Good News & Bad News
Good News & Bad News
Hey,
The good news is that both shrimp arrived today and are definitely Gonodactylus scyllarus. They both have nice coloration too! Both have been placed in 10 gallon tanks with live rock and nothing else. One tank is acrylic and the other is rectangular glass. The first one adjusted well, and has already eaten a dried piece of krill (you know those orange ones that come in cans and have vitamins in them).
The bad news is that one is dead/dying! Also, they listed them as 4inches, and these are about 6! Probably an inch and a quarter thick too...I say this is bad 'cause they may be near the end of their lifespan and probably won't get much larger. I'd love to have a small one and watch it grow to this size. Also these 10 gallon tanks are probably too confining for them...Anyone have any guesses on how much longer they'll live under perfect aquarium conditions? A year? two? Half?
The reason one is dying is because he was in the bag too long. I think his oxygen was running out. I had to bring him to my office tank after putting the first one back at my house (which is for my younger brother coming to visit on turkey day)
When I put the second into my office tank he had been in the bag for 4 hours longer than the first! I had to take stuff out of the tank and get it ready...The packet was still warm, so his oxygen must have been depleted. I knew it was trouble as soon as I cut the bag open. A gust of comewhat foul air pushed out. This really sucks, also they charged me 92$ after quoting 74$ plus/minus 5!
Well, I'd still be happy if the other can pull through.
Please tell me if you think he will make it. Here are the details of how he reacted.
When I decided to get him in the tank his water was still warm and the heat pads were warm, he looked rigid in the bag and did not respond well. I decided to forget any acclimation procedures....I put him in the tank he just slid out of the bag and landed on his head with his tail up against a rock! He was motionless for a few seconds, then he had a sudden burst of energy and moved a bit but then quickly stuck his head into the ground unnaturally. His eyes were not moving, his body somewhat contorted, his antennae flat against his body and not attentive to say the least...the only good sign was that his swimmerettes?(beneath his tail) were moving slowly every so often. I touched my hand to the tank near his head and there was no reaction! Now a creature known for it's aggressiveness, this can't be good! After 15 minutes he made some noticeable changes. His eyes reacted to my movement very slightly, his swimmerrettes were moving more rapidly and more often. I nudged him a little with a chopstick, and he barely reacted. His body was still in an unnatural position with his eyes in the gravel. I touched the area infront of him and he jerked back slightly...I stopped there. I did not want to aggravate him more, and am hoping he is revitalizing!
I know they are supposed to be hardy, and I guess I'll find out soon enough! I would have stayed at work longer to see the outcome but my parking meter was coming to an end and my girlfriend wouldn't understand me staying for this!!!
I'll have to go back tomorrow to check it out!
But right now I have 4 tanks going, three with mantis! The other mantis I have is the gonodactylus Chigra, or something...He just smashed and ate a mussel the other day.
Alright, hope this dude pulls through!
Get back to ya'll when I find out!
If he dies, then my borther just lost his x-mas gift! ha ha
-sean