mantis shrimp care and ?'s

i've been thinking lately, and i decided that if worse comes to worse in my biocube (ICH) ill get a mantis shrimp. now the questions ;D

1. which mantis do i get? i know some can get to like 8 inches and dont think that would work in an 8 gal

2.does substrate matter? what grain size?

3.how deep does the bed need to be?

4. i know that it will probably kill my cleaner shrimp, but what about an emerald crab and some nerites that NEVER leave the glass? and a feather duster.....

5.PVC pipes, are they reef safe? what diameter?

thanks, ill let you guys know if i think of anything else

 

bump

 

there are a variety of mantis that you can put in the tank. My favorite (which I had) is the peacock but that is definately too big!

Here is a pretty good site for mantis
The Lurker's Guide to Stomatopods - Mantis Shrimp

I have had a smithi and I know others on here have had others.

In regards to substrate, fine smooth sand is the best. They like lots of rocks where they can burrow and make a den. PVC pipes are great for the tanks, just rinse it off before putting it in. Then you can do your rocks around the tube (Mind you the mantis will redecorate to their liking!

In regards to your crabs/shrimp it depends on what type of mantis you get a smasher or spearer

 

Don't know much about mantis shrimp, but can answer a couple of your questions.

4. Yes to the crab & snails. If the snails get within its reach, it'll take 'em if it's hungry. Don't know about a feather duster.

5. PVC pipes are fine, people use them all the time in reef tanks. I would think diameter would depend on the adult size of the mantis you'd get.

 

i doubt my lfs will be carrying any spearers, what are some of the common names for the more common small mantis'?

 

N. Wennara are good shrimps, common hitchhiker shrimp get about 3" long They are a smasher

O Havenesis is a spearer/smasher about 3-4 inches long. more colorful then a lot of types

Wet Web Media has a lot of info on stomatopods
MantisShrimp

dont fear a smasher I had a 12" peacock that I loved. Everybody thinks that they will break a tank but in reality they dont usually smash at tanks. When you see a tank that gets broken, it is because someone was teasing the animal or the tank was already weakend or stressed. Rounded tanks (like nanos etc) probably offer a little better protection then a square tank.

At first you will want to keep your mantis by itself. You want to train it that YOU are the bringer of food. I kept Bob by herself (thought it was male until she laid eggs) for 6 months or so. They are VERY smart animals and would watch me all the time. She knew when I was going to feed her and would come out of her den. At that size I fed turbo snails and krill (smashers must be allowed to smash their food to keep their smashers healthy) She ate them only when I dropped them in front of her den. I then added a damsel to her tank and she left them alone. I eventually got to the point that I was able to place turbo snails and other crabs in her tank as a CUC and she would leave them alone. I would never trust a mantis to not eat something, as they are still an animal, however you will get to know the personality of your shrimp.

 

I wouldnt recommend a O. hananensis in an 8 gal tank unless you are very experienced with maintaining nano reef aquarium. O. havanensis are sensitive to changing parameters, low oxygen and is a difficult species in general. N. wennerae is much better suited for an 8 gal.

posted with tapatalk please ignore bad spelling and grammar

 

thank you both, its really cool when you can do that with your pets

Stepho, thanks for that info, i will be modest and say that i have stuff to work on :
+k to both of you

 

your in good hands lots of us on here keep mantis's. you would be surprised what you lfs can get you or what people bring in for them i got my last mantis for a lfs that some one brought in.

depending on the size of your mantis and how often/ if you spot feed em will depend on what survives in your tank as well as the mantises temperment. mine would destroy snails and hermit crabs but leave the 2 fish and pepermint shrimp alone.

some speices are pretty shy so you may want to look into that also good luck

 

I just noticed you are pretty close to the beach in Va. If you want a spearer you might be able to call around some bait shops and ask if they have "thumb splitters" or catch your own. I am not sure what the law is on catching stomatopods in Va though so you might want to check that out before hand. Any spearer you get locally would most likely be difficult to keep, but I would assume is cheap as they are selling it as live bait.

Here is a super cool website with information on the commonly available species. Roy's List of Stomatopods for the Aquarium

And here is the stomatopod club which I highly suggest you join. ;D