Clicking sound from tank...

[Cytosol]

For the last few days, I have noticed a clicking sound emanating from my tank.. A few weeks ago I purched some LR that had a rather large crab in it, and I am worried there might be something else that I didn't see..

 

The clicks happen once every 5 minutes or so, and there are 3-5 clicks in succession about a half second apart. They aren't very loud, it sounds sort of like a bubble popping or something. I thought it was my equipment, so I shut it all off for 5 minutes and I still heard the clicking sound.. it is definitely coming from inside my tank and not caused by my equipment.

 

What does a pistol shrimp's pop sound like? Should I start tearing apart my tank in search of something?

[coralcor]

mantis? maby i think i remember some one saying that it was a mantis.... but i cant remember

[winterparkmg]

If it sounds like a little tiny person with a pickaxe working on your tank, it is possible you just inherited a mantis shrimp. Lucky you unless you have an AGA with a thin bottom... There are quite a few people on the site who have trapped and traded or adopted and reared mantis shrimp before successfully.

 

Then again, it could be a pistol shrimp and you're a little better off. Check out your tank at night with a red light and try to catch a glimpse. Gotta be sneaky!

 

~William

[Cytosol]

Ahhh man.. I tore my tank apart because I found a rock crab, and I put it back together perfectly and now this. Are there any traps I can build to catch this bugger if he is indeed in there? I have blue LED moon lights, so I will stay up tonight and take a look to see if I can see him. What do they like to eat? Maybe I can entice him with some food

[Jim_i]

Sure sounds like a pistol to me. What'll happen is it'll find something that pisses it off or it wants to eat and it'll snap at that sucker in quick succession. I've had three pistol so far and my current one is awesome, snapping away at pods and my peppermint if it gets too close. :-D

[skydive]

Could it be a snail that's close to the glass? I had a Turbo snail that would make clicking noises when it did it's twist thing close to the glass.

[Cytosol]

I thought it might have been my snails but they are all frolicking on the rocks.. It doesn't quite sound the same sound.. The closest thing to compare it to would be the click sound of a strong static shock. Again, not very loud at all, but it is definitely something alive in my tank causing it. I do have some small clams on my LR, could they be doing this?

[RustyNano]

It is a mantis shrimp. fits the MO with new LR.

[skydive]

Whatever it is you can try a bottle trap with some food in it. link (post #4 has pics)

[winterparkmg]

Depending on the type of mantis, they will eat either fish or crustaceans. It sounds like the type of mantis you have is a crustacean feeder. They usually feed by crushing the shells of their prey and then eat the meaty bits. Because of the clicking sound, I think you have a "crusher" mantis. Reference this thread if you want more information: Mantis Thread

[PSYS]

...and whatever you do, be careful.

[Atlantis Reef]

it also could be a pistol shrimp

[Cytosol]

So this is weird.. I turned the lights out last night and waited up.. The clicking sound went on for a bit but then stopped for the whole night. This morning before the lights turned on, I checked again.. no clicking sound. I turned the lights on, and 10 minutes later the clicking started again.

 

Again, i'm fairly sure it is not any of the equipment causing this. I literally unplugged EVERYTHING from my tank and the sound was still happening. I will try to make up a little trap today to see if I can catch whatever it is. If it is a pistol / mantis shrimp, its gotta be really small. I am hoping for a mantis since they are just so cool to look at, I will start up a 3G Pico for him.

 

What do these shrimp eat? Will a piece of cocktail shrimp entice him?

[Alicia]

Yeah,that's what most people try. Cut off a little piece of shrimp and put it in a bottle trap...Goodluck! I've had clicking since I set my tank up about 2 months ago and I was paranoid and tried the bottle trap with shrimp and got no results. Nothing has disappeared yet though...so I am thinking I just have a pistol. I've tried the red flashlight at night MANY nights and have not seen anything yet. Let us know if you do.

[Dooderino]

Just let it be until it causes problems. It might be a pistol. Most likely a pistol. Probably very small. Just leave it. Mantis shrimp are usually bigger and very loud. Especially if you have a clubber.

 

I would bet its a pistol. Try not feeding your tank for about 4 days. Don't worry nothing will die. Throw a piece of shrimp in there rubber banded to a rock so nothing can drag it away. EVERYTHING that eats meat and has legs will probably come out for a bit, or even a look to see where the smell is coming from.

[coralcor]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdZDU52sixw

[Cytosol]

I spent a half hour with a red light.. No shrimp to be seen, but still clicking like crazy. However, I did find a very small crab which sort of looks hairy. I am guessing he is no good, but he is smaller than a pea so I don't think he will cause any harm. I doubt this guy is making the noise..

 

I set up my pop bottle trap and we will see what happens. It is possible for the shrimp to get back out of the trap if he is smart, but if he takes the bait, I know he is big enough to worry about. The clicking is driving me crazy too, its tough to sleep with the constant click. It sounds exactly like the click when you cut your nails with a clipper.. non stop.

[Gerber77]

Hopefully you catch it with the trap, my clown loach gets really annoying when he starts clicking at 530 in the morning, so I know how you feel

[kamikaze_fish]

For some reason this thread has me excited, like a tv show.

[Spickerson]

OP:

I hope you find out what it is; i am having the exact same issue as you!

 

I added a cool piece of LR and now i get the exact same sound as you. But i am starting to worry because one of my Peppermint Shrimp has disappeared.

[darkdrako]

After reading these kinds of threads, I am sure that my hitchiking pistol shrimp is dyslexic! It only started to click after I had photo evidence of it! Best of luck.

[Cytosol]

So the clicking sound has stopped.. Either whatever was causing it has finished digging its hole, or it was something else causing the noise.

 

I actually removed ALL of my LR and examined it closely with a flashlight. I couldn't find anything that would be causing this noise, except for a small bumblebee snail that was stuck deep in some rock.

[Atlantis Reef]

If it is a mantis or a pistol if they do not want to be found they will not be found hehe

[Smee!]

If it is a mantis or a pistol if they do not want to be found they will not be found hehe

 

Heh, everyone here is just waiting for that thing to get a hold of his finger...don't deny it.

 

[Jeffry83]

a good tip for removing hitchhikers from living rock is to put it in a bucket of fresh water for at least 30 seconds.Try it on the rock where you think mr clicking noise is (look for deep holes).