My Ultimate Multi Mantis System(s)

[TundraGuy]

Na man my bubble king 300 external is quiet. You can hear my vortechs over it. Its all in the pump on the skimmer.

[Kharn]

Originally Posted by ccapasso

Those videos (and pictures) are awesome! Thanks for sharing!

I am wondering though, what type of shrimp is that and where do you purchase?

Also, what type of crabs and where do you purchase?

I would like to start feeding my peacock more live food but not sure what to get from where.

What type of shrimp ? What do you mean as in the mantis(Lysiosquillina maculata) or the feeder shrimp (no idea of species, these were freshwater shrimp from my LFS that I slowly drip acclimatized over about 6hours which gave them life in saltwater for a good few days, long enough for most to be fed to the stomatopods.

The crabs I get are hitchhikers that come in on others stuff and they don't want them, soon to collect my own from the sea.

Hope this helps!

[TundraGuy]

It makes a lot of sense that you just go out and collect. The amount of time devoted to keeping these 3 systems is intense. Looking forward to seeing what you’ll find. Out in California they have what the locals call sand crabs (Emerita talpoidea) I have wanted to try giving these to my mantis for a long time. These little critters are good swimmers (only backwards) and amazing diggers when the water line hits the sand. Do you have anything of this nature out there? If so I would think on a 15 min collection you should have enough to feed every smasher you got. Also this would be amazing to watch a mantis case one of these down.

[TundraGuy]

Found them you got these Hippa (crustacean) in the same family I wonder how similar they are.

[Kharn]

Originally Posted by TundraGuy

Found them you got these Hippa (crustacean) in the same family I wonder how similar they are.

Not sure, never seen one of them before o_O

Either way my plan is to use a freshwater shrimp trap (since there holes are usually smaller since they target smaller creatures) to catch crabs/shrimps and a cast net to catch fish.

This weekend will be my first run =) the shrimp I used in the videos were freshwater from the LFS I wanted to test something, although most were eaten that night I put some in my Temp Tank which is the live food storage, I acclimatized them really slow (overnight) and upon putting them in I didn't loose any until 48hrs I think there was 1 dead then another then another leaving me with 2 now but they look fine (others looked real sluggish).

[Fartin'Gary]

In Florida we called them sand fleas. You can pull out a chunk of wet sand and have dozens of them in your hand.

[Kharn]

Originally Posted by Fartin'Gary

In Florida we called them sand fleas. You can pull out a chunk of wet sand and have dozens of them in your hand.

Looked big in the pic I saw lol

[Fartin'Gary]

Originally Posted by Kharn

Looked big in the pic I saw lol

I would be hesitant to feed my tank tenants anything I grab out of the sea just because of fear of unknowns. You know. Parasites, diseases, ect. What is it like 11:30pm there? It's 6:30am here.


DO you think a glass tank can hold enough sand to house a Mac? They have had a poor poor Mac at the pet store for months. It has no sand to dig in and is kept inside a small plastic container inside a larger tank. It's about 3.5" long. I feel bad for it but I don't have the funds for acrylic.

[Kharn]

Feeding The Leviathan this evening...

He really nailed the poor fish, the fish basically hit the water and was instantly taken....hence why you don't really see it in the video (still learning how to best position camera).



Hope you like

[Fartin'Gary]

Wow his arms are super long!

[TundraGuy]

Wow fast!

Yo Fart Kharn's tanks are glass. The thing to look out for is the added pressure can split tanks. Also adding stuff from the ocean is what your doing every time you buy something at the fish store. the difference collecting it is your less likely to bring home a disease or parasites or other problems of this nature. I know that sounds like the opposite of what you'd expect. But trust me it’s the truth. Think about it in these terms most parasites kill in captivity because they are trapped in the tank with the animal. In the ocean the fish can migrate to a different location. Now if a fish store brings in a sick fish where dose it migrate to? Your tank right? Well what happened to the “sickness” at the store? It waits for the next fish to come on in. This is why you have to watch your fish stores overall health in the tanks. They trust me are not going through and sterilizing everything after each fish. I am just pointing out that the way fish stores are set up is a breeding ground for issues in tanks.

Have you tried to keep the flees?

[Fartin'Gary]

No never tried to take the little things home with me. So the sand will add pressure to the glass? Water weighs more than sand right? I am trying to decide what size tank(glass thickness) I would have to get for this little guy.

[Kharn]

The tanks with the large sand volume are rather thicker then avg, most typical aquarium glass is between 5-10mm these 2 tanks are 15mm thick glass.

[TundraGuy]

Yep but wet sand is heavy stuff. I remember the Doc talking about tanks he's blown out from the added weight. Something to think about for sure. When rinsing sand in a 7garage gallon bucket I fill it about 3 gallons full and with water to that mark its noticeably heavier then a full 7 of water.

[Kharn]

The biggest concern with the tanks (since I have confidence in there maker) is actually the way there positioned, since the stand is essentially like a set of Book shelves I shall use that as an example....

STAND C is as tall as the rest 2100mm high and its 1200mm long however its only (same as the rest) 300mm wide, so its quite tall and long with a small base, here is the most nerve wracking part....

The Tanks for STAND C are only as I said multiple times 150mm wide, however....there positioned RITE at the front of the stand (leaving 150mm behind it free) so allll the weight for STAND C is rite on the front basically.....1 good knock from behind and it would fall forward.....

To prevent this we fixed (tech screws) some angle legs going up about 1.8mtrs there at a 45degree angle coming out about 300mm from the stand at the base, it may seem bulky and a little bit out of pattern, but it gives peace of mind, it would now be impossible for STAND C to fall forward or backwards...

The reason behind this is because after putthing STAND C in place, the tanks for it in place, water and sand in the tanks, over a few days....STAND C began to lean forward and it was easily noticeable and since I actually sleep kind of next to the stands....if it fell in the night, it would land on my head and kill me.

Peace of mind =D

[TundraGuy]

Never had to build a stand with this in mind but I can see how all that added to one side would make for a leaning tower of mantis.

[Kharn]

Originally Posted by TundraGuy

Never had to build a stand with this in mind but I can see how all that added to one side would make for a leaning tower of mantis.

Well it was making me nervous specifically the fact that I basically sleep underneath it....making it somewhat of a guillotine whilst I sleep....

I've already looked at my system and started to come up with multiple ways to improve it (add equipment like reactors/skimmers/sump(s) etc). Having said this the more and more I read about 'Eel Freaks' Cloridopsis dubia it makes me want to forsake the more common species that most of us on here know about...and take up the more weird types, specifically setting up certain compartments in certain stands to house other substrates like mud.

I just read&read&read the stomatopod revision for Australia like its a bible, searching for more interesting weirder species....

[Eel Freak]

One word pretty well sums this project up: wow.

Thoroughly impressed. I can only hope to do something like this one day... The spearers really have me hooked. And I must say, L. maculata is a true leviathan. I long to have one one day...

The weirder and more interesting species are always fun because many times you're one of the few who has delved into that realm... Almost like paving the way for others behind you! Not only that, but they are also great conversation pieces.

[Kharn]

Originally Posted by Eel Freak

One word pretty well sums this project up: wow.

Thoroughly impressed. I can only hope to do something like this one day... The spearers really have me hooked. And I must say, L. maculata is a true leviathan. I long to have one one day...

The weirder and more interesting species are always fun because many times you're one of the few who has delved into that realm... Almost like paving the way for others behind you! Not only that, but they are also great conversation pieces.

I really like my big guys cause its easy to document them meanwhile the much smaller species are sometimes to small for an amateur like me to provide any real pics/vids details...

Not just that but I really like how they open peoples eyes....I just joined another local forum and they had very very minor details about mantis shrimp on there (mostly about them killing stuff and being pests).

A lady freaked out when she saw the 'weapons' even though they were on a small G.smithii and the comment after it was thank god they don't get beyond 10cm long.....

Then I came in posted some videos of The leviathan feeding.... changing there entire perception...

[Kharn]

Feedings for tonight were of the dead origin allowing my smashers to feast upon the flesh of fresh prawn meat =)

MINNIE Playing with her initially =)




MAXIMUS Took the food to quick to get any more shots =[


THE KRAKEN Seemed to be quite hungry this evening.




THE JUGGERNAUT For the first time I really got to feel him out a bit...had to retreat as well...I was trying to stick the food near his dens entrance which is a bit deeper then the other tanks above so I had to put my hand in a bit...but each time he came for the food he came up the stick looking at my fingers so I just gave him the damn stick! You can see him swimming with it valiantly....




Sorry for the lower quality of the images but it is more difficult to get clearer shots of these critters as they move about and when its feeding time there pritty much as active as there ever going to be during the coarse of a day...

Hope you like though =)

[TundraGuy]

Look at that HAMMER!
Yea that could brake some fingers!

[Eel Freak]

Originally Posted by Kharn

I really like my big guys cause its easy to document them meanwhile the much smaller species are sometimes to small for an amateur like me to provide any real pics/vids details...

Not just that but I really like how they open peoples eyes....I just joined another local forum and they had very very minor details about mantis shrimp on there (mostly about them killing stuff and being pests).

A lady freaked out when she saw the 'weapons' even though they were on a small G.smithii and the comment after it was thank god they don't get beyond 10cm long.....

Then I came in posted some videos of The leviathan feeding.... changing there entire perception...

Awesome! That's the kind of thing I love being able to do by keeping these unique and amazing creatures....

[Eel Freak]

Nice shots! Loving the Juggernaut especially...

[Kharn]

Thanks for the comments all =)

I have a sneaky feeling that The leviathan may be molting...not sure but for the first time in a while he didn't come to the surface last night, he has however extended his burrow extensively and it will only be a matter of a day or 2 if that till he breaches the other side of the sand bed essentially completing his giant 'U' shaped burrow, then in between those 2 entry/exit holes so the middle of the "U" will be the rock with turtle grass =D.

That turtle grass seems to be holding its own with only very minor LED lights above it....I hope it thrives as its a rather attractive addition making it all look more natural.

[Kharn]

Originally I thought that my largest stomatopod had begun to molt as of rite now I am no longer sure of that...I think he might just be trying to finish of his burrow now that he has had a lot to eat in a short time period, one reason I believe this is because in the past few fays new 'windows' have appeared in the depths of the sand bed allowing me to see him in different parts of the burrow, one of these windows is at the complete opposite end of his burrows entry/exit its just about 6inchs below the top of the sand bed, what this means is he has basically almost completed his generic 'U' shaped burrow although the new exit/entry will likely be built up much like he did with the current one, not sure.

In this pic you can see the overall depth of the sand bed, although you can't really see it the egg crate divided is behind the tape, also as you can see in the picture they pull sand out and dump it around the burrow causing it to essentially rise up, this one has risen 3inchs going from around 15inchs normally to now 18inchs deep at entrance.


Just showing the width of both tanks on STAND C that the spearers are in, both are the same width but there heights vary slightly.


At the very bottom of the tank in The Leviathans burrow is a window and in the pic you can see him resting there beneath.



Here are 2 more smaller windows at the opposite end of the tank (starting to ascend to complete the 'U') hopefully they become 1 large window =)




Rite now I am a little confused as to what The Leviathan is doing...originally I thought he was molting due to him just resting at the bottom never moving (could see through window) I left a fish in his tank in case and as a sign that he was finished molting/hunting again. So after a 4-5days of not hunting he has suddenly, killed the fish this evening and dug a lot more of his burrow, yet he still doesn't come to the surface as I keep a keen eye on his entrance =P

Updates to come on what he is up to, as I said earlier I think he is just completing his burrow because of all the food he got and that fish last night was a booster snack