Paandemonium Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 The best guess for that mantis is that it's a Gonodactylellus viridis and it's probably going to top out at 2". It moved to it's new home, a 2 gallon fluval spec, like my pest tank that also has a G. viridis in it. A friend of mine set up the tank especially for this little cutie. The day it moved, it also molted and is now a beautiful shade of emerald green from what I've been told. Mantis shrimp can range a lot in size depending on the species. Anywhere from the big dudes that top out around 7 inches to the little guys that grow to a maximum of 2 inches. I'll do some further research on them but I like the look of them in an odd "kind of looks like a bug" type of way lol Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 I'll do some further research on them but I like the look of them in an odd "kind of looks like a bug" type of way lol Trust me on this; your whole perception of mantis shrimp will change when you have one. Suddenly you'll realize that these things are far more intelligent than any sea creature you've ever owned before. They have tons of personality and are a a real joy to have. I have a hard time imagining not having at least one of them. Of course, I have two. Link to comment
Paandemonium Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 Trust me on this; your whole perception of mantis shrimp will change when you have one. Suddenly you'll realize that these things are far more intelligent than any sea creature you've ever owned before. They have tons of personality and are a a real joy to have. I have a hard time imagining not having at least one of them. Of course, I have two. I had one as a pest one and that guy was VERY intelligent, I had to tare down the entire tank for me to get him I think thats what got me thinking of getting one Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted March 20, 2013 Author Share Posted March 20, 2013 Got a couple of new hitchhikers for the tank today! Two little xanthid crabs and a little star fish (no ID yet). Link to comment
Mr. Microscope Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Fun fun! Maybe you should get a red light so you can better observe the tank at night. I've also found a flash works well for photographing stuff at night. Link to comment
Dion_Blaster Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 I think this tank's so cool. I found some pest nudi's on one of my zoa colonies - only problem was I found the nudi's way cooler than the zoa colony ><! Made me want to set up a small pest tank with those little guys and some fast growing shi*t zoas to feed em Link to comment
login Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 Love the tank and the photos. I think the dark crab is from the Chlorodiella genus. Do you have any other phots of the lighter coloured crab? Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Love the tank and the photos. I think the dark crab is from the Chlorodiella genus. Do you have any other phots of the lighter coloured crab? No awesome pics, both pics were taken in the bag. Here's another: And then I was able to get a little video of him in the tank: One claw is a little bigger than the other, unlike the other crabs that have same-sized claws. His eyes appear to be blueish. By the way, can anybody ID the starfish in the video? Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 This is one of my current favorite tanks! I love this thing, Tiki. Your 10g and this one make me drool. Truly inspired, man. Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Here's a little more pest crab love for you... He wants a bit of the fish's food! Link to comment
login Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 No awesome pics, both pics were taken in the bag. Here's another: One claw is a little bigger than the other, unlike the other crabs that have same-sized claws. His eyes appear to be blueish. Only crab species i can think of is maybe Pilumnus lumpinus? Link to comment
Fnard Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Wow, tank is looking great. That star looks to be just your typical sand sifting star. Link to comment
otest82 Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Your pest tanks are better looking than most peoples reef tanks. I have what I call a junk tank sitting in my window. It's a ten gallon with rubble, xenia trimmings, kenya trimmings, macro trimmings, and asshole crabs. It actually looks kinda neat. No filtration, just a heater, a power head, and natural sunlight Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted April 10, 2013 Author Share Posted April 10, 2013 I'd like to share my crabs with you. (That's what she said!) Ok, so I've been picking these little guys up here and there and have amassed a bit of a collection. I think there are about 7 little hitchhiker pest crabs in there. Some of them hide all the time. Some of them come out if you hold still for a while. Some come out only at dinner time, and a couple of them just hang out and aren't too skittish. First, here's a little hitchhiker starfish. Seems to be doing well. It's about the diameter of a quarter. This little tiny guy is about the diameter of a dime (legs and all). He doesn't hide when you come up to the tank. He just sits there and picks away at the rock and the blue clove polyps. He doesn't seem to eat them. He's beige, fuzzy, blue eyes, and itty bitty black claws. BBC (Big black crab). Ok, he's not that big, but he's by far the largest. This is the 2nd largest crab. Very similar to BBC, but has more prominent brown stripes on his body. Same guy as last picture. Go back in the pictures of when I first got this guy. He was mostly orange. Now he's red, white and pink. Very cool. Only comes out to eat. I thought he died, but apparently it was just a molt! Darn crabs always fool me with their molts. There are a couple more in there that wouldn't play nice for the camera. I'll try to get pictures of them. Or better yet, maybe some video. Not one of these crabs has eaten any corals. Mind you, we're talking about blue clove polyps, GSP, Seafoam Palys. I also have a nice plate coral in there and some more expensive palys. Haven't lost one polyp so far. Link to comment
Mr. Microscope Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Awesome! Love that tiny guy. Reminds me of those micro porcelain crabs John Maloney sometimes carries. I've often thought it would be cool to have a small colony of them. Link to comment
kismetsh Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I just love this tank! Been trying to decide exactly what I want to put in my display fuge/macro tank. I already moved my majano rock down there, maybe it could be a "pest fuge". Link to comment
Acielot Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 Have you had much aggression between the crabs yet? Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted April 11, 2013 Author Share Posted April 11, 2013 Have you had much aggression between the crabs yet? None. Although the other day, the big black crab picked up a hermit crab and moved it away from the food and took the food for himself. LOL. Link to comment
supernip Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 you should just rename this tank portlandia Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted April 11, 2013 Author Share Posted April 11, 2013 you should just rename this tank portlandia "Shell art is OVER!" Link to comment
Islandoftiki Posted April 11, 2013 Author Share Posted April 11, 2013 that show sucks It's unfortunate how spot-on it is sometimes. This kinda sums it up. Not just for single men, but how Portland is in general. http://www.returnofkings.com/8320/6-reasons-why-portland-sucks-for-single-men On the bright side, we have a really awesome saltwater community! Link to comment
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