mantis biotope tank

[amored]

i have recently become fascinated with mantis shrimp and am considering breaking down my current setup and getting a long, shallow tank for a mantis. my current plans are as follows:

 

mr. aqua 12G long tank (35.4"x8.3"x9.4")

two ecoxotic par38 led bulbs (i already have one in a lamp fixture, but would acquire another and suspend them from the ceiling for this tank)

custom corner overflows (one in each opposite corner, so 2 total)

a deep, open sand bed, with 8 lbs of rock or so, off to one side

 

i am really busy at the moment, and the maintenance of SPS/LPS in a pico is really wearing on me, so this tank would have zooanthids (maybe) and awesome macroalgae/mangroves.

 

the sandbed would be pretty deep, 4" or so to give the guy room to burrow.

 

thoughts? suggestions?

[kgoldy]

That Mr Aqua is a sweet looking tank.

 

What species of mantis are you going for?

 

Be sure to check around the macro section on this site for a few inspirational tanks. I've got a display fuge I'm making a mantis/macro tank right now.

[keydiver]

That sounds sweet! I have a wennerae in my macro tank right now, but I have no idea where he is .

 

You could probably skimp out on the LEDS if you wanted too, i'd just go with T5 for macro and zoanthids, that way you could spend the money on something else. I have a FNI fixture on my macro tank right now, and i'm getting awesome growth. I also have macros available if you decide to go with this plan.

[Polscot]

i love matids, have 4 devoted tanks to them, few things that might help you out......unless you get a spearer dont have a 4" SB just 1" with lots of rock rubble for the mantid to make his burrow and fiddle with, a DSB will only wause you problems when he starts digging in it and couding the tank with pollutants.....have one side with rocks and caves and rubble and the other side macro algea for him to play in (just a sudgestion) 3rd i would be wary about the par38 althoguh they are great lights and look beautiful most mantis species are prone to shellrot if exposed to bright lights for too long, so unless u can dim them or put them real high above the tank you might be damaging your mantis and increasing its chance of shell rot.....also figure out what species can fit in a 12 gallon alot of the smashers are out and spearers are a pain in the ass to feed, maybe try finding a small red or green smasher,

[amored]

i was planning on raising the lights 18"-22" above the tank, so i don't think that would be more than 150 PAR or so. enough for said zoanthids, the mangroves would be taller therefore closer to the light.

 

i suppose a DSB is not required, i've just had such bad luck with LR-heavy tanks (all my tanks have been several pounds over to compensate for a shallow sand bed). so much detritus accumulates and algae problems are apparently inevitable.

 

on a side note, i also think this tank could do well with an angler or other predatory fish.

 

thoughts?

[Polscot]

u could always use a canister filter on it to compensate for lack of rick i do that on my edge works great.......i dont think an angler would go wll with a mantis one of them would eventually end up dead, and wosrt case the angler would eat the mantis and the mantis would kill the angler from the inside

 

also i dont think iv ever heard of extra deatris due to a normal sand bed.....as long as u follow the standard guild lines of 1lb rock and 1lb sand per gallon u shouldent have an issue, ive heard alot more problems from people thjat have DSB then not

[mndfreeze]

You wont have much trouble with a mantis and a deep sand bed. They move stuff around but no more then a pistol or other burrowing critter, which is usually required for a healthy DSB.

 

Make sure for that tank you pick a smaller mantis species. Also, shell rot only affects some species. A peacock for example is to large for that aquarium. You want lots of floor space for a mantis that big.

 

A smithii or Wennerae would be fine. They also can tolerate high light as they are found in high light reef flats and shallows.

[hayseed777]

The DSB won't be needed with a smasher-type mantis. They make their home in the rock, not under it. They do seem to enjoy a substrate with different sized pieces like Carib Sea Hawaiian Black. My mantis (G. Smithii) uses the pebble size pieces to block off entrances/exits to his extensive tunnel system. It's quite amusing because it seems like he's a schizo convinced "someone" is going to steal his tunnels. There's also a trio of sexy shrimp that he hasn't even attempted to go after. I thought I got lucky, but apparently it's pretty common for smashers to ignore sexy shrimp...just in case you want more than the mantis in there.

 

Mantids and anglers are my favorite, the tank would be awesome for either one. Both are hard to find, have similar feeding requirements and are extremely interesting to keep. I think for ease of keeping, the mantis would beat out the angler based on waste production. On the other hand, you can have a larger and more varied CUC with an angler. You can't go wrong either way.

[mndfreeze]

Be wary of any tank mates with a mantis. General rule of thumb is don't put ANYTHING in there you will be upset about if it gets taken out. I have a Ternatensis and I put a cheap blue devil damsel in there with it and it's fine, and restock the CUC every other month or so as he slowly takes them out for midnight snacks.

 

I do however hunt my local LFS's for oddball inverts, wierd snails that got mixed in on accident, etc and have some whelks and giant nassarius (not tonga, but olive and some other unknown pair) and since they are so big, about 2 to 3 inches long, my GT never does more then pop them a few times out of curiousity if they get close to his hole.

 

Mine destroys astrea, trochus, and ceriths for the most part. Most of my hermits seem to get left alone, but not always. Smaller hermits go first. Same with snails. I give my GT a fiddler every 2 weeks or so also so he has a larger variety in his diet. he LOVES them and kills them within a few seconds of being dropped in. Blows a hole clean through the top to the bottom. Looks like a bullet wound.

 

PLEASE make sure you get a small species. Even 2 par38 lights is a lot of light for a shell rot prone species. You want a shallow, reef crest style species. (Thats a reason I picked the GT, they live in acro heads, but a GT is to big for your tank). My biggest concern other then the lights is how short the tank is width wise. It's long but not very much turning room.