Think we could discuss this without the verbal shots at one another.

I think by the threads closed today, perhaps not, but maybe we could try. :lol:

Thanks a bunch. :D

As creatures with exoskeletons have sensation and can sense things they come in contact with they will have sense organs and/or nerve endings in that tissue.

all i have to say is why would any one buy a preditor if they didnt like to watch it feed. loved watching my snakes eat, and i actually fed them fish. and i had piranas and that was cool as well. in my opinion they only downside to live food is the COST. ITS CALLED THE LIFE CYCLE.... ONLY THE STRONG SURVIVE. however in the wild it is usually only the sick and elderly that eaten first.

PS i had eggs for breaky ham for lunch and steak for dinner. with some veggies , which if you want to get into it are alive as well. lets not forget that things like feeder comets are BRED to be food and otherwise would not have even been born.

wild clowns are more nutritious?

to me it comes down to personal choice, and we are the gods of our salty domains.
i would feed agressive clownfish to a mantis, but not docile ones. That is because a territorial
problem fish is worth less to me. Also keep in mind that just putting the fish in the tank with the mantis does not
automatically mean it will be eaten, the mantis still has to capture the clown.

I think the point here is.....with the state of the oceans reefs coming under close examination and evaluation, can we afford to take a fish from the ocean to feed it to what 99% of reefers consider an un-wanted pest? A lot of time and effort goes into getting marine fish to our pet stores, whether they are wild caught or tank raised. It seems irresponsible to me to feed these fish to a hitch-hiker.....perhaps a better choice for food would be mollies....something that breeds like bunny rabbits and is readily available?

Since when is it natural to put a fish in a glass box with a predator?
Do you people condoning this also condone rooster fighting? Mongoose fighting?

How are you making this connection fishy? Rooster/ Dog/ Mongoose fighting are done in a very illegal setting focused on betting and the transfer of money. Me feeding my Trigger fish a live damsel is like Rooster fighting in which sense?
Well, Since when is it natural to put a fish in a glass box with out a predator? It isn't natural to put a fish in a box period, yet we still have this massive fresh/ salt water aquarium hobby going on around the world.

The original poster's intent was a poll about the ethics of feeding a predator live marine fish.
The feeding of a live starfish to a harlequin shrimp and a clownfish to a mantis were set at as examples.

I love watching a starfish fold itself around live rock as it searches for food. I love watching it's tiny suckers move the starfish up the glass in my aquarium.
I don't understand a hobbyist getting their rocks off watching a harlequin shrimp tearing it apart live.

I love watching a clownfish doing their waddle like swim, watching you with their cute bright eyes. I love watching it snuggle itself in it's anemone.
I idea of watching this cute little fish attacked by a mantis makes me wonder why someone would see joy in this for any reason.

My vote is that this is unethical.

I only gave this thread the barest of a skim, but let me comment on the mantis thing. I don't believe any account of a mantis that will accept "only" live feed of any kind. get the thing hungry enough and it will eat just about anything you offer it; live fish isn't a necessity, it's just what it has gotten used to. It's just a matter of breaking its habit. That said, for many mantis shrimp, live feed is an essential part of its diet; smashers to be specific. Without regular feedings of hard shelled foods, the mantis won't exercise its raptorial appendages and will eventually tear them off. You can use shells stuffed with frozen food, but only if the bug doesn't learn to just pull the food out of the shell without breaking the shell. Spearers don't really require live feed. For the record, I think predation is a fascinating and natural process that goes a lot deeper than something eating another thing. I don't have the patience for bleeding hearts that think "nature" should be a disney film.

edit: yes I have ocean dwellers cooped up in a glass prison. freshwater ones too. I'm a self-confessed hypocrite; we all are one way or the other.

Well said!

Let me guess, you are city born and raised, and think that food comes from Safeway? Have you ever been on a farm?