Ok. I found the clicking culprit,,, finally.

[bertie 83]

I have a mantis shrimp. I feel so dumb that I didn't suss this before.
I saw what I thought was a cool little black and white striped crab hiding in a hole in my rock this morning, couldn't find a positive id online. After a while ( and once my wife got home) my frustration got to me, I figured I would tempt him out with food. I speared some cockle on a skewer and tried to put it near this "crabs" hole. It seemed keen but so did the fish, my hawk fish bit me and my clowns seemed to want to play that game also. I must taste good cos I get bitten lots!
I then refuse to be beaten by my darling fish, I build a prototype extra long skewer lol. Put the food by the hole and blam,,,, just a blur for me. My wife asked me wtf that creepy f ing thing was but I did not see it. I will film it on my camcorder tomorrow. After scouring pics of various creatures she points me to a mantis shrimp ( whilst screaming how scary it is). Now I know where it lives! Here's the problem, it lives in a very large piece of rock, I have built my coral shelves etc from this piece of rock. How do I remove this little bugger? Once removed should I house him in my sump? Could he shatter my sump? He is rather large, he measures maybe a quarter inch shoulder to shoulder and a few inches long at a guess.

[LRU]

I have a mantis shrimp. I feel so dumb that I didn't suss this before.
I saw what I thought was a cool little black and white striped crab hiding in a hole in my rock this morning, couldn't find a positive id online. After a while ( and once my wife got home) my frustration got to me, I figured I would tempt him out with food. I speared some cockle on a skewer and tried to put it near this "crabs" hole. It seemed keen but so did the fish, my hawk fish bit me and my clowns seemed to want to play that game also. I must taste good cos I get bitten lots!
I then refuse to be beaten by my darling fish, I build a prototype extra long skewer lol. Put the food by the hole and blam,,,, just a blur for me. My wife asked me wtf that creepy f ing thing was but I did not see it. I will film it on my camcorder tomorrow. After scouring pics of various creatures she points me to a mantis shrimp ( whilst screaming how scary it is). Now I know where it lives! Here's the problem, it lives in a very large piece of rock, I have built my coral shelves etc from this piece of rock. How do I remove this little bugger? Once removed should I house him in my sump? Could he shatter my sump? He is rather large, he measures maybe a quarter inch shoulder to shoulder and a few inches long at a guess.

I did a bunch of research on these before buying one on purpose. I have a peacock mantis. That is the main type that could crack a tank. Usually small tanks with thin glass are most susceptible. I doubt you need to worry.

There are two types...smasher and spearer. Spearer goes for fish, smasher for clams etc. Both will also eat frozen eg mysis.

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/arthropoda ... yptocercus is a place to start. I'd guess you have one of these but it depends where your LR came from.

[Pufferpunk]

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

[sgtmyers88]

Evacuate the tank of other fish and buy a Porcupine Puffer. I remember reading an article about one taking on a Mantis Shrimp which was quite amusing. lol

[bertie 83]

If it will live peacefully if I keep it well fed it could stay, I doubt that though lol. Also if there is even a 1% chance it could crack my tank then it has to go. I will try to get some proper snaps when I catch the beggar. Thanks for the link pp, most useful. A trap may be the way to go. Sgt; that sounds like a mission lol

[RTR]

Not on the shrimp, I've never kept one, but on the blankedy-blank clowns... People don't have to taste good. The clown family includes the worst biters commonly kept IMHO. They are unlikely to remove fingers, but they have very sharp teeth and use them well. I got my stainless steel mesh gloves (worn over thick plastic gloves) way back when, because I could not do my work with fresh cuts or abrasions (safety regulations). I might have still gotten some bruises (acceptable if no skin breaks or abrasions were present. They are colorful and eye-catching, frequently "cute" and a nightmare to to work around. They can make the nasty Cichlids look like wimps.

[bertie 83]

So am I correct to say that if it is of the spearing variety it could be safely housed in my sump? Or are they potentially still tank busters?

[G S P Freak]

If it's clicking, it's probably the club/smasher type. I'd love to own one, I find them fascinating creatures. Either way, be careful, I believe even a small one is capable of bruising/fracturing fingers, the clubbers pack one hell of a punch. I doubt your tank will be in any danger irregardless, but good luck removing it if you decide to do so.

[Pufferpunk]

I kept a 5" peacock in a 15g--no cracks.

[bertie 83]

It has to evacuate the tank regardless, my sump is made of thin glass and could cause quite some flooding if ruptured. I need to mull this over some more I think

[LRU]

I kept a 5" peacock in a 15g--no cracks.

Nice pic. I agree, everything I've read indicates they almost never break tanks. I just went with acrylic myself because the tank is on my desk at work and I didn't want any chance of flooding the carpet.

[sgtmyers88]

Did some searching today Bertie and I found the article I read about a few years ago. And guess what? It was right here in this forum. LOL

I met a man that got a Porcupine puffer simply to seek revenge on a large Mantis shrimp that kept eluding him in large tank. The Mantis had made a meal of just about everything in his tank, and after seeing one of my puffers demolish a crab, he thought he had found the perfect weapon for revenge. He and his wife returned the remaining fish from the tank, and purchased a medium sized Porcupine Puffer. They set it loose in the tank and waited to see what would happen. The next day they watched as the puffer spun around zoned in on a small crevice and blew a jet of water into it. A very surprised Mantis shrimp was blown out the other side... the puffer sort of looked at it's new owners... then went right over and bit the annoyance in half, much to the delight of it's new owners. From that point on they new that this was the pet for them. With it's puppy-like, and playful nature it quickly became the family's most treasured pet. They even upgraded it to a tank that was over 200 gallons because they enjoyed it so much. These are just one of the many people that formed strong attachments with their aquatic pet. An important note to mention here is that Porcupine puffers have another habit that any future owner should know about. These fish love to spray water out of the tank. They are like little fire hoses. So, remember to keep a sealed lid on your tank, and it's best not to have any expensive electronic equipment near there either. If you are looking for a fish with a personality, they you should look no further than the porcupine puffer. This is quite a long-lived species so, expect to have this fish for at least 15 years!

[bertie 83]

Cool story! I like it but doubt it will get me permission to vacate the tank for another large species only tank. I now don't think it is a mantis, it could be though. I have been sat with a powerful torch shining in his cave with a strong light for an hour and he is sat at the entrance as usual. If it is his head that I am looking at which seems to have the little fluttery things a crabs mouth does it is not one, it has spiderish legs and is long, it moves real fast for food just snatch and retreat, black and white mottled colour, does not care if you shine a flashlight in its face (if that is its head), shares it's cave structure with a purple firefish and from what I can see looks nothing like a pistol shrimp. To say the least I am severely confused. I half want to tear the tank apart to find out but that would take some serious time and I like it how it is.

[bertie 83]

It has relocated. I offered food at its usual hole and a claw came out from under it reaching at least a quater of an inch. Black and white mottled, long body, claws on an arm, pistol shrimp? This is really getting to me, just to add it snapped a wooden skewer so it is really strong

[Pufferpunk]

I have clicking in my tank, too!