=Jwin's 9 GALLON MANTIS CUBE - Nano Wave 9

The fan kit helped with the temp...but the instructions from nano customs made it out to be such a pain in the butt. I could have put it together in five minutes if they had told me what I was accomplishing in reality. Maybe all the wire snipping had a purpose...but I sure don't think so.

Anyways the temp is staying between 78-79 beautifully. We've got one more problem though, the lights and the new heatsink make the plastic housing/splashguard poke out alot on the bottom. So the lid isn't sitting down all the way yet, we've got about a 3/4" gap, which might be contributing to the temp control. I'm either going to snip the plastic blocking it from fully closing, or find a way to get the lid down tighter, but so far so good. I wanted to crimp everything to make my life easy, but the wires were so short and tight I ended up soldering all but 2 wires. I guess I'm better at it than I thought because I was able to get 3 wires together, at once, by myself

I'm not sure what to name/him her yet. I thought of Bam Bam from the flintstones because he's been hammering away at the rocks and pulling the pieces out of his den. Much like a blast crew in a mine; you blow up the place, then bulldoze the smaller pieces out. His peepers are poking out less and less so I think he's going deeper and deeper into that rock :

Yeah, I felt pretty bad posting about getting him without posting pictures. But the excitement forced me to tell you guys without them.

 

He's currently hammering on a small snail I found in the tank that I placed in front of him

The damsel didn't like him in "his territory" and the damsel might have ich, so after pulling out all but one rock (the rock the mantis was looking out from), I captured Orca the damsel and he'll go into the Q tank later today to get drugged up.

So the shrimp has the whole tank to himself except for a snail or more, a red hermit that came with the mantis, and a xenia frag. Hopefully he'll come out exploring more because he's done with his den in the rock now and the damsel was preventing him from exploring earlier. I'll try and get pics when he comes out again.

 

So you continue to post about awesome snail hammering and what not the day after, and still don't produce pics? I am so, so disappointed in you dude. We have all been sitting here, keeping tabs/subscribed to the thread, just waiting for the pics of a mantis to come. Or even better, video. Yet you have left us high and dry. Not cool. It's totally ruined my entire weekend. ;D;D LolLolLol

 

Hold on hold on...he's getting braver. He kidnapped the snail and pounded it to death inside his house thank you very much

He's going every where except into the light now. So soon...I will have a daylight shot of him. Patience.

 

And I need pics. LOL I thought about you today jwin. I was at the LFS and they have a peacock mantis the length of my hand there for sale. He is huge. and boy can he pound some shells.

 

Thanks for the thought

Wellll....


Here's a full tank shot. Not much. That rockwork is plenty big enough for him right now.


Rocks with xenia frag


Xenia frag

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Now for the star of the show. Or what shots I could get of him anyways. It'll be so much easier to take pics of him when he grows up. I won't have to use the macro setting then



Here's his peepers sticking out of his den. I drew a red box on the second shot to help you find said peepers.




Best picture I have of him so far


His butt

 

LOL now thats more like it. Thanks for the pics. K+

 

Very cool dude!

 

Gotta love those peepers...!

 

My widdle baby boy has a widdle baby shwimp.