I got hit! Do I have a mantis?

[Kinetic]

I have a fairly large acropora colony. It was added to my tank 5 weeks ago. It started to RTN, and there was some tissue damage. My emerald crab started pulling tissue (dead) and got some of the live tissue, further damaging the colony (emeralds are evil, another issue). I pulled the colony from where it was resting on my rockwork, and was inspecting it. I was checking out the RTN, and saw a little hole, and them putting my thumb close to it, WAM, something shot out or zipped out and bit/hit my finger. No blood, didn't look my skin broke, just felt like something small hit me.

When I looked closer, it looked like a hole at the base between acro and rock, and inside looked like a "burrow". This is between the encrusting part of the acro and the rock it's encrusting on. I though it might just be how the acro sits. A day later, the entrance to the hole is covered with random small pieces of substrate etc. The hole was very small, big enough for a large amphipod to go through. Could this be a mantis? I will be fragging off undamaged branches, and I think I'll tear apart the acro to investigate. But just wondering if this sounds like a tiny mantis? All my snails, hermits, fish, etc. are all still alive (even after 5 months), and even after the acro was introduced.

Is this a mantis?

Thanks

 

[Agu]

Mantis and pistol shrimp will both block the entrance to their burrows at night. Pistol shrimp however typically burrow in soft substrate. Odds are good you have a small mantis that is unable to prey on your cleaner crew(yet).

Best thing to do is isolate the rock so the mantis can't relocate within your tank.

 

[ClownReef®]

I have a friend who had the same problem. A mantis (a very cool one at that) made a network of tunnels inside a very cool acro colony he had..tissue started to die..he had no clue what was wrong, every other coral was good..until he saw him poke out of one on the holes the shrimp made on the acro..As soon as he took the coral out, the mantis jumped to the floor..Then he got the axe, LOL..the coral died though.

 

[Kinetic]

hmm, I do think I have a mantis. I haven't had a chance to try to save the acro. I will frag everything not dead yet off of it.

I'll take pix

 

[Kinetic]

I fragged the acro out, about sixteen frags came from it. The acro colony actually fell off the rockwork today, and I think the mantis got away into some other rocks =( Oh well.