How many mantis in one 5 gallon bowfront???

odoprelude

New member
Okay, you know how it always happens... the minute you find the one thing in the world you are looking for (for months in most cases), there is a cascade of the same thing, like they are everywhere... Well, after months of searching for a mantis shrimp and finally finding one, my LFS has got another one... a yellow one this time... so, here's the question... how many mantis shrimp can you keep in a 5 gallon bowfront tank?? Unfortunately I do not know the species of these little guys, but I figure that they are the little ones that hitchhike on the Florida rock. The guy at the LFS said if I didn't want him, he was going to be trigger food. :eek1: So he is currently in a bag next to my desk... HELP??? Thanks!
 
I have three mantis in my 5 gal. all three under three inches in size.
The tank also has 10 lbs. live rock with plenty of holes for them to hide in. Most mantis like tunnles with two or more openings so if you have to you might want to drill the rock. The less chance for contact the better the chance for survival.
Also my exsperence has been that females kill the male after matting. This may become a problem for you too.
 
Great, I appreciate the fast response! Okay, these two guys are under an inch and a half, so they should be fine.. I'll throw some more live rock in there with them, I probably have about 4-5 lbs now.. thanks again!:D
 
The only bright yellow stomatopod that I can think of is Pseudosquilla ciliata - a spearer that will on occasion feed on small gonodactylids. However, this is only if it can catch them in the open. With lots and lots of holes of different size, these animals should coexist for a while. There is always a risk when it comes to molting since most stomatopdos will kill and eat a new molt if they can get to it.

Roy
 
great! That's what I was wondering, I mean, it's really only for a small bit of time until I can get another 5-gallon tank or something like that. Just couldn't bear the thought of the mantis being trigger food...
 
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