mantis shirmp out in the open

[nano]

i just got a free mantis shirmp from a fisherman theat caught it off a drager off of ny but i dont know what kind it is so i will try to get a picture but any way i have had the shirmp which is like 5 inches in a 5 gallon tank for about a day and a half it has about a 6 inch layer of mixed crush coral and sand and perfect water but the shirmp just stays out in the middle of the tank it dose not hid or tunnel under the rocks it just sits their is this normal when you first get the shirmp or is their something wrong with it

 

[laustin]

post some photos

well i would first off say that the tank is too small, the mantis is probably a third of the length of the tank.

 

[Gonodactylus]

If it is a Squilla, this is fairly typical. They can't/won't usually burrow in gravel. They like mud. Also, animals from this area probably are living in fairly cool water. I don't know where the animal was caught or at what depth, but I suspect the tank it is now in is much warmer than where it came from. All in all, my guess is that you won't be able to keep in more than a few weeks. I hope I'm wrong.

Roy

 

[jedimpt]

you might want to put the tank in an area where you the ac hits it. thats assuming you have one and have it on all the time like we do in Texas. I have my 2g mantis tank there and the temp of the water is near 68-70 range. I usually run my room at that temp. I know that the water temp up there is a lot cooler than this, but it might help.

or at least it will make you feel like your doing something.

 

[nano]

the tank is just for a few days until i get a 15 gallon set up it is in a room with a ac but i noticed it has one claw do they grow back and if they do how long will it take to grow back thanks

 

[Gonodactylus]

The raptorial appendage will regenerate, but it takes about three molts before it will be fully functional again. Under ideal conditions the animals will molt every two to four months, so you are looking at six months to a years until the appendage approaches full size.

Roy

 

[jedimpt]

I've read that they tend to be a little clumsy when they first loose an appendage. Do they regain their balance pretty quickly or slowly as it grows back?

 

[Gonodactylus]

We remove appendgaes all the time as part of our research and we don't see this. I think that these reports of a loss of balance must involve other injuries as well, perhaps to the eyes. This will certainly cause the animal to roll to one side.

Roy

 

[jedimpt]

Most of the posts I've read saying this involved mantis conflicts where the apparent damage came as a loss of an appendage. There could also have been some unnoticed eye damage as well.