Khowst's Killer build for the KILLER MANTIS!

That picture is a little decieving. It's about maybe 2 1/2 inches long.

I ran home during lunch cause I forgot something, and my 3 yo had pulled a chair up to the tank and they were both sitting there looking at each other. Couldnt get the camera fast enough to catch it, but it was priceless.

 

Awe that sounds adoreable!!

 

Funny because I think I might have a peacock, and I want an N. wennerae....

Happy you finally got your mantis though I remember when you first started asking about them

 

shouldn't be that bad, most inverts account for closer to 1/3rd the waste output of a fish... So 1 invert alone even in a new tank shouldn't stress the system much... unless Mantis's are really 'wasteful' creatures???

 

Cool hope it goes well.

 

Is that peacock mantis that came in last night for you?

 

I didnt get any phone calls or pm's?

 

The shipment came late. They don't open until 11. Send me your email via PM. I am only there one day/wk but I bet it's yours. I have a blurry pic I can send you.

 

How's this tank coming along?

 

Good reminder. I actually be home with dad duty this weekend and plan to get a good tank cleaning and some fresh pictures up.

Tank is doing quite well. I have the mantis of course, a flame angel, six line, blue reef chromis, and a starry blenny. The six line & flame are best friends and are never apart, its quite an unsual and funny pair to watch.

Tankwise I havent dont many changes. Still using the CPR skimmer/fuge with chaeto & some ulva in to, and a healthy supply of macro in the DT. I'm running 4 x 6500 lights so it has a yellow tint, but it seems the lighter light makes the mantis alot more friendly and likely to come out and be social. I have considered upgrading maybe 1 or 2 of the lights to a 10k, but now that the local LFS's have closed and the nearest is an hour away I'm not making a special trip.

Feeding I found a place that does a pretty good deal on fiddler crabs and I have had a good arrival success rate for them, so the mantis gets a fiddler, clam, or shrimp piece every couple of days, and I keep a healthy supply of CuC from reefcleaners stocked for her to snack on as needed. She has kinda trained me to where she will go and sit in one certain spot and thats like the I'm hungry spot. I'm still suprised at how interactive they can be.

She has developed a bad attittude for tank cleanings though. Its happened at least 4-5 times now where after a cleaning she will come out wander the tank gathering up snails that she takes to the front of her lair and smashes to bits and leaves them there, and stands and stares at me. I guess its like her version of deflating the neighbor kids ball in your lawn.

It's still fun to watch, she is always up to something. This past weekend she felt like redecorating. I came home and the tank was so full of stirred up sand you couldnt see the live rock period. The next day as the silt started to settle not only did she move about 1/4 of the sand in the tank she had also broken a nearly softball sized piece of liverock to pieces to redo her lair entrance. Kinda glad I opted for that piece of plexi in the bottom. lol.

She is also like a neighborhood celebrity. Had the neighbors over for my sons birthday, and had both the kids and adults ask if I was going to feed 'that cool looking killer shrimp thing'. lol

I posted some youtubes a while back or at least I think I did:

Hollywood The Mantis Shrimp 1 - YouTube
Hollywood The Mantis Shrimp - 2 - YouTube
Hollywood the Peacock Mantis Shrimp - 3 - YouTube
Hollywood the Mantis Shrimp - 5 (hand feeding) - YouTube