitat: Sandy, gravelly or shelly bottoms often near reefs
Depth: 340 m, usually 1030 m
Home: Simple u-shaped burrow constructed from gravel, shell, LR
Diet: Generalist; gastropods, crustaceans, bivalves
Size: 318 cm (THAT'S 7" MAX)
Color: Olive or green, orange antennal scales, uropods with red setae, red raptorial appendages
Distinguishing Characters: Leopard spots on anterior lateral carapace
Activity: Active both day and night
Aquarium Requirements: Temperature: 2228° C
Salinity: 3336 PSU
Cohabitants: Most aquarium animals are not safe with large O. scyllarus
Aquarium size (adult): 100 l
Aquarium substrate: Sand and gravel, LR
Suitability for Aquarium: Excellent; large adults prone to develop shell disease; active and interactive
Availability: Commonly available from wholesalers and retailers
Seriously, where do you people get this type of WRONG information?
Species: Odontodactylus scyllarus
Common name: Peacock Mantis, Painted Mantis, Harlequin Mantis
Functional type: Smasher
Range: Indo-Pacific from Guam to East Africa
Habitat: Sandy, gravelly or shelly bottoms often near reefs
Depth: 340 m, usually 1030 m
Home: Simple u-shaped burrow constructed from gravel, shell, LR
Diet: Generalist; gastropods, crustaceans, bivalves
Size: 318 cm (THAT'S 7" MAX)
Color: Olive or green, orange antennal scales, uropods with red setae, red raptorial appendages
Distinguishing Characters: Leopard spots on anterior lateral carapace
Activity: Active both day and night
Aquarium Requirements: Temperature: 2228° C
Salinity: 3336 PSU
Cohabitants: Most aquarium animals are not safe with large O. scyllarus
Aquarium size (adult): 100 l
Aquarium substrate: Sand and gravel, LR
Suitability for Aquarium: Excellent; large adults prone to develop shell disease; active and interactive
Availability: Commonly available from wholesalers and retailers
VLDesign;1081087; said:
Wow where did that come from?? Doesnt mean anything there would be a hundred fact sheets out there all saying diff things. While i admit it was in a picture so is abit hard to say for sure i have seen a peacock that i would say was 99% def more like 10".
The ones that live in rocks rarely eat fish so i have no idea where that comes from. Ppl just blame mantis. The fish probably died from things the owner did wrong and when they couldnt find the body (which in an established tank will disapapear in a few days) they figured something had to of killed and eaten it.Cabinny_san;1060285; said:
Show me a hundred different sites with the species info all saying different things.. lol
And I seriously doubt you saw a peacock that was 10". Sorry, most people (Myself included) have a hard time estimating proper length of any animal. Unless it was measured, it's usually the wrong info.
And I seriously doubt you saw a peacock that was 10". Sorry, most people (Myself included) have a hard time estimating proper length of any animal. Unless it was measured, it's usually the wrong info.
I would like to set a few things straight...saying that all Mantis Shrimp can bust tanks is ignorant. That only applies to larger smashers and even then the chances are extremley low as they are not mistaking the glass for prey so they usually will leave it alone. For instance an LFS near me keeps some in a large reef display but in smaller tanks set inside...PLASTIC TANKS! and even with snails and hermit crabs crawling on the walls of those tanks they still are smart enough to recognise this barrier.
It is also very unfortunate to consider them pests as they are some of the most interesting misunderstood creatures in the hobby. They also make GREAT pets. They are extremley extremley hardy, they (atleast spearers) will easily switch over to frozen food, they are very fun to watch, they are extremley inteligent, and most importantly they are more monster pound for pound than anything else I know of in the fish keeping hobby!
one other myth that I would like to clear up is that the Peacock mantis is the largest species...at 7 inches some my consider it large but few know that the less common Zebra or Striped Mantis (Spear type) grows it over 15"!
I myself have a Zebra Mantis that im growing out so that I can show people just how cool these guys really are.
Hes small now but here is a video proving hes got some monster in him already.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=mVlVg0bBFoY
It is also very unfortunate to consider them pests as they are some of the most interesting misunderstood creatures in the hobby. They also make GREAT pets. They are extremley extremley hardy, they (atleast spearers) will easily switch over to frozen food, they are very fun to watch, they are extremley inteligent, and most importantly they are more monster pound for pound than anything else I know of in the fish keeping hobby!
one other myth that I would like to clear up is that the Peacock mantis is the largest species...at 7 inches some my consider it large but few know that the less common Zebra or Striped Mantis (Spear type) grows it over 15"!
I myself have a Zebra Mantis that im growing out so that I can show people just how cool these guys really are.
Hes small now but here is a video proving hes got some monster in him already.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=mVlVg0bBFoY
