acclimating

[DreamScape]

can anyone recommend an acclimation technique to use with mantis shrimp?
i read that inverts are sensitive to water changes.

 

[racer340]

I acclimate using a piece of airline tubing with a roll clamp.Usually put the animal in a plastic bucket with its water and drip tank water in at about a drop every 2 seconds.After the water volume has doubled I remove half and do it 2 more times.Takes a while but never had a lost life

 

[Death Shrimp99]

well here an acclimation story. when i got my shrimp they put it in a little plastic bag. when i was trying to get the abg into the tank to make the tempature the same he jumped at where i was holding the bag and i was so scared i droped the bag a little and it didint go totally in but it was very small. well when i pored some water in it snaped at the cup i was useing and i droiped the cup and bag into the tank and it broke the cup after i drpoed it in! :eek2: hes a agressive guy but a little slow. It did great and the acclimation had no effect on him he just sucked up the pain.

racers method is a little better i'd go with that.:thumbsup:

 

[Gonodactylus]

This really depends on the species. Many of the intertidal gonodactylids are extremely tolerant of both temperature and salinity changes. I have seen conditions on a reef flat in Panama go from 25 to 38 degrees C in a few hours with no ill effect on the N. bredini. I have also seen heavy squalls at low tide send the salinity to that of basically fresh water. Again, the animals can survive this for several minutes. What they can't take is a combination of the two. Several times I have seen a noon time low tide coupled with a rain storm followed by bright sun put animals into 37+, near fresh water. This is fatal. Several years ago on Guam, most of the reef flat was wiped out by such conditions.

On the other hand, if you are dealing with a subtidal species, they can be very sensitive to sudden changes in both temperature and salinity. I generally float an open bag in the tank and add a cup of water every 10 - 15 minutes until the bag is nearly full - two or three hours. Generally this is adequate for even the most sensitive species.

Roy

 

[DreamScape]

thanks.
that was great help.
now, how aged should the tank be (average) before i put a mantis in?

 

[Gonodactylus]

The simple answer is that the tank should be run in as long as possible, particularly if you are dealing with a large species such as O. scyllarus that is prone to burying extra food, molt skins, etc. The stomatopod itself won't cause that much nitrogen to worry about, but its extracurricular activities can.

On the other hand, smaller tougher gonodactylids like Neogonodactylus bredini or Gondoactylus chiragra are great for breaking in new tanks. I typically put on in a new set-up from day one and rarely have problems. You just have to know what species it is and what is its tolerence. Some of the most sensitive species are O. havanensis and O. brevirostris. I have had them die when a pump stopped for only a few hours.

Roy

 

[DreamScape]

thanks again.
:fun1:those were about the only things i couldn't find info about.
i'll try and post photos when i get my mantis(s).
:thumbsup: