Mantis Shrimp Behaviour

[Moogled]

Thanks rudy for the Ciliata!

I now have a mantis shrimp in my 20 gallon. First off, some questions:

1. It always approaches the side of the tank. When he gets there, he kind of bumps stupidly against the glass and then walks away. Is this normal?

2. What is a bad sign that a mantis shrimp will not make it? This guy is kind of out and about, but I'm very paranoid ever since I lost my first mantis shrimp.

3. The P. Ciliata is a spearer, so a sandbed is a must. Right now it's a barebottom tank but I will be buying sand tomorrow. Will he be okay for now?

Thanks in advance,

Marco

UPDATE: PICTURES!!

http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m11/alligatorsex/DSCF1618.jpg
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m11/alligatorsex/DSCF1610.jpg
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m11/alligatorsex/DSCF1613.jpg

[justinl]

congrats on the mantis, but i dunno... i cant really trust that you actually have one without some pics! :biggrin:

1. i dont think its a problem. one of two things are happening. hes just figuring out where the tank boundaries are, or hes challenging his reflection in the glass. nothing to worry bout.

2. specific mantis worries are shell disease (treatable), algae growing on it (very often fatal), or the mantis sitting out in the open curled up in a tight ball all the time and not just as a response (often fatal).

3. here's a link with the best mantis species info available. read it. according to it P ciliata will burrow under the rock, in the sand. so i would go with a sand bed of at least 2 inches but preferably 3-4. in the short term, BB will be fine.

[rudy]

He is fine Marco. He is testing out his barriers. If he is moving he is fine. Ciliata will actually curl up and play dead if stressed. This is when you should worry. He would only do that when you first drop him in the tank.

Go buy the little guy a fiddler crab and let him do his thing.

BTW he does not have a drop of shell disease. He is incredibly healthy

[Moogled]

This guy is so cool. I don't think he's even begun to come out yet.

I didn't bother acclimating him because I made sure my SG was the same as Rudy's several hours before I went to pick him up.

During the ride home, he was peeking at me from the bucket on the ground. I created a little alcove for him using 2 pieces of LR and some rubble (also provided by rudy!). Now he's just hanging out in his PVC pipe and peeks under the rock to check things out if I get too close.

[Moogled]

Hmm...the ciliata doesn't seem to be eating the krill that I put onto a stick to feed him. I can have the krill directly in front of him and he just ignores it.

What else should I try feeding a spearer? Chromis?

[rudy]

Admitedly I have not fed him on a stick for a while so that could be a bit of the issue, but also Krill. He has never really ate that. Try piece of shrimp.

He also would kill (literally) for ghost shrimp

[Psyire]

I've never kept a spearer but my smashers have always ate the following...

Krill, Scallops, Mysis, Silversides, Clams (from Superstore), Hitchhiker Crabs

It should eat something off that list. I would start with Silversides. (no need to feed Chromis)

[justinl]

i used to stick feed my smasher but after a while i didnt bother. just drop the food nearish the burrow and he'll find it.

+1 on the silversides or grocery bought shrimp. just be sure the shrimp is uncooked and unseasoned. it is a good idea to rinse the shrimp off very well after thawing. i would try feeding a few different frozens before going to live just because im cheap.

[Moogled]

Thanks guys, I'll try mussels or something. Rudy said that this ciliata loves them.

The reason I was hesitant about other frozen foods is because I only have krill and frozen brine shrimp. If the ciliata doesn't eat the frozen brine shrimp, then I'd end up with a tank polluted with the stuff and have to do a WC.

Will try the silversides suggestions. Thanks.

Am I safe in assuming that spearers eat nothing with shells like crabs and snails since they can't break them open?

PS: Pics soming soon!

[justinl]

yeah mantids wont bother with food that is too small like brine shimp. keep an eye on how much of the mussel the mantis eats as bivalves can foul a tank faster than most other food.

spearers wont generally bother hermits or snails unless they can pull the thing out of the shell (which is rare). they can actually hunt down crabs quite well by spearing the crabs belly.

[Moogled]

I tried a piece of shrimp speared on a coat hanger. No go. I can place it directly in front of his face and he just ignores it.

Is this regular for mantis shrimps? I was under the impression that they were aggressive little buggers that would feast whatever they could get their raptorials on.

Where do you guys get the crabs/ghost shrimps to feed your mantis if they don't take frozen food?

[justinl]

well it sounds like you just have a weird one. I havent heard of a mantis who rejected food so much. maybe its just stressed from the move? try cutting the lights for 24 hours and leaving it alone. feed after that and see what happens. another method that might work is leaving the food in front of the burrow and then leaving. im serious, leave the krill in front of the burrow and log on to canreef for a bit. try 20 minutes.

i would not worry too much. mantids can go quite a long time without any food. is it moving sand and rock around much? maybe he's just getting ready to molt. some mantids will reject food and some will devour it more than usual just prior to a molt.

[rudy]

Actually Ciliata will sometimes ( alot of times) go 3 days without food. They are not nearly as hungry as most smashers. I used to feed it every other day. I think in this case however it is getting used to its new surroundings

[untamed]

My system is...If I see a mantis, he's hungry. If he's completely out of his hiding spot and moving around the tank, then he's really hungry.

[Moogled]

Hey untamed, that's exactly what's happening.

He's coming out of his burrow once every hour, bumbles around and goes home. I have a piece of shrimp in there but he's not taking it. I hope I can wean him onto frozen food because I just don't have the time to feed him live food like ghost shrimp and fiddlers.

[justinl]

well if you dont want to have him eat live, then dont feed it live. then he cant acquire a taste for it. keep tryin frozen... like rudy said, it's probably just gettin used to the tank is all.

[Moogled]

Pictures now! :D

[rudy]

I woke up this morning and the idiot stick hit me in the head....I bet you any money he is getting ready to molt.

[Moogled]

Update: Day 5

Mantis is now out and about frequently, no doubt looking for food. Still not accepting the krill/shrimp that I put in there. Picks it out of his burrow and throws it away.

He'll cave - I know it.

[untamed]

Update: Day 5

Mantis is now out and about frequently, no doubt looking for food. Still not accepting the krill/shrimp that I put in there. Picks it out of his burrow and throws it away.

He'll cave - I know it.

None of mine have ever been fussy. They've always like frozen krill. (thawed, of course)

You can also just ensure you have a good population of hermit crabs in there. That way, they'll have plenty of hunting and you'll get lots of entertainment!

[Moogled]

Hmmm a sound idea. So far I've been gambling on frozen food.

Is it a good assumption to say that feeding mantis shrimp is a bit more expensive because they require stuff like hermits to eat?

I read about spearers and smashers and their differing diets. I suppose I'm just hesitant because I haven't seen any results yet.

MY TIME WILL COME >: (

[justinl]

mantids are more expensive for two reasons. one: they're bigger than most true shrimp. two: they're cooler. yeah you have to feed them but that will cost about 30$ in a year for frozen and live.

for simplicity i would just keep trying frozen. he'll take for it eventually. have you tried soaking the frozens in a supplement like selcon? or even garlic? Maybe your particular batch of krill isnt palatable... how old is it?

btw spearers dont deal as well with hermits or snails. just crabs, shrimp and fish. imo whether or not spearers even need occasional live food is questionable. smashers need it to excercise their raps.

[Moogled]

The krill is less than 2 months old. I keep it well-refrigerated in my freezer. My fish in the display tank love the stuff (the frozen brine shrimp too).

Do mantids rather starve to death than eat food they don't want?

[rudy]

I guarantee if he is not eating he is going to molt.

Also as a Ciliata is not a true spearer, but an unevolved smasher it will eat some smaller snail and if you remember the other food that was in his tank Marco....mussels. He will eat them too.

Mantis will eat flake if they are hungy enough

[Skimmer Juice]

I would buy mine clams from the superstore snails on ocassion. He also ate frozen krill. You could also feed him cheap fish from your lfs. Also mine never ate when he was about to malt.

[Moogled]

Success! He's eating!

[justinl]

sweet! that is good to hear. do you know if he molted?

[Moogled]

I don't think he molted yet.

I fed him krill on a stick today and he grabbed it and retreated into his burrow to eat it. Granted, he only ate a bit of it and threw the rest away, but that's probably cause he was starving.

[dunl]

Just read this thread Marco....


They can be picky, too. Case in point? My chiragra will charge across the tank from the bottom to the TOP corner on the other side to get krill, swimming as fast as his little flippers will propel him. If I move it around he just does somersaults and keeps going after it.

Yet, there is a molly that I acclimatized to saltwater in April that is still alive in his tank....fresh scallop got chucked back at me...twice.....periwinkles were tossed out of his cave like little basketballs.....go figure.