Urgent help needed!

[Pac2003]

Hi people, need some help asap. Yesterday I was sitting at this comp, I turned to look at my tank (which is in my bedroom) and saw something sitting on the front panel. From a distant it looked like a tiny snail but on inspecting it closer it wasn't. As I could only see the underside i'll try and describe it the best I can. It was about half an inch long and was quite thin. It had about 6-8 legs. From the underside it was stuck on the glass like a snail. I had a quick glance around my tank and on looking back to where it was, it had gone.

I havent seen it since but am quite worried to what it was. I keep dreading that its a mantis shrimp. How common are these in tanks housing like rock?

Well last nite while trying to sleep I kept hearing clicking noises which I thought was the hermit crabs (the person who I bought the setup from said the hermits hit eachother with there shells sometimes during the night). I didnt think much of it but after coming home from work today I have found half a hermit crab. I'm now pretty worried and dont know what to do. I dont know if the hermit was molting and its just a coincidence he died but in all honesty I don't think so.

Any help greatly appreciated on what I can/should do.

Thanks

[Woodstock]

Place a trap in your tank tonight as close to the 'clicking noise' as possible. You can use a small water bottle or even a 2 liter bottle baited with some fish food.

[DaveK]

It's hard to tell with out a picture, but I suspect the "creature" you saw was one of the various "pods" that you acquire with liverock. They are mostly harmless. Mantis shrinp have a very distinctve shape, and once you see one, even in pictures, you are not likely to forget it.

Quite a few things make clicking noises at night. When you say you found half a hermit crab, I suspect you had a hermit that molted, and you found the old shell. With hermit crabs you'll only find the front half when they molt. They have no shell overy the rear half and that's why they live in empty snail shells. Also when crabs molt, they are vullernable. Untill the new shell hardens, they will try to hide. It is possible something went after the hermit durring it's molting.

For now, I'd just keep an eye on things, and see what happens.

[Pac2003]

Thanks for the replies. I've just been sitting there trying to look in every little hole in every piece of rock while I was waiting for replies .

After reading you response about the Hermits Davek maybe it makes abit more sense now. The half of the hermit I found was the front half. I could probably scan it (havent got a camera) if you wanted to see it.

I'll have to wait and see what happens I suppose. If I notice my hermit numbers dwinderling then something is probably wrong. Got a 4 different types of snail coming Friday and was starting to think about there lives too incase it was a mantis.

Thanks for the replys and i'll keep informed on any future happenings.

Thanks

[UnderWaterParadise]

Clicking noise sounds like a Pistol Shrimp. possibly a Mantis as well

[jcoopergd]

Pistol - Pistol - Pistol....

Go to the DIY forum to find the way to build a mantis trap - but if its a pistol, you are a-ok.....i have one, never see it, but it did snap at my hand when i inadvertantly bothered his home....it was a shock, but didnt hurt....he's been in the tank for over a month, and i have yet to see his whole body....i always see the front half or the back half, never the whole body..


j

[cheeks69]

What's the difference between mantis shrimps and pistol shrimps?

At the very basic level, the two are very different critters, with pistol shrimps belonging to a completely different group of organisms which include lobsters and crabs, while mantis shrimps make up the only living order in a superorder called the hoplocarida. You can tell both apart very quickly by the ff:
Pistol shrimps have two relatively large claws (one significantly larger than the other) that it holds extended in front of it, while mantis shrimps hold their enlarged forelimbs very close to their bodies.
The carapace of a pistols is relatively "long" (ie. covers the head and thoracic segments), whereas in mantises the carapace is extremely short, which makes them look more "wormlike" because of the exposed abdomen and some thoracic segments. This makes the mantises very flexible, and they like rolling around a lot inside their burrows or cavities.
Pistols seem to have a very normal looking shrimplike "rostrum" (I don't own a pistol, so I'm basing this on pics), which is a sharplike extension jutting outwards from their head, while mantis shrimps do not clearly show this structure.
The eyes of pistols are recessed, whereas mantises have extraordinarily stalked and eminently moveable eyes.
Mantis shrimps have a pair of "winglike" antennal scales along the sides of their head, which you can very clearly see if you look at them face to face.
Pistol shrimps make those clicking noises by using one of their specially modified claws. Based from different sources, these are either used in mating, hunting (by stunning small prey), and in fighting with other pistol shrimps. Mantises cannot make clicking noises per se.... instead, any clicking noises from a mantis shrimp are due to using its forelimbs to hit something else, either inanimate objects or (more likely) hardshelled prey such as snails or hermit crabs.

Whether or not pistols are deadly to other inhabitants of the aquarium seems to be an open debate. Some have said they do eat others, while I've read in some reference books that they feed on already dead stuff. I suppose it's really a combination of both, with the shrimp feeding on much smaller prey when the opportunity arises. The mantis is deadly to others (especially when it's pretty hungry), although one mantis that I have has (so far) left other inhabitants alone when kept amply fed. I've seen pics of gobies and pistols cooperating, while I'm sure the mantis would rather eat the fish than live with it.

http://www.blueboard.com/mantis/pest/tell.htm

[Woodstock]

Nice Cheeks! Thanks for the info!

Pistol shrimp:


Mantis shrimp:

[gussy]

I once thrown away a hermit because I thought it was dead. I found "it" outside it shells...turns out to be old shell. Realized it after the second one molted days later.

[Pac2003]

Nice replies people. Havent heard much noise coming from the tank and havent found an other Hermits yet...

Forgot to say that I have a Reef Lobster somewhere in the tank. You'll never see him . Could he be making the clicking noises?

Ty

[Maxx]

Yes it could, and if you start to lose anything in the tank, it could be the culprit.
Most reef lobsters are not safe for slow moving/sleeping fish/inverts (not a threat to corals or anemones usually) in a reef type tank. Lobsters are scavengers by nature and will eat whatever they can when hungry. The closest thing to a fish safe lobster are the slipper lobsters. They are very secretive and stay smaler than the other species of lobsters. They also lack claws. I have even seen spiny lobsters catch and eat fish before...kinda rare, but it does happen.

I'm not saying you should get rid of your lobster, just that you should be aware of what might happen if it gets hungry enough.
Nick

[Woodstock]

How is it going PAC2003?? Any more clicking sounds or missing inverts?