Mantis Shell rot

[Lionfish Lair]

Everyone who knows mantis shrimp, has heard about the nasty disease of shell rot. Hopefully you'll never see one get trapped. It's sad when you find them dead, but it's worse when you see the struggle. Blah. I wouldn't want to repeat that. I was curious at what exactly happened inside his shell, so I let his meat rot until only the shell was left.... this is what I found. Rot is like iceburgs, what you see is only the tip.


All I could see, when he was alive, was a tiny hint of black.

Then I looked down through the body of the shell.....

I removed the top, to get a better look.

To get this top shot, I laid it on a plate on the floor. It was the end of photoshoot, as my Schnauzer thought I laid it down there for him. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. It wasn't soft, but was like a solid rock.

 

[Shep]

Can you treat it or is it always fatal and what causes it?

 

[ritter6788]

There are links to shell rot and bright reef lighting in some stomatopods and some don't get it at all. The most prone to it include G. chiragra and O. scyllarus. I had an O. scyllarus that came in with some shell rot. I used very dim lighting and fed well to speed up the mantis molt. Within a few molts the rot was gone. This is one reason bright reef lighting is not recommend for some species.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

I wish they knew definitively what caused it. I had that one above for a long time, so I suspect it started in my tank. Problem is, they weren't under bright lights. My peacock came in with some, but he was able to molt it off and it was gone. I'd hate it when they would take forever to molt. I pace in front of their tanks, like an expectant father. One time he didn't come out for 3 solid weeks. Don't go looking for them, if they are gone a long time.You don't want to interrupt their molt. I actually tested for ammonia, to see if he was rotting under there somewhere. LOL.

Some say if their caves aren't completely blacked out, they could have trouble with rot. Mine were always is solid black tubing, so I know that wasn't an issue either. I haven't read up on it in some years, so there could be lots of answers out there I don't know about.

 

[ritter6788]

They get shell rot in the ocean too so I don't think it's from keeping them in aquariums. Maybe just a weakness they have. I've read Dr. Roy mention that under a microscope that shell rot is a host of all sorts of nasty stuff like bacteria and Protozoa.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Great, and I was touching on it...... and the dog ate it. I'm grossed out now. LOL. I need to go wash my hands.