Broken Glass... Urban fish myth verifiable

[srude]

Here, I hope, is a public service announcement that I may never have to make again:
My 4 inch O.S. mantis shrimp did the nasty deed! He broke his BRAND NEW 20L tank that I special ordered!!!! I heard a crack, thought it was a mischevous cat and thought nothing of it. Next thing I know, there is water all over the kitchen floor!!!
Yep, 20Longs are not thinck enough despite what you may think. He had merely finished his molt earlier this last weekend and I didn't think he was even capable of striking yet. I fed him for the first time and he had the strength to crack glass.
Synopsis... I get to the tank to inspect, there is water puddling away from the counter. I check the skimmer, no leaks... check the sides of the tank, dry. I kick him out of his burrow and see the bottom of the tank after clearing 4 inches of crushed coral. He split the tank all the underside. There is a chip on the bottom where his lair was. Little bastard!
Go Acrylic!!!

 

[xahx]

ye adam those glass tanks. galss breaks dont it@!

 

[xahx]

ye dam those glass tanks. galss breaks dont it@!

 

[Wocka]

so if i put a peacock in a 20g glass tank theres a high chance of him cracking it?

 

[AW2EOD]

I've kept 2 large Peacock Mantis (one was 4.5" and the other was pushing 6").

Both, were kept in separate 20gal. tanks with NO problem, ever.

The chances of someone getting a mantis and it breaking the glass is VERY low. You just have to make sure you provide them with a very deep sandbed.

As in srude's case....they'll be trying to build their burrow, and go too deep, and break the bottom.

For peacocks, dont just use sand. Mix the sand with crushed shells, and live rock rubble, as this is the type of substrate they build their burrows with in the wild.

 

[Spudstr]

my os.. he has tested his tank couple time.s. but hasn't been able to break through... i think he gave up on it.

 

[catdoc]

I have mine in a glass tank but I laid a piece of acrylic/plexiglass on the bottom for reinforcement during burrowing. It still makes me nervous when my cat is being nosy and the mantis comes over to run him off!

 

[computom]

Eek... not a happy tale.
I have one (he's kind of a mottle grey/tan/olive with green fringes on swimmers, about 2" long, smasher)now in a little 2 gal tank, there is about a 3' layer of fine sand on the bottom and a few pieces of Live rock. Is this enough sand?

 

[floridajhawk]

hey since its fine sand I would maybe put a little more, I have 4 1/2 inches somewhat coarse on mine with some pvc tubes hopefully he will recognize as potential burros so he or she wont be bangin the bottom all the live long day

 

[Gonodactylus]

From your last thread, I gather that this 4 inch O. scyllarus molted around the 12th or 13th of March. I assume that the tank cracked on the 16th or 17th. That put less than a week between the molt and the tank breaking. I've kept hundreds of O. scyllarus and have recorded the striking forces of several following a molt and I have never seen one regain its striking power that fast. In fact, you usually can't make them strike and they usually do not engage in extensive heavy construction at this time.

I can think of a few possible explanations:

1. This is a very unusual stomatopod that recovered from the molt faster than the norm.

2. It molted before the 12th and you just then found the molt skin that may have been burired. (They often don't dig them up for several days.)

3. The tank broke for other reasons. A 20 gal with a bottom flush with the table and without a foam bed can crack from a single large grain of sand between the two surfaces.

4. Some combination of the above explanations were at work.

5. I don't know what I'm talking about.

Roy

 

[srude]

Roy, you crack me up.
Tank cracked the 15th. I think that you are correct in assumption #2. He didn't eat last Friday (11th) when I tried to feed him a snail. Clearly a type II error on my part
The tank was on a counter, but has a plastic border, so no contact with the counter.
and yes, he is a unique stomotopod. The tank water was very clean, after a large volume of fresh mixed water was introduced. We call him Deluxe, as in cockster deluxe. As in half cockroach half lobster deluxe.
Back to work!

 

[EMG]

You would have been fine if you would have put a piece of plexiglass the size of on the bottom, to line it. I did that with mine to make sure he doesn't break the bottom.

 

[srude]

Woulda Coulda shoulda, how bout a slap in the face, too. I think what I am trying to suggest to this forum is that mantis can break glass.

 

[Broodingwolf]

if only there was a sticky warning people of this at the top of the forum... if **I** was in charge, I'd put something like "for all potential mantis owners" and then I'd probably link to an article about them smashing glass. That would be a pretty clever way to let people know that a mantis can break glass

 

[Bugs825]

ummm...........


I thought that there was.

Nathan

 

[Broodingwolf]

omg they stole my idea >.<

 

[srude]

Well, he's now in a custom 1/2" acrylic job that ran me about a bill. He digs it, running over to the rubble pile and grabbing what he wants to build his den with then running back. He's on a diet of Krill now, leaves the other inverts alone. So there you have it. I feel better with 1/2" all around and I think he is pretty happy with the extra space. Man, I'm a sucker for this thing.
The good news is, I now ahve a somewhat sizeable tank to stock with some mean, nasty fish. Hello Radiata lion.