FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

[13.01.15]

The pre-subadult female came today and despite the 8 day delivery in the not-so-warm European weather, she is great and full of energy. I hope to at least raise this one to adulthood.

IMG_2246 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2240 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2235 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2239 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2247 by Darkrai283, on Flickr

[14.01.14]

First night in my possession and she treated me with a threat pose when I tried to move her into a larger container.
I rushed taking the pics though so I couldn't get as close a shot as I wanted to... nor are they sharp. :/

IMG_2254 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2253 by Darkrai283, on Flickr

Youtube video!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkPTCZF-QTQ[/youtube]

[30.01.15]

The pre-sub female moulted to subadult.

Moulting video:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2RvTa7mPkQ[/youtube]

IMG_2418 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2420 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2421 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2437 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2454 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2453 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2435 by Darkrai283, on Flickr

[13.02.15]

Some pics of the subadult female.

IMG_2652 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2643 by Darkrai283, on Flickr
IMG_2654 by Darkrai283, on Flickr

COOL! Whats the white stuff it's hanging on ?

tish wrote:COOL! Whats the white stuff it's hanging on ?

It's one of those non-slip mats you use to line your shelves with to prevent objects sliding about.

The family of this mantis is the Empusidae (the violin mantids are in this family too) and Empusids have differently evolved feet compared to all other mantids, making them unable to grip onto smooth surfaces like skin or glass/plastic. Therefore, we have to glue rough sticks on the top for them to be able to walk around properly and to not to fall during the delicate process of moulting.
One breeder in the US started using this shelf-liner though as a substitute for sticks and found out that it works perfectly for their unusual and fragile feet. It's much better looking than having an enclosure full of random sticks with uneven lengths + it's much easier to set up.

Ok. Very clever, that is really a soft material and come to think of it, I agree it is very good for hanging insect and neater.

oh my gosh so cool,

Nice!

Richard, I am really loving all the photos of your critters! Super fascinating! I'm curious about keeping mantises as pets. Is there a "beginner" species you would recommend? Any useful websites or books?

Thanks!

MrsMuscipula wrote:Richard, I am really loving all the photos of your critters! Super fascinating! I'm curious about keeping mantises as pets. Is there a "beginner" species you would recommend? Any useful websites or books?

Thanks!

Thanks. My no. 1 beginner species would be a Ghost mantis (Phyllocrania paradoxa). They're definitely not one of the larger ones (adults are 4-5cm) but they do look cooler than the species with the 'typical mantis look'. These guys can also tolerate longer periods of unfavourable conditions than most and they can also be kept 'communally' unlike other species provided that they have enough room and food to keep their belly full as nymphs. (BUT, no mantis species is truly communal though so you have to expect some cases of cannibalism if you decide to keep them together)

If you're looking for one of the larger species (around 8cm), go for any Hierodula species (Asians) or Sphodromantis species (Africans). Both are aggressive so they can tackle larger prey like locusts and are pretty easy for a large species... but I think that people might find it easier if they went for the smaller, easier species first then moved up.

Do they need special lighting? Or can I just keep them in my room? Would they be okay with using cypress mulch as a substrate along with plants? Do you know a good place to buy a couple ghost mantises?

Darkrai283 wrote:

Also, how long will a ghost mantis live on average?

SFLguy wrote:Do they need special lighting? Or can I just keep them in my room? Would they be okay with using cypress mulch as a substrate along with plants? Do you know a good place to buy a couple ghost mantises?

Nope, no special lighting is needed. Room temperature is also fine but the cooler they are kept, the slower their metabolism will be, leading to slower growth/development (but this does mean it gets an increased lifespan though. :p ).

Substrate wise, using cheap and simple kitchen roll/paper is the best.I know it is not as aesthetically pleasing on the eye compared to more natural looking ones, but when using kitchen paper, you can see when the enclosure needs cleaning out at a glance. Also, if you use soil/vermiculite, you might miss bits of dead prey the mantis has dropped which can result in a perfect breeding ground for bacteria and can cause an outburst of fungi or mites. Another thing is that it is less messy than using loose substrate and dead easy to clean out the enclosure; just whip out the old kitchen paper and place in a new sheet.

I also find that if a mantis falls, which they do occasionally, they struggle to right themselves on loose substrate but on kitchen towel they can easily get a grip to turn themselves upright.

SFLguy wrote:

Darkrai283 wrote:

Also, how long will a ghost mantis live on average?

At room-temperature, females will take 7 months on average from a hatchling to adult and will live for a further 7 months before it dies of old age. Males will take 6 months on average from a hatchling to adult and will live for a further 1-2 months before it dies of old age. The adult males are very short lived as their only purpose is to mate with females to produce offspring.

During the adult female's adult life, they can lay up to 10 oothecae (egg masses) or even up to 15 in some unusual cases with very healthy females. You can expect to get 10-40 hatchlings from each ooth too.

Darkrai283 wrote: can expect to get 10-40 hatchlings from each ooth too.

Cool, would you suggest getting an ooth as a new grower? Do you know where I'd be able to buy one (or a place to buy a young mantises if not)?