Really wanting to try a mantis

im wanting a mantis shrimp. I've got a 20g Tall that houses my little 3 inch green spotted puffer, i will be getting 20lbs of base rock this week, and since he is by himself in the tank i really want to add a mantis

i know its probably not going to work but i would like a shot, my only real worry is that he sleeps on a sandbed so i would need a mantis that wont kill him in his sleep *if possible*

is there one that likes to hide in the rockwork and that would leave him alone and since it would be in the rocks he would leave it alone?

any possibility that this might work?

 

bump, think this is possible?

 

Hmmm...I'm not sure because I don't know anything about puffers. But i'd be more worried about the mantis rather than the puffer. But it honestly depends on the mantis, and the puffer. For example, some mantis will go their whole life sharing a tank with various fish, with no harm done. While some may get hungry enough enough to "eat it if it moves".

Almost all smashing mantis close up their dens at night and are only active in the day. Princess was good about going to bed about an hour before lights out, and she spent her life with a damsel. But Bo our other mantis will run around a good time after dark, and he also ate 3 chromis. He also spent some months with a demonic damsel and didn't hurt it at all...so he could have just gone after the chromis because they were sick. We know the first one died before Bo got it...but he definitely got the next one while it was swimming

I'd be more worried about what your puffer would do to a mantis, rather than what a mantis would do to your puffer.

I'd wait for someone else to chime in on this thread, but that's what my views are. I think.

 

hmmm i know my puffer is different from most as he is an extremely picky eater like he will not eat snails for his teeth weather tiny snails that are found on freshwater plants, or even ceriths he will not touch. The only thing that i was able to get him to eat to wear down his teeth are live crickets, he loves to hunt them down, i started him with ghost shrimp then he got to the point where he wouldnt eat them so thats when i gave crickets a try and he loves them.

And for normal food the only thing that he will eat is frozen bloodworms, when i first got him i was only able to get him to eat dried plankton and that was when he was little, then i moved him up to frozen foods and only accepts bloodworms, i tried to give him my other fishies food and just spat it out.

He is a fish killer he has left fish dead with chunks bitten out of them, since then he has been in solitary confinement for 1 1/2 years now, so i would like to give a mantis a try just to see, but i dunno yet

 

The mantis will most likely out pace the puffer but he will be confined to his den. I don't think the mantis will bother the puffer, but its possible. Unlike Jwin's N. Wennerae mine is a lunatic at night. He is constantly banging on stuff trying to wake me up and killing snails.

 

and my puffer is a slow swimmer.

What im thinking once i get my rock from RC i think i might throw in my chromis to see what he does because he's been nipping at my wrasse anyways this could possibly be a test if he leaves the chromis alone might be a go with a potential mantis?

 

how are you ever going to get to colorado, every time I look, your wanting to buy something else.:LolLolLol

I think a mantis would be cool, you should soooo get one.

 

lol i know i just have a really bad addiction, at least thats the first step to recovery, admitting you have a problem

yea mantis look really cool, i like the clown mantis, i think thats the name saw it one time on liveA it was really pretty

 

this guy is what i like
Clown Mantis Shrimp

 

he/she is pretty cool.