At what age to Mantis Shrimp become able to reproduce?

[WhiteRibbon]

Hello all,

I was wondering approximately how old a Mantis Shrimp needs to be to reproduce. I want to make sure that I have gotten all of them out of my main tank and that there aren't any eggs waiting for me later.

Thank you for your help.

[noidster]

Hey Pegasis,
How's it going? Mantis shrimp have planktonic larvae which makes it almost impossible for them to reproduce in our aquariums.


Noidster

[moviegeek]

The mantis may lay eggs if there is a breeding pair, but the eggs then hatch and go through a planktonic larvae stage.

The planton-sized baby mantis are unlikely to become juvenile mantis due to the lack of appropriately sized food, as Noidster said.

Here is a pretty good article on the subject:

http://www.blueboard.com/mantis/bio/mating.htm