what type of Mantis?

[Dr.Brain Coral]

alot of you have answered my mantis questions and now i have more. I am plnning a 5.5 gallon nano and had originally planned on a wennerae but i have since looked at the small spearer Ciliata and wondered if the would be all right in my size tank?

[NirvanaandTool]

Dr. Roy recommends at least a 20Long for a Ciliata IIRC. That being said, it depends on the individual mantis. I've known some who had Ciliata's that never left their rock and others that roamed the whole tank at all times. A small reclusive Ciliata would be fine in a 5.5.

 

You could try it but have a backup plan if you have one of the active Ciliata's.

[Dr.Brain Coral]

okay I dont have acess to a larger tank but i could give him away if he brcame to large. Are wenneraes on average more active o less so than a ciliata

[Dr.Brain Coral]

I am still stuck because i might do with a 7.5 gallon and my walmart has ghost shrimp so i could feed him those since he is a spearer. I dont have a lfs i know off and i cant feed him feeder goldfish because the wouldnt be good for him.

[Dr.Brain Coral]

what is more active

[NirvanaandTool]

Personally I'm not sure. I've never had either species. I've only had G. viridus and G. chiragra.

 

Ghost shrimp would be fine and then wean him onto frozen fish and shrimp flesh.

 

I'd say Wennerae would be the smarter move for a smaller tank. My $0.02.

[Dr.Brain Coral]

Okay Ill go with a wennerae. I liked the look of the ciliata and the fact he was a spearer means he would most likely not eat the cuc.

[NirvanaandTool]

Just make sure the CUC is large enough to not be a target.

 

Larger snails (astrea/turbo/trochus) should be fine. Small ones particularly nassarius and nerites were more of the target by my two smashers. My smashers never really bothered with hermits but loved ghost shrimp and small fiddler crabs.

[Dr.Brain Coral]

Okay thank you