re creature I found in the dark

[High tide]

Originally Posted by marie

Unless your losing livestock leave the poor critter be. We pay big bucks to put living rock in our tanks and then do everything we can to kill all the life off.

I had a mantis shrimp in one of my tanks for 2 years and barely even noticed him, he never hurt anything. In fact for all I know he may still be around I never did figure out why he disappeared

Hear,hear!!!

[don.ald]

consider it part of your clean-up crew. if their well fed you won't even notice them. i have had 3 mantis show up over one year. first time i paniced and got rid of it. the second one is in my sump. and for the third, he is very interesting. lives in a rock and has a trap door that he opens daily looking for food. then every day he closes the trap door (a small pebble he places to fill the hole) . i rarely see him, just know he still there because the trap door is opened and closed daily.

[Leah]

That was also a thought I had, pretty sure its not done anything naughty and with the
piece of rock he's in is at bottom of some very large not to mention supporting pieces.
I may let him hang and see what happens. But when my prized fish go mia can I have
your blessing on trapping it. He, glad that you said you had one makes me relax a bit. I
agree I do not relish the thought of cature and kill. Pretty nasty, mostly cause I am
scared.

[brizzo]

Wonder if I can have a second tank at work with a mantis....

[Whatigot]

I got a mantis off of a concerned reefer and promptly took it home and set up an aquapod for it..
I put in 3 small yellow tail damsels and a couple rock crabs and they are all still alive after a couple of weeks and the mantis eats mysis and whatever food gets near his hole but no animosity in him at all so far.

The mantis is super cool, although secretive, I would bever even notice him in my large display as he does the rock door trick too.

I'm going to add a couple shrimps and see if that doesn't entice some hunter behavior.
I honestly have my doubts.

I also understand there are numerous sub species of mantis and all are different in the habitat they have adapted to live in so everyones experience may vary.