I guess it's time for more background.
Norman came to me in a batch of live rock. I happened to have the 6 Gal sitting around turned it into his home. The idea was for a mantis tank- not a reef/mantis tank.
I put the tank together quickly and go it cycled in so he could get out of the breeder I'd put him in with my bigger tank.
He's been in this tank with various tank mates (even fish) without any problems for about six months. I got lazy and didn't check the water levels for about a month and here we are. (it may very well be eight months since I set it up- I can't remember)
At no point previously has he seemed unhappy or uncomfortable. I tend to rotate fixtures and rocks in and out to keep him occupied- if he hasn't used it in a while it's gone, leaving whatever he _is_ using. I pulled some out just for the video recording since it was getting in the way.
To answer the question about the substrate:
http://www.seachem.com/en_products/product_pages/350_onyx_sand.html
It's two inches deep at one side and roughly three inches deep on the other side of the tank. It's what I could find quickly locally. It may very well not be reef compatible- I wasn't shooting for a reef at that time.
With the recommendations from the board and the IRC channels I've pulled all creatures except Norman and a small snail out.
I also picked up a nice rock covered in algae and soft corals and a lighting system to go with it. (SL28 at
http://www.customsealife.com/NewFiles/sealights.html)
I'm working the algae angle to get the nitrates down. I also popped a flow control valve on the power head and cranked it way down. Now that just doesn't knock him over- he's still acting strangely.
After the molting question I began putting small doses of iodide in about every other day. I probably won't continue those.
I did a little test- He was floundering around so I picked up the clamshell and dropped him under it. In about 20 seconds his eyes popped out of one of the openings and he sat there just like the old days. After about 20 minutes he edged his way out of the clam shell and hasn't returned to it since. In fact, he hasn't returned to any cover since.
Another test- with the water flow cranked way down I dropped about ten brine shrimp in, wondering if he'd be interested in making them a meal. I saw him catch one and appear to eat it, that's a good thing. The real news was that the brine shrimp never ended up in the filter or the power heard- the flow is that weak now.
I did _not_ rush out and buy 10 pounds of rock and shock the system. I also did not do a massive (1/2 or more) water change. I'm not interested in a quick fix that kills everything.
I didn't do the PVC pipe thing yet- he's really not burrowing or trying to hide. I had a length of hard tube I did put in there, it may not be exactly the right size it gave me a better understanding of the purpose of the pipe. I'll pick some up soon.
On the power heed question- Rio 50. Helpful specs:
http://www.graystonecreations.com/riotable.htm
On the negative/positive reaction question... I came to keeping a mantis by accident. At the time I wasn't able to find very much information on them and most LFS places talked about triggers when I mentioned I needed to know how to care for a mantis. I didn't find this message board until recently. I suppose Google has gotten better? It's great to see scientific answers to Mantis questions, but I couldn't find a simple guide to caring for one. (I live in HOWTO guides as part of my job and I couldn't find one for mantis shrimp- go figure)
Anyway- constructive criticism is always appreciated. I took the time to post my original post with video to communicate the problem better. I fully anticipated emotional reactions to watching it and I wasn't exactly on cloud nine over it. Those are only a few small clips- I get to watch him every day. I thought it would be worthwhile to hopefully get some expert advice on the real situation and perhaps fill the archives with information for the next guy (that whole "I couldn't find a howto guide" thing). If Normans demise keeps the next guy's creature alive I'll be okay with that.
I donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t get wrapped up in other peopleââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s reactions. I donââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t own them.
I still have high hopes for the silver bullet answer. I count on Linus' law: "Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.''
At least there hasn't been any name calling. (yet)
