lilswanwillow
New member
Umm, when i got george i decided to do a feeding experiment to find out his reactions to different colors/foods.
i had a lot of fun doing it, and since the project is due in class on tuesday, i only have 12 or so observations, but I would like to share with other mantis lovers what i did/what happened!!!!
this is what i did:
hopefully my table comes out right, otherwise, sorry, if you want the results i can e-mail them...
next... more mantises to do this with!!!
George and his Colors
In my experiment, I have decided to use different color feeding sticks to feed my mantis shrimp (Neogonodactylus wennerae) George. I am watching the reactions when I use different food types and different colored feeding sticks. I am also watching to see if he becomes accustomed to the sticks, or if he will always attack them.
Every other day Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ll feed him. For the feeding sticks, I am using plastic colored paint brushes, and I will either tuck the food in the bristles or stick it on the end, depending on the size of the food used. I will be feeding him either shrimp or squid. The orange stick will have squid, while the yellow will have shrimp. The length of each period of experiment will vary on how long it takes for him to take the food.
I will be observing; number of bashes, eye movement (1=low, 2=moderate, 3=high), approximately how far he came out of his holes to get the food, if he does a threat display, and other little side notes that may be interesting to watch at a later time.
Date Color Food Bashes Eye Out Threat Other
2-13 Orng Squid 3 3 1ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ Yes
2-15 Orng Squid 2 2 0 Yes
2-17 Orng Squid - - - - Moult
2-22 Orng Squid 0 3 2ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ No
2-24 Yelo Shrmp 10+ 3 3ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ Yes Stole from fish
2-26 Yelo Shmp 1 2 2-3 No Tried steal
2-28 Orng Squid 10+ 3 4-5 No
3-2 Yelo Shmp 10+ 3 6+ No Shrimp got stuck
3-4 Yelo Shmp 2 1 6+ No
3-7 Orng Squid 0 3 5 No
3-10 Yelo Shmp 2 2 2 No Big peice
3-12 Orng Squid 0 2 6+ No
3-14 Yelo Shmp 0 1 4 no
So, I think I can call my experiment successful. He gradually became accustomed to the colors of the sticks, and does not bash them as much as he used to. He also doesnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t perform the threat display when the colors are presented to him (which is successful in the experiment, but was quite beautiful to watch). The other reason that I think my experiment was successful is because he will come farther and farther out of the rockwork to take the food.
A few more questions arise though: does he bash at the yellow stick more because of color or shrimp, how does he react to just the colors, is he capable of choosing one food over another, does the time of day that I feed him at affect his reactions?
In conclusion, I was and still am interested in all of the new questions posed, and will conduct those experiments later. I had a lot of fun with this experiment. George is very active and is easy to observe.
The only problems that I had was when he decided to moult in February. I would also like to have more Neogonodactylus wennerae for experimenting with, and would like to see if other species react this way, or if certain spp have different reactions.
The other problem I had was that he lives in a small fish tank, and it needs work done within it. I added a little fish around the time he moulted, and that may have interfered with the results also.
i had a lot of fun doing it, and since the project is due in class on tuesday, i only have 12 or so observations, but I would like to share with other mantis lovers what i did/what happened!!!!
this is what i did:
hopefully my table comes out right, otherwise, sorry, if you want the results i can e-mail them...
next... more mantises to do this with!!!
George and his Colors
In my experiment, I have decided to use different color feeding sticks to feed my mantis shrimp (Neogonodactylus wennerae) George. I am watching the reactions when I use different food types and different colored feeding sticks. I am also watching to see if he becomes accustomed to the sticks, or if he will always attack them.
Every other day Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ll feed him. For the feeding sticks, I am using plastic colored paint brushes, and I will either tuck the food in the bristles or stick it on the end, depending on the size of the food used. I will be feeding him either shrimp or squid. The orange stick will have squid, while the yellow will have shrimp. The length of each period of experiment will vary on how long it takes for him to take the food.
I will be observing; number of bashes, eye movement (1=low, 2=moderate, 3=high), approximately how far he came out of his holes to get the food, if he does a threat display, and other little side notes that may be interesting to watch at a later time.
Date Color Food Bashes Eye Out Threat Other
2-13 Orng Squid 3 3 1ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ Yes
2-15 Orng Squid 2 2 0 Yes
2-17 Orng Squid - - - - Moult
2-22 Orng Squid 0 3 2ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ No
2-24 Yelo Shrmp 10+ 3 3ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ Yes Stole from fish
2-26 Yelo Shmp 1 2 2-3 No Tried steal
2-28 Orng Squid 10+ 3 4-5 No
3-2 Yelo Shmp 10+ 3 6+ No Shrimp got stuck
3-4 Yelo Shmp 2 1 6+ No
3-7 Orng Squid 0 3 5 No
3-10 Yelo Shmp 2 2 2 No Big peice
3-12 Orng Squid 0 2 6+ No
3-14 Yelo Shmp 0 1 4 no
So, I think I can call my experiment successful. He gradually became accustomed to the colors of the sticks, and does not bash them as much as he used to. He also doesnââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t perform the threat display when the colors are presented to him (which is successful in the experiment, but was quite beautiful to watch). The other reason that I think my experiment was successful is because he will come farther and farther out of the rockwork to take the food.
A few more questions arise though: does he bash at the yellow stick more because of color or shrimp, how does he react to just the colors, is he capable of choosing one food over another, does the time of day that I feed him at affect his reactions?
In conclusion, I was and still am interested in all of the new questions posed, and will conduct those experiments later. I had a lot of fun with this experiment. George is very active and is easy to observe.
The only problems that I had was when he decided to moult in February. I would also like to have more Neogonodactylus wennerae for experimenting with, and would like to see if other species react this way, or if certain spp have different reactions.
The other problem I had was that he lives in a small fish tank, and it needs work done within it. I added a little fish around the time he moulted, and that may have interfered with the results also.
