Mantis Shrimp!!

[XxKnuckleheadxX]

i just found a mantis shrimp i think.. i just added a six line wrasse and thats when i noticed something in the rock around my new fish. i made the fish take off from the rock and the shrimp keeps peeking in and out and i cant get to him in the rock. anyone know how to catch them? best and easiest method?:question:

 

[Alexander]

I hope for your sake its not a mantis. the best thing to do is to watch the thing at night and find out what rock it hides out in. They usually pick a certain rock if im not mistaken. then you want to remove that rock from your tank and try to manually remove him, but be careful! you may need to dip it in freshwater or something like that. Yote has been through this sadly 2 times and im sure he can shed some light on his experiences

 

[XxKnuckleheadxX]

hes hiding out in this one rock. i cant see him anymore. but im almost certain its a mantis!

 

[dustin_P74]

are you sure its not a pistol, they are easily confused

 

[XxKnuckleheadxX]

i am not positive because it only peaked out a few times. had big bug eyes on him. but i couldnt see his whole body or color.

 

[Bifferwine]

Big bug eyes on stalks? If so, you're right, it sounds like a mantis :( Like Alexander said, the easiest thing to do is find out which rock it's in, then isolate that rock in a bucket to try and get it out. Do not handle the rocks with your hands, some mantis are very dangerous slashers. Get the rock out with a pair of tongs.

Do you want to keep it alive as a pet, or kill it?

 

[yote]

There are actually several ways to catch a mantis.The easiest and most successful method is the use of high explosives.But that tends to leave things somewhat messy.
Coke bottle traps are supposed to be effective.But you still have to get a net over the trap before the mantis escapes,and they are a hell of a lot faster than they look.
My last method proved to be fairly easy.I got the mantis used to eating out of my net,even though I wasnt fast enough to get him out that way,he would just sit on the rock and watch the net untill I was out of sight.I tied some fishing line to the net,placed food inside and sit back and waited.When the mantis entered the net to feed,I quickly pulled the net out of the tank using the fishing pole.

 

[kosmo]

There are actually several ways to catch a mantis.The easiest and most successful method is the use of high explosives.But that tends to leave things somewhat messy.
Coke bottle traps are supposed to be effective.But you still have to get a net over the trap before the mantis escapes,and they are a hell of a lot faster than they look.
My last method proved to be fairly easy.I got the mantis used to eating out of my net,even though I wasnt fast enough to get him out that way,he would just sit on the rock and watch the net untill I was out of sight.I tied some fishing line to the net,placed food inside and sit back and waited.When the mantis entered the net to feed,I quickly pulled the net out of the tank using the fishing pole.

Seriously?

 

[Alexander]

Truly the preferred method in GA is the fishing pole riggamarole!

 

[Alexander]

Seriously?

oh he isnt joking, and its actually an excellent idea. Thinking outside the box there

 

[dustin_P74]

Truly the preferred method in GA is the fishing pole riggamarole!

us southerners love us some fishing

 

[kosmo]

oh he isnt joking, and its actually an excellent idea. Thinking outside the box there

haha yeah I believe it, I’m just trying to get my head around the mental picture

Imagine this

Lazyboy
Hawaiian Shirt with Fedora and aviators
Mojito with umbrella garnish
Fishing Pole attached to a tank net

I can honestly just see him sitting in the lazyboy looking like Jonny Depp in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", with a fishing pole in one hand and a mojito in the other... just waiting, staring at the tank of any movement...

 

[yote]

haha yeah I believe it, I’m just trying to get my head around the mental picture

Imagine this

Lazyboy
Hawaiian Shirt with Fedora and aviators
Mojito with umbrella garnish
Fishing Pole attached to a tank net

I can honestly just see him sitting in the lazyboy looking like Jonny Depp in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", with a fishing pole in one hand and a mojito in the other... just waiting, staring at the tank of any movement...

I actually perfer a sleeveless AC/DC T-shirt,and my Stetson along with my autographed Bill Dance polarized sunglasses.And no mojito with umbrella,that'd be a Bud Ice:mrgreen:
Actually,the net and fishing pole if the easiest method to catching a mantis.Oh you can take every rock out of the tank,but the mantis will just hide inside one and you'll be forced to kill the entire rock to get him.
And its actually pretty simple to get them to eat out of a net.They are a lot like coyotes,they cant turn down a free meal.

 

[XxKnuckleheadxX]

i isolated the rock he is in. i swished the rock around in a bucket very fast to see if he would flee.. lil bugger didnt scurry out. i cant see him in the rock but the rock has tons of openings and crevices. ill try again when i get home after work. i put the rock in my sump to keep him isolated i just hope that he didnt come out of that rock before i pulled it out of the tank! thats for all the info. i think ill try yotes high explosive way first then go from there! lol

 

[Alexander]

Even though that's not your style at all Yot, I FREAKIN LOVED the mental image of you looking all fear and loathing. I think there should be a video made of it now. Unfortunately it would cost millions to get a short made like that and wouldn't be worth it. Good thing I still have an imagination. Not much but I have one.

 

[kosmo]

Here's a thought...
You'll need.

- Rubber Cloves.
- Thick rubber sloe shoes.
- Car Batter
- Booster Cables.
- Metal Tub
- Mantis Bait (food)

Fill the Tub with water, place the rock in the water and put a bunch of food on the bottom of the metal tub... attach the battery and pray the Mantis touches the sides or bottom while eating.

 

[yote]

Dont need the tub kosmo.Just the jumpper cables and a 12volt battery:mrgreen:
In theory,it should work great in the tank.I know it works slicker than a greased button at the lake:D

 

[XxKnuckleheadxX]

looky what i caught! lil bastard! my six line wrasse is mia too at the moment. i hope i can find him.

 

[yote]

Great job.Tell us how it went down.

 

[Alexander]

wow im glad you were able to get him out so fast. what all happened