Jared Cooper
New member
And has it worked for you
How large is your mantis tank?
- Thread starter Jared Cooper
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Death Shrimp99
Member
I have my mantis in a 30 gallon. I like to keep them in a big tank. It goves them room to move around and its just better for them.
Jared Cooper
New member
I only have room for a 6 or 12 gallon eclipse, I already have a 120 reef. I would prefer the 6 gallon.
orkspace-
nice website. So grendel died? that was an awsome looking shrimp. Was the 6 gallon water conditions just too hard to maintain or was the space too small for the shrimp or both?
orkspace-
nice website. So grendel died? that was an awsome looking shrimp. Was the 6 gallon water conditions just too hard to maintain or was the space too small for the shrimp or both?
Death Shrimp99
Member
Putting a mantis in a 6 gallon is shurely possible but would be hard, you would need heavy filtration, less aquascaping options, harder to maintain water conditions and your mantis would have no where to go. I would suggest the 12, its not that more mutch money and you and your mantis would be more happy.
1 20g,3-10g,and 1 6g,6 shrimp all together,2 have been living peacefully together in a 10 for the last year.Everything is hooked to my 125 reef's sump so water quality has never been an issue.Up till about 3 years ago I only kept one at a time,now I dont think Ill ever have enough tanks set up.
Jared Cooper
New member
Bigger seems to always be better and easier. Maybe I'll just have to go with th 12gallon, as long as can I convince my wife. When I bought my 120 i said that it would be all I needed. Now I am planning a 500 gallon as well as this mantis tank. I am truly addicted. I think I have a problem 
Jared Cooper
New member
orkspace- I am still curious about grendel. Web pages like that are what have converted me to having a mantis tank
Hook the 6 into the reef.The acrylic is simple to drill and with fittings and pipe youre looking at a whole 10 bucks for stable water quality,and a healthy happy mantis.Just like your reef,you want the best for it,well this is another living thing relying on you for care,give it the best possible.I am happy that my girlfriend tolerates my obsession,though I do get funny looks when I talk to my shrimp.
Death Shrimp99
Member
I'm thinking about getting a sump for my tank hows that sound? Whould i have to make one or could i buy one? Where at? Do they make eclipses with built on sumps? moviegeek-didint you say your acylric eclipse has a part on the back for filter heater and all?
orkspace
New member
OK, here's a more detailed explanation of my experiences keeping O. scyllarus shimp in a 6g Eclipse.
My first shrimp, Grendel, died shortly after his first molt. He had been quite active and hungry for the months I had kept him before his molt. I believe that either: 1) the fumes from my wife's nail polish / nail polish remover did him in after his stressful molt (not highly likely); or 2) I missed a piece of his shed exoskelton and/or uneaten food, which caused a surge in nitrates and killed him off. Grendel was a tough loss -- I swear that he was more intelligent than some people I know. BTW, I believe Grendel was a "he" because of his striking emerald color.
My second shrimp, Gorlak, was a female O. scyllarus (I believe so because of her olive color -- I'm probably wrong on this). Gorlak was missing one of her raptorial appendages when I rescued her from a really cruddy LFS. Gorlak died shortly after her first molt (as in, I left for the day knowing that a molt was imminent and came back to find a molted exoskelton and a dead shrimp). It was interesting to note that her freshly-molted body was more vibrantly colored than before, and that she had regenerated her missing raptorial appendage. I believe that Gorlak died from a nitrate surge caused by her shed exoskeleton.
The moral of this story is . . . my two shrimps did GREAT in the 6g eclipse setups, until the stress of molting combined with increased nitrates did them in.
I won't try another O. scyllarus in a small tank. They're beautiful and intelligent animals, but are quite sensitive to nitrate buildup. I think it's possible to successfully keep an O. scyllarus in a small tank for a long time, if one is really diligent about tank care(feeding sparsely, frequent 1g water changes, and being EXCEEDINGLY careful to avoid stressing the bug before, during, and after a molt).
I'm currently keeping a G. platysoma in a 6g. I've also filled the 6g with macroalgae, to help with nutrient export. I feed very lightly (1-2x week), and am going to be very careful when it becomes time for the G. platysoma to molt. Wish me luck.
My first shrimp, Grendel, died shortly after his first molt. He had been quite active and hungry for the months I had kept him before his molt. I believe that either: 1) the fumes from my wife's nail polish / nail polish remover did him in after his stressful molt (not highly likely); or 2) I missed a piece of his shed exoskelton and/or uneaten food, which caused a surge in nitrates and killed him off. Grendel was a tough loss -- I swear that he was more intelligent than some people I know. BTW, I believe Grendel was a "he" because of his striking emerald color.
My second shrimp, Gorlak, was a female O. scyllarus (I believe so because of her olive color -- I'm probably wrong on this). Gorlak was missing one of her raptorial appendages when I rescued her from a really cruddy LFS. Gorlak died shortly after her first molt (as in, I left for the day knowing that a molt was imminent and came back to find a molted exoskelton and a dead shrimp). It was interesting to note that her freshly-molted body was more vibrantly colored than before, and that she had regenerated her missing raptorial appendage. I believe that Gorlak died from a nitrate surge caused by her shed exoskeleton.
The moral of this story is . . . my two shrimps did GREAT in the 6g eclipse setups, until the stress of molting combined with increased nitrates did them in.
I won't try another O. scyllarus in a small tank. They're beautiful and intelligent animals, but are quite sensitive to nitrate buildup. I think it's possible to successfully keep an O. scyllarus in a small tank for a long time, if one is really diligent about tank care(feeding sparsely, frequent 1g water changes, and being EXCEEDINGLY careful to avoid stressing the bug before, during, and after a molt).
I'm currently keeping a G. platysoma in a 6g. I've also filled the 6g with macroalgae, to help with nutrient export. I feed very lightly (1-2x week), and am going to be very careful when it becomes time for the G. platysoma to molt. Wish me luck.
Jared Cooper
New member
Thanks for the info! I only hope to get an awsome looking shrimp like Grendel. The macro algae sounds like a very good idea, I think I'll do that as well. It sounds like O. scyllarus is a little more sensitive. Maybe I'll check out some other species. I never thought I'd ever be so concerned about keeoing a mantis shrimp alive. :smokin:
Wow, I'm going to start a Mantis Shrimp now! I've been searching for my next cool project to do with an empty 8 gallon hexagon tank.
Will a mantis shrimp require heavy filtration? Say, compared to a clownfish of equal size?
BTW, I'm currently in Hong Kong on vacation and they serve mantis shrimp here in some of the restaurants. The ones I've seen for food are rather plain colored species. I'll let you know how they taste this time.
-chipmunk
Will a mantis shrimp require heavy filtration? Say, compared to a clownfish of equal size?
BTW, I'm currently in Hong Kong on vacation and they serve mantis shrimp here in some of the restaurants. The ones I've seen for food are rather plain colored species. I'll let you know how they taste this time.
-chipmunk
Death Shrimp99
Member
This board has been growing so quick recently! The 8 hex would be fine. They will need a good filter but there quite hardy. You will find all the info on them you need by looking at some recent posts. And here's a helpful website - http://www.blueboard.com/mantis/ How mutch is it for a mantis dinner? Cant people eat something else!
I'm not sure. It's a popular item at many of the late night street shopping locations where you can dine at a sidewalk table. I was in Hong Kong 2 years ago and they had a special at a restaurant, if you ordered their set menu you can add a huge plate of mantis shrimps for $5...each shrimp was almost a foot long and you got about a dozen of them.
-chipmunk
Death Shrimp99
Member
Wow! $5! If they only knew i'd pay $50 for 1 of those!
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