I was looking in the tank tonight when the lights were off and a shadow moving caught my eye on the polyp rock. So I grabbed the magnifying glass and some weird yellow-ish shrimpy type creature was running around the rock, inbetween the polyps. Then it shot into a small hole in the rock. Its only about an inch long.
Carried on sitting there watching this hole and then two little eyes popped out of the hole and started looking around. Just like a garden snails eyes and it would turn around and look in all directions then go back in. It then came back out, went down to the sand, picked some up with its claws and then took some back into its hole I first thought it was a pistol shrimp or something so was quite pleased, but then I thought that pistol shrimps have their claws out in front of them and their claws are pretty much straight. But I couldnt see claws on this one but eventually I noticed them down at it side, very similar to a Praying Mantis...uh-oh! So went on to google and typed in Mantis Shrimp and there is pictures of some that look very similar to this shrimp.

For all you that don't think what a Mantis Shrimp is or haven't seen what they are capable of when they reach a large size, watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hkv_30niM_A


Yes the one in the video is about 10 times the size of this one but still, the hermit crabs in our tank aren't very big! If you listen on the video you can hear it whacking the crab, like a clicking noise. I remember my Dad saying quite a while ago that he was sitting there one night and could hear a weird clicking noise coming from inside the tank.
Not 100% sure that it is but it looks like a small one so may have to try and remove it soon. Its not the type on that video but looking through google images there are smaller ones that look very similar.

Just watched the video of the shrimp, nasty piece of work aint he? Do you think he came in with your live rock? I've just finished putting in some new live rock into a larger tank, so I think i'll be keeping a good look out for something like that. As I dont want to loose my hermits.

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Ex divers do it deeper

is this him slash ? got one of these mantis in mine .

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senile old git

He does look very much like a smaller version of that.

You've got one??? How big is it?

about an inch, he darts out of a hole in the live rock, at feeding time ,grabs a bit and darts back in to eat it . hes to smart for me though ,he always picks a rock with loads of escape routes lol.

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senile old git

Horrible shrimp! Was reading up on them and there was some guy in San Diego fishing by the shore and there was one of these, a big one about 1ft long, sitting in the rocks. He put his hand in to touch it, not knowing what it was and it struck at him and put a 3inch gash down to the bone on his thumb! Apparently they can do that in 1/1000 of a second.

Yeah it must of come in on the live rock. We've had that rock for about a year now so hes been in it all that time without being detected. You do get all sorts come in on your rock.

Lol, I see this ones going to be a pain in the ass to get out. I may just take out the rock and put it in a tub of cold freshwater because dont really want a crab and shrimp killing machine in the tank.

we have got to try to be extra careful that they dont give us a wallop when we are servicing the tank , but I think that will be nigh on impossible, if he wants to strike theres not a lot we can do about it .

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senile old git

Don't know whether one that small would attack you but then again I wouldn't like to find out! Nope not a lot you can doing unless you can move your hand fast then 1/1000 of a second.

you bl---dy watch me lolif he had me my hand would be out of that tank a lot faster than1/1000 of a second

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senile old git