I was feeding my tank last night and saw something curious pop out! He was bright green and had two bulging eyes. He quickly darted away but I got a good enough view of him to think Mantis shrimp. Today while feeding he came right out in the open and sure enough he is a Mantis and he is about 2 inches long! Should I keep him, or should I try and trap him and get rid of him? He doesn't seem to have a definate home right now because I have seen him in both sides of my tank. I know he is not good for my inverts but he looks pretty cool. Any advise is more than welcome. Thank you. Tcanova.
mantis in my tank
- Thread starter tcanova
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ADHybrid
New member
If it is a smasher, say goodbye to all your inverts, as it will eventually get them as it gets bigger. The do, however, make wonderfull pets and will supply you with hours of enjoyment. If you want to keep him, I suggest you trap him and put him unharmed into a tank just for him. This way everyone is happy. 
worlds under
New member
or you could donate him to your local lfs:bum:
Thurge
New member
They can be devistating to clean up crews, but if well fed and you take a little care with your choices in fish, it should leave them alone. Ground dwelling fish like gobies are more suceptable to becomming lunch than swimmers. Also slow moving fish are more likely to be eaten than fast moving fish. Lions seem to be seen as a threat. There is no gaurantee though so its always advisable to keep this in mind when keeping fish with mantis "Don't keep anything you would hate to loose with a mantis, a they can be eaten."
lemures-ex
New member
He'll kill everything including your family. I can save you by taking him off of your hands 
