Mantis Tankmates?

[Gr80Cake$]

I was wondering if we could get a list of known Mantis Tankmates? I know this is hit and miss, as differing Mantis in the same species will react according to their differing personalities, but it seems from what I've read, some fish work better than others.

I have a 2 inch Maroon N.Wennerae (I think ;o) in a 12g nano. Other than her expendable clean up crew invert tankmates (Red Leg and Zebra Hermits, Nessarius and Mexican Turbo Snails) , she's alone. I'd like to add some entertaining tankmates, preferrably fish. What I've read so far is that you want to start cheap (Damsel) to see if the smasher will kill soft bodied prey, but after that was thinking of adding a Scooter Blenny. I also know I need to stay small being just a 12 g tank.

Your thoughts? What's worked (or has not) for you guys?

Thanks!!

 

[urbanthreatz]

I have two spearers (in seperate tanks) and they love about anything i put in there, one has a peppermint shrimp that lives in his burrow with him, and the other has a 6-line wrasse, a damsel, lawnmower blenny and some misc shrimp. I don't know about the smashers though.

 

[Gr80Cake$]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12600656#post12600656 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by urbanthreatz
I have two spearers (in seperate tanks) and they love about anything i put in there, one has a peppermint shrimp that lives in his burrow with him, and the other has a 6-line wrasse, a damsel, lawnmower blenny and some misc shrimp. I don't know about the smashers though.

How odd! From what I've been reading, the spearers are supposed to be less likely to get along with soft bodied stuff. Are your spearers used to being feed by you and you alone, and do you feed them live food?

 

[Guygettnby]

there is no list of tankmates that could make it. your best bet is to start with a damsel or 2 and go from there. every mantis is different. but i can say that every N.Wennerea i have had did not attack fish that they have been housed with. the smaller the mantis the better chance you have with fish as far as N.Wennerea go.

everything else is pretty hit or miss. i recomend adding the mantis after the fish though....that has worked for me in the past. i removed the mantis for a few days when i added some fish then put him back in his home once the fish got acclimated. again you take a chance of stressing out the mantis in the process.

 

[urbanthreatz]

I've tried feeding both of them live food but they never caught on i guess.

 

[EllieSuz]

Research the Scooter Blenny before you put one in a small tank. They need live food, much like a Mandarin and are not suited to a small system.

 

[Wildinside]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12603298#post12603298 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by EllieSuz
Research the Scooter Blenny before you put one in a small tank. They need live food, much like a Mandarin and are not suited to a small system.

He was talking about a lawnmower/algae blenny.

 

[EllieSuz]

That may be, but he said Scooter, so it seemed a good idea to remind him that the Scooter is not really a blenny at all, but a dragonette.

 

[Guygettnby]

i agree with ellie, a scooter blenny shouldnt be put in a newer tank and defilently not a tank that size. i also dont recomend a scooter blenny as a choice of fish i would put with a mantis. they hover around the rock work too much.