Look what I found this morning

Well John O, congrats on both! What did you get at the LFS?
It's already tomorrow there! LOL!!!

 

Get your wallet out they have very expensive tastes! What a benevolent guy you are.

How about in the sump or a small glass tank of its' oen, eh?

 

I would seriously doubt it's a peacock (O.s.) as that is a VERY rare hitchhiker unfortunately for me...that's my favorite .

There are many, many species of mantis and more are being discovered. Dr. Caldwell just found a new species in Australia this year.

Most species stay fairly small but there are a few that can get quite large....O. Scyllarus, G. Chiragra, G. Platysoma and H. Californiensis. However, there are few documented cases of anyone ever getting any of these as hitchhikers.

The shape of the eyes and it's location in the LR indicate that it is most certainly a smasher and not a spearer.

Not necessarily....I cannot tell you how many pm's I have answered where someone said they had a mantis because all of their snails and shrimp were dead.  When I asked them if they had the equivalent of an elephant graveyard where all of the snail shells were in one place, or were they all over the place, 99% of the time they said there was no central collection point of shells.  When I ask if there are any broken shells, 99% of the time they said no. Fish deaths are also blamed on mantis.  When I ask if the body has a hole through it, 99% of the time they say no.  In reality, few hitchhikers are spearers and smashers will only grab a fish if it is starving. To shorten things up, most "mantis deaths" are the result of new tank owners making mistakes.  Wide swings in specific gravity can kill your snails and shrimp, improper tank maintenance can as well, wide swings in tank chemistry, etc., etc., and so on.

Yes, they are extremely efficient predators and thank God that they aren't bigger and live on land.  However, it is time for people to stop indiscriminately killing them because most hitchhikers are fairly harmless in the grand scheme of things.

 

[quote author=Craig_Manoukian link=board=General;num=1094169625;start=15#21 date=09/04/04 at 09:30:21]How about in the sump or a small glass tank of its' oen, eh?[/quote]

No killing suggestion here! ;D

 

Sorry Craig....I wasn't talking about you...just the internet boards in general.

Even though I quoted you, I wasn't necessarily speaking of your comment either. It just opened the door for me to spread the word that most hitchhiker mantis are not going to destroy your tank.

 

[quote author=Craig_Manoukian link=board=General;num=1094169625;start=15#21 date=09/04/04 at 09:30:21]Get your wallet out they have very expensive tastes!  What a benevolent guy you are.

How about in the sump or a small glass tank of its' oen, eh?[/quote]


Now, now, no need for sarcasm

Apert from the fact that I haven't got a sump and no room for any other tank, she stays! I'll just keep her fed and see what happens

John

 

Inwall75,

Thanks for your time and effort, it's not that I know a lot about these creatures, but I did realise that a lot of what is written is purely urban myth. That's not to say that they are completely harmless either.

John

 

Be careful with your hands in the tank, no urban myth there, eh Curt?

 

Ditto on that John. Roger had one smash him in the finger once and he ended up having to have the fingernail drilled to....ugh....drain the blood out of it. Too late....I've visualised it....gonna hurl

 

I'm not trying to make mantis out to be angels. They are not and they deserve proper respect. However, they are also not Satan incarnate either.

REGARDLESS, DEFINATELY BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR HANDS NEAR MANTIS!!!