Reef Discussion

[Kharn]

The latest video of Morgoth being fed :D I threw the piece of prawn further back in the tank hoping that he would come rite out and go for it rather then wait to see if it floats past....luckily he did! The pressure was on either he got that prawn meat then...or the fish would of torn the rest of it apart...he doesn't like to share :p

Hope you like it.

 

[Kharn]

Also I have 2 new Stomatopods incoming :D

1 of them I have seen and it is a nice fat healthy G.smithii that is looking for a home

The other....a prize species that I have been after and thought I HAD, its a L.maculata (Morgoth is a L.sulcata) I have not seen this L.maculata yet but the person whom got it is positive of its identity also.....its quite large which leads me to believe he is rite about the species....The best way for "the avg joe" to tell the difference between a L.sulcata & L.maculata is mere size, if the 'zebra' stomatopod is over 200mm long its likely a L.maculata if its smaller then its 50/50.

He has told me that although he couldn't get an accurate measurement of the animal they estimate it between 250mm-300mm which leads me to believe its a L.maculata further more it is likely a MALE since females spend even more time hiding below sand then males, in the worst case scenario where only 1 L.maculata is captured and provided to the buyer and if the buyer isn't trying to pair it with a female he/she already has, basically leaving the lone Male L.maculata as a Display animal, it is the better of the 2 (male / female) to get (in my opinion) Males have more of the "larger" attributes, eyes, appendages/weapons, all the things that allow it to do what 2 'zebras' can do because when they pair he DOES do it all, she does nothing but brood eggs and tend the tunnel.

In short, Males are better for Display then females if only 1 can be obtained.

Good Example - Male top / Female below
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/arthro...umalacostraca/royslist/images/l_maculata2.jpg

 

[Agent M]

she does nothing but brood eggs and tend the tunnel.

Oh is that all? Ha ha :p

 

[Kharn]

Oh is that all? Ha ha :p

Well yeah basically :D the male has eyes and weapons more advanced then hers so that he can do all the labor of hunting prey and defending the burrow, even though she has vastly smaller weapons along with overall lower combat proficiency then he does, she dictates everything thing the monogamous relationship from sex to food to the burrow itself, he is relentless in pleasing her, albeit at the drop of a hat he could end it, which makes pairing 2 random males and females in captivity difficult, she MUST be bigger and even then he will be more well "equipped" should something happen....

Ironic to the current pair of G.graphurus I recently obtained =) the male is VASTLY larger then the female in the pair I've never seen 2 smashers co-exist like this "pair" has, he could at the drop of a hat kill her just through sheer size but he is completely obedient to her :confused:

 

[Agent M]

Sounds romantic!

 

[Kharn]

I constructed a budget wall made of white eggcrate splitting my large tank in 2 and have pushed it down into the sand bed as far as I can....In the hopes its deep enough, the large Zebra I have incoming will house in the section that isn't being housed by Morgoth, I essentially cut Morgoths tunnel in half and caving in some of it during the process xD so he has been doing some excavating.

I just hope I got the barrier deep enough....because this new Zebra mantis that is coming has been quoted at being almost twice the size of Morgoth! Having said that it will be a L.maculata and likely a male too, very rare to get females (Morgoth being a practically fully grown L.sulcata).

 

[Kharn]

Sounds romantic!

sounds familiar to humans :confused:

 

[Kharn]

Unfortunately the large Scopas Tang managed to somehow squeeze its way into the chamber that is ready for the L.mac incoming...

 

[Agent M]

sounds familiar to humans :confused:

Not in my experience, maybe I should come back as a mantis shrimp!

 

[MagicJ]

How long is Morgoth? Looks to be a fair size:eek

 

[Dr. Schell]

Well yeah basically :D the male has eyes and weapons more advanced then hers so that he can do all the labor of hunting prey and defending the burrow, even though she has vastly smaller weapons along with overall lower combat proficiency then he does, she dictates everything thing the monogamous relationship from sex to food to the burrow itself, he is relentless in pleasing her, albeit at the drop of a hat he could end it, which makes pairing 2 random males and females in captivity difficult, she MUST be bigger and even then he will be more well "equipped" should something happen....

Ironic to the current pair of G.graphurus I recently obtained =) the male is VASTLY larger then the female in the pair I've never seen 2 smashers co-exist like this "pair" has, he could at the drop of a hat kill her just through sheer size but he is completely obedient to her :confused:

One thing that you must remember with stromatopods is that they have an overwhelming drive to reproduce!. It is not in the interest of the male to kill a potential mate as this would limit his potential offspring. I believe you will find that the spearers will be easier to pair than you think. If I were the one forming the pair, let the female construct the burrow and "cage" the male proximate to its entrance such that he cannot enter. The reproductive pheromones with cue the males behaviour such that it "should" limit aggressive behaviour.

I believe that it is a combination of visual signals (initially) and then pheromonal cues that suppresses the agression in the males. As the females are the ones that produce these cues, it appears that they are responsible for the timing of the social interactions.