uh oh...mantis shrimp?

[jdhanover]

So I was talking to the lfs where I have generally enjoyed good service etc, but have lost a couple of fish. A Hippo in QT (ich/ammonia spike) - replaced at cost ; a royal gramma (2d one in the tank has been fine for 6+ months) and the solar wrasse (fine in QT, goes into tank, disappears for 12 days, reappears and now presumed dead). They were a bit puzzled as they say their mortality rate has been rather low.

So they brought up the possibility that there is a mantis shrimp lurking in the rocks. Said if you see a pile of shells that could be the indicator. Sure enough there are 5 shells all in one spot.

So how do I know for sure that I have one? How do I rid myself of it? Pull out all the rocks in that area...and do what with them? Is there a trap for these buggers?

Seems like every common problem is one that I have even though I try to be careful etc. Pretty frustrating.

 

[chadman]

bummer about the mantis shrimp...i never have had one but i seem to remember reading in threads either on here or on another message board that they often make a noise at night which can be heard out of hte tank....don't mark my work on that one though....

 

[LarryW]

Yes the can make a tapping or clicking sound. You might want to get a flashlight and observe the tank with the lights off in the evening. A red light might work better, so that it doesn't cause it to go back in the rocks. I don't know if you want to pull your rock out and search for it. The tend to hide deep in the rocks. can you nail down the piece of LR he might be hiding in? you might be able to pull that piece, and place it in a QT tank. if it's a small piece you could try a FW dip, but that will potentially ham everything on that piece of rock.


Good luck

 

[chadman]

they can really mess things up though...i have heard of them actually breaking glass tanks....best of luck in your hunt!

 

[LarryW]

I have heard that they could break glass, but I have never heard of it happening to anyone though... you defiantly want to get it out of there though.

 

[LarryW]

post over here, they might have a few ideas...

http://reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=37

 

[alexb518]

First off, do not try and pick it up with your hands as their claws are razor sharp...and they will try and slice you repeatedly before you even realize what happened. Now i'll explain some ways to get rid of it.
1) you can introduce a fish into your tank that will eat it. this will include triggers (although you'll want to remove your other fish,work really well), an octopus, moray eel, i've heard of certain shrimps and crabs doing this as well.
2) setup a homeade trap. use a bottle/container, with live bait inside and then create a funnel type of opening.
3) since you know where it hides (in the shells), try just scooping it up when it's in it's hole--and not with your hand, of course.
4) i've heard of a suction method--dont' know if it works, but google it.
5) if all else fails, remove all of your LR and start searching. this is probably the most common method. when you take the rock out, dunk the rock into club soda for a moment, and that should scurry out the mantis shrimp.

well, good luck and sorry...i know it sucks.

 

[returnofsid]

They can "****" their claw back like the hammer on a pistol...and then slam it into your hand. Their nickname is "Thumb Splitter" for good reason. Mantis Shrimp are very beautiful and I'd love to come across one to put in my refugium. Wouldn't want it anywhere near my fish though...lol.

 

[cowboyswife]

If you can locate the hole in the rock that it is living, blast the hole with freshwater with a turkey baster, have a net ready, and he will come out. This worked catching 5 from my husband's tank. Or like alexb518 said, take the rock out, and you can even shake it around in a bucket of freshwater and that works too. HTH.

 

[chrisstie]

what returnofsid was saying is kind of like "caulk" heh silly filter doesn't realize theres more than one meaning for a word

 

[t5Nitro]

Go get some chain mail gloves, reach in and show him whose boss.

Haha, just kidding :lol:

I never had one, but you may need a fish trap or something, as said above the mantis shrimp forum would know a lot on how to get them, and when you say you have one and trying to get rid of it, they will most likely try and buy it off you and pay the shipping