Mantis shrimp? Please say no...

scotty · 02-14-2003, 04:43 AM

Hi all,

Just working away on my computer about an hour ago and heard loud clicks from my tank. Five minutes later same thing, then again. Please tell me that a pistol shrimp will sometimes click or that occasionally bubble algae pops that way... but please don't tell me the only possibility is a mantis...

But if it is, how do I catch it???

Thanks in advance!

dark horge · 02-14-2003, 04:49 AM

You know, roughly nine times out of ten, the clicker turns out to be a pistol, if that's any easing of your worries.

If you start running out of small critters like small crabs, shrimp and such, or even a few small fiash, then you might be concerned.

Only by photographing the thing can we begin to guess what it is.

MontanaRocknReefer · 02-14-2003, 05:42 AM

NO! You did say "please". Just funning ya! Let's hope what horge says turns out to be true with 9 out of 10 being pistol!!

tdwyatt · 02-14-2003, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by dark horge
You know, roughly nine times out of ten, the clicker turns out to be a pistol, if that's any easing of your worries.

If you start running out of small critters like small crabs, shrimp and such, or even a few small fiash, then you might be concerned.

Only by photographing the thing can we begin to guess what it is.

This will depend on the source of your original rock. Definitely true with Indonesean Rock, but if it came from the Caribbean... more like 50/50, especially if it came from an aquacultured site. This is not a bad thing, as there are always folks wanting them, especially the peacocks. Use a baited trap, it will catch this creature for you. (Take a plastic pop bottle, cut off the neck part, invert it and superglue the neck backwards into the bottle, then drop a small piece of shrimp in. May need to drill small vent holes for the air to escape and put some sand in to weight it down. Shrimps crawl in but cannot escape.)

Sorry...

, make lemonaid out of lemons.

Jeremy1973 · 02-14-2003, 09:25 AM

so, what is the difference between a mantis and a pistol? I always thought they were the same thing. hmmmm

karsco · 02-14-2003, 09:41 AM

Scotty,

I have had both pistol and mantis in my tank! The Pistols are great, but if it is a Mantis you will want to get him out immediately.
As tdwyatt said it will depend where you get your rock from if it is Carribean or aquacultured rock there is a strong chance it is a Mantis. Are the clicks multiple, are do you hear just a single click?
The pistol usually only click once to scare away whatever fish or predator that may be bothering them. While the mantis click multiple times because they are trying to beat their claw against the shell of a hermit crab or snail (or whatever) so they can have dinner! I caught a total of FIVE (5) out of my live rock from Florida.

David Grigor · 02-14-2003, 06:05 PM

Do you by any chance have a wavemaker and PH in the tank. For the longest while I thought it was clicking noice from a possible critter but I really think was the Maxijet PH turning off and on would occasionally make the clicking noise but would never catch it in the act. By the time I would look over it wouldn't click again.

Since removing the wavemaker I am pretty much convinced this was the case.

ShirleyM · 02-14-2003, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jeremy1973
so, what is the difference between a mantis and a pistol? I always thought they were the same thing. hmmmm

Mantis shrimp can be very beautiful, and can grow very large, depending upon the species.

You might enjoy this link:

http://www.blueboard.com/mantis/

~ shirley

scotty · 02-18-2003, 10:47 AM

Hey everybody,

Sorry I haven't joined in the dialogue regarding my own question but my computer's been down. I think you all solved it. I do have a recently widowed pistol shrimp in my tank (the goby having died a month ago) so that is probably the case, he's defending himself now by clicking I guess. Time to have the shrimp "Married by America" and introduce a new goby...

Thanks again.

Phantom Phish · 02-18-2003, 12:11 PM

Agree with the above comments, it could be either. I've got 200 lbs of Florida Aquacultured live rock, and I've caught 5 mantis and 4 pistols, so I guess that fits with others observations on the ratio of mantis to pistols in Fla. rock.

I've also read the comments about telling mantis snaps from pistol snaps, and I can't tell them apart. I had the mantis and pistols seperated in two different ten gallon tanks, and both the pistols and mantis' often snapped about three times in succession, and the snaps sounded identical to me. So at least for the florida shrimps, I'm not convinced that you can use that to tell the snaps apart. Just my 2 cents