...and The 5.5g Mantis Reef

[Synirr]

Tank.

Weird brain that hitchhiked in on a sponge at work

Alveopora frag; so tiny and cute!

Actinic time!

Rose.

 

[Lynden]

Explain to me again why you left saltwater?

 

[Synirr]

I... didn't?
The two nano reefs are the only saltwater I have ever had, and I still have them both.

 

[kewskills]

Beautiful

 

[Jodiem]

omg thats amazing, can you add any fish to that? or is it too small for that but still that looks so good!

 

[Lynden]

I... didn't?
The two nano reefs are the only saltwater I have ever had, and I still have them both.

Are you sure? It must've been someone else then... said that "it was too much of a hassle and freshwater was better anyway" or something along those lines. It was a pretty long time ago.

 

[Dorkhedeos]

oooh, nice. What kind of lights are you running? I hope ski gets his up and going soon.

 

[Synirr]

omg thats amazing, can you add any fish to that? or is it too small for that but still that looks so good!

I could have a very small fish or two... if it weren't for Rose. She is a mantis shrimp, and would club fish to death and eat them. The tank was set up around her needs, as mantis are the only reason I got into saltwater

I... didn't?
The two nano reefs are the only saltwater I have ever had, and I still have them both.

Are you sure? It must've been someone else then... said that "it was too much of a hassle and freshwater was better anyway" or something along those lines. It was a pretty long time ago.

Yep, definitely someone else. Although I do like freshwater better, with the exception of mantis shrimp. I'm not a big fan of most salt fish, and most of the ones I like look like freshwater fish, like indigo hamlets . Might as well be a cichlid.

oooh, nice. What kind of lights are you running? I hope ski gets his up and going soon.

It's a Satellite compact fluorescent fixture, 2 x 18 watt bulbs, one actinic, with a built-in lunar light. Around Christmas time when I have more money, I want to get a custom-built tank that is more of a cube shape and move this setup into it, I don't really like the arrangement and I think it is the shape of the tank that's making it difficult for me to be satisfied with it.

 

[Lynden]

Smaller smashing mantis shrimp actually can be kept with certain fish (usually), though yours does look very... big.

 

[nanocubeking]

is there anything else along the way of inverts that you could put in there

 

[Lynden]

Most snails, most echinoderms, all cnidaria, et cetera... stomatopods aren't a "I see it, I kill it" animal (probably only man falls under that category). They are built to predate upon crustaceans and fish. Even though they are certainly capable of killing most other small animals they (almost) never do.

 

[Synirr]

Smaller smashing mantis shrimp actually can be kept with certain fish (usually), though yours does look very... big.

Rose is approx. 2" long, actually. She will be about 3" adult size. All the same, she can, will, and has killed fish almost twice her size. I tried a couple of small damsels as tester fish to see if I could keep anything with her, but it was a no go. It took her a couple of days to get them, but eventually she did. The tank is too small to house a fish large enough not to be a prey item for her.
Here's a shot of her with my finger for size comparison:

Most snails

No.
Both my mantis LOVE snails, they're actually one of the main prey items of a smasher type in the wild. The big Odontodactylus scyllarus usually doesn't go after them because he is fed well and there isn't enough meat in them for it to be worth his while to break the shells, but if he goes without food for a couple of days he will start picking them off. I have to replenish my supply occasionally. So far the trochus have lasted the longest. Nassarius are relatively thin-shelled, so he picks them off too fast for it to be worth purchasing them, and turbos fall somewhere in between. There's a big conch that lives in that tank whose shell is too hard for him, though he spent a good hour trying to crack it the first day; I gotta have something for the sandbed!! Hermits get picked off quickly with him, too, once they reach a certain size and have some meat on them.

As for little Rose the O. havanensis, she loves smaller snails as well, but can't seem to crack larger trochus, and I think there's one very large nassarius who has survived. Hermits are ok with her if they are large-ish, living in thick shells, and don't get caught while changing homes!

So far all the echinoderms I have tried have been just fine, the big guy isn't the least bit interested in the brittle star (it even lived in his burrow with him for a time, until he smacked it when it tried to steal his krill and it moved to the other side of the tank), but he has eaten a small upside-down jellyfish, so while cnidaria are usually safe, I wouldn't go so far as to say all are safe

 

[pica_nuttalli]

you might not like the set-up, synirr, but i think it looks fantastic. and the mantis shrimp are to die for!

i'm gonna send this link to my bf and see if i can't get him hooked. (hi honey!)

 

[Lynden]

Hmm, I've seen them be kept with all kinds of other animals, including hermits... which is why I said "most snails" but then again it could be that because of their intelligence they are totally unpredictable...

One last question, why is it that you always bring out my worst?

 

[Synirr]

One last question, why is it that you always bring out my worst?

It's my nature?
I keep both of mine with snails and hermits too, don't get me wrong, but they are temporary tankmates