My Mantis died...

[deboM3]

Last night she came out of her PVC burrow that she called home for the two weeks that i had her, and started to dig a burrow under a 8 lb piece of LR i had in the tank. She would then kinda sit in there, and then go back to her PVC home. Late last night, I couldnt see her at all. I checked in the burrow she made in the sand, and couldnt see her. I didnt think it was that deep.

Anyways, tonight I thought that i would make sure she was alright. Even though i was almost positive that i was paranoid and i would actually disrupt her new home, I proceded to lift up the big piece of LR, only to find her lifeless underneath it.

I immediately took a water sample to my LFS and the guy said that all my levels are fine. I had been checking the ammonia/nitrite/ph daily for I am new to saltwater and i wanted to make sure i didnt screw it up.

He said the salinity was fine also, but didnt give me a number.

Is there anything i can do to make sure that my tank is still healthy??? I want to get another mantis, but I want to make sure that my tank is suitable for one ( as in it wont die).

She was a female Gonodactylus Chiragra ID'ed by Dr. Roy.

Thanks everyone.

Kyle

 

[psychodave]

I had a male G. Chiragra, Mitch, who died during his first molt in my tank, sorry for the loss. How long has your tank been established? Are there any other animals in there? She may have died during her molt...

 

[deboM3]

Thanks for the reply.

Im not sure, but i dont think she was molting. There was no shell, or eveidence of the molted skin present.

The tank was only cycled for a little over a week before i put the mantis in. A friend with a little knowledge of SW said that was a mistake, but the guy at the store assured me that my tank would be fine, and the Nitrites/nitrates/ammonia, and PH levels were good and have been since the mantis has been in the tank. Temperature was also kept pretty constant. There is also a blue damsel that is doing fine and has been in the tank ever since the mantis.

 

[psychodave]

hmm, you may have rushed it, but if all of your perameters are fine, then im clueless, lets see if someone else chimes in...

 

[Cruella]

well it would take time before there would be any readings. the first week there isn't ebough good bacteria. it takes a good 3-4 to have a good cycled tank.

 

[deboM3]

That is what most people are telling me.


At first ( like the first few days) the ammonia levels were pretty high, then after like 9 days went by, they came down to zero.

Is there a chance that all my nitrite/nitrate/ammonia/ph/salinity levels are reading very well, and my tank is still not cycled?? Its been a little over 3 weeks since its been running. (about half that time the mantis was in there) There hasnt been any chance in the levels listed above in the past two weeks.

BTW there are 6 snails and a blue damsel in the tank now. I dont know if that gives any information.

Thanks for the replys guys. Im new to this, and any advice is extremely appreciated. I guess i did put the mantis in the tank early, but all the levels were acceptable and i had the LFS guy check them for me (didnt trust my own measurements).

Thanks again

 

[psychodave]

ahh, ok, i miss read your statement about the tank...you put the mantis in there a week after you origionally set it up? If so, thats where your running into problems. You should let the tank run for a month and use a piece of krill to cycle it. If you put the mantis, damsel and snails/hermits in at the same time, my guess is thats where you went wrong. I know its hard but unless your adding corals, crabs and snails you should only do 1 at a time. You can get away with several crabs and snails at once, but I wouldnt add more than 1 fish or other animal to the tank at a time

 

[deboM3]

sorry.

First i added the mantis w/ 3 turbos.
A few days later i added the damsel with 3 smaller snails
So yeah, they were pretty much all added at the same time, but not exactly.

I thought the mantis was gonna eat everything i put in the tank. Or atleast the damsel and the other snails.

What should I do now? How long should i wait to add another mantis?

 

[psychodave]

id wait a month to be safe, dont do any water changes untill the end of the month, then do a 50% change and test the water, if all is well then your good to go

 

[DanInSD]

If she was OK for two weeks, it probably wasn't the tank cycling. I would expect that toxicity to happen pretty darned fast.

Dan

 

[deboM3]

id wait a month to be safe, dont do any water changes untill the end of the month, then do a 50% change and test the water, if all is well then your good to go

Ok, I will. Thanks for the advice.

If she was OK for two weeks, it probably wasn't the tank cycling. I would expect that toxicity to happen pretty darned fast.

Is there any way i can check for this? What would have done it???

Thanks guys .

 

[Cruella]

even when you "quick start a cycle by adding water,sand and rock from an established tank. you will still get a mini cycle. after a few weeks of cycling go to to your fish store and have your H20 tested. you can also help the cycle along by adding turbo start

 

[mattyice]

in all of my tanks i still have yet to have a mini cycle in them from using established rock, hell i hav even had the rock out of the tank for a few days, put it in another tank and put in fish right after, no problems at all, while i dont recommend that, it worked for me and monte, now you could either add that turbo start or i have had sucess with biospira from marineland labs, worked well on my first nano before i tore it down

 

[danskim]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8552003#post8552003 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mattyice
in all of my tanks i still have yet to have a mini cycle in them from using established rock, hell i hav even had the rock out of the tank for a few days, put it in another tank and put in fish right after, no problems at all, while i dont recommend that, it worked for me and monte, now you could either add that turbo start or i have had sucess with biospira from marineland labs, worked well on my first nano before i tore it down

Yeah.. it's not recommended, but you might get lucky.
Don't take any shortcuts. Take your time for your wallet's sake and the mantis' sake.

 

[mattyice]

ooo monte is fine now, she has been in her tank for 5 days and is doing fine, she is a little wary to come out though because the tank is alot bigger then she is used to but she has been exploring and so far loves it