mantis shrimp, good or bad

[datman422]

I was view my tank last night and I notice, what seems to be a mantis shrimp. It is still very small, about 5-8mm. If I remember correctly, I had a brief encounter with it maybe 2 weeks back when I was moving a LR and heard a loud crack follow by a pinch on my thumb. Now I'm thinking that crack sound was the mantis firing at me. Now my question is, are these guys bad for my tank, I have heard of some mantis breaking or cracking glass with their sharp spear like claws. INPUT NEEDED thx.

 

[odoprelude]

well that all depends... if it is a smasher, he'll prolly start to eat your cleaner crew, it he's a spearer, he'll prolly start eating your fish. If you can catch him (her) there are plenty of of people on this board (myself included) who would be glad to give him a home. Or better yet, buy a 6 gallon eclipse and set him up a little tank. They are really awesome animals with surprising intelligence. HTH!

 

[datman422]

ahh, very intersting. my mantis is roughtly 3-8mm. If he is either a smasher or a spearer, should i be worry? Are there any preditor out there that will take these guys out? MY thinking is with him being so small, I dont think it will be possible for me to find and catch him. MORE inputs please.......

 

[ReefMagic]

Well, just the normal crustacean predators, triggers, puffers, octopuss. Those r the only ones I would worry about. Next time you see him try to get a pic. we can try to help u ID him

 

[datman422]

YEA, WILL DO. I'LL TRY TO GET A SHOT OF HIM NEXT TIME I SEE. HIM. HOWEVER, SHOULD I BE WORRY ABOUT THESE GUYS? AT NIGHT I CAN HEAR CRACKING SOUND COMING FROM THE TANK. I PRETTY SURE ITS THE MANTIS DOING THIS. MORE INPUT ON GOOD OR BAD...THX.

 

[jjrock]

If it is a Mantis Shrimp you have nothing to worry about. Unless, of course, you want to keep your other pets alive. A mantis shrimp will systematically kill and eat pretty much everything else you have in there.

How can I be so sure? Because I love watching my mantis eat, so I buy damsels, feeder fish sometimes, large hermit crabs, small hermits crabs, snails, periwinkles, and I even sometimes throw in my firends fish whenever they die of natural causes. My mantis shrimp does not descriminate, he EATS ALL OF THEM.

Last week I put in a rather large banded coral shrimp, which Ghengis very quickly destroyed and ate. I have it on video too, so I should post it sometime ....

Hope that helps.

JJ.

 

[datman422]

thanks to the info. and say hi to Ghengis for me...

 

[njmar1]

Oddwise it would be smasher, spearers usually do'nt live in LR I believe.... my damsel seems to like my Mantis.

 

[jjrock]

That's a good point. I have a damsel in there now that seems to be living in relative harmony with Ghengis. The other damsels I put in there, I believe were getting "sick" or just not doing so well which may have made it an easier choice for Ghengis to eat them (I got pics of that too for proof he does eat fish).

But now I have a small yellow tailed Damsel in each of my aquaria, and they are doing just fine. The other day I even fed some frozen shrimp to ghengis off of a stick and the damsel came and ate some too right in Ghengis's face.

Neither of them payed any attention to the other.

Very cool, and good observation njmar1.

JJ.