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s9.gif This one is for you Lori since you never saw the flower mantids.. ENJOY!!!!!
First one is a Malaysian Orchid mantis..
First one is a Malaysian Orchid mantis..
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Re: For Lori!!!
s23.gif s30.gif And the second one is ooooooh so beautiful.. look at those pretty eyes.. ENJOY!!!!
This is the Spiny Flower Mantis.. -
Re: For Lori!!!
That first one is really pretty ! Wouldn't know whether to place it into a vase of water or a critter keeper lol.
The second one.. eh.. I like the first one better hehe.
Are these ones avilable in the trade or not at all ?Comment
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Re: For Lori!!!
8) Yup they are beautiful and they are on the market.. so what il do is find all the good dealers and post it for ya under this thread.. and il get ya some more pics of some of the other pretty ones on the market.. Glad ya like um...
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Re: For Lori!!!
8) Mantis care,
Many Praying mantids that are on the market are from tropical origins and therefore need to be kept warm, as a general rule 200C to 250C will be ideal. The young should be fed on fruit flies,, aphids or other small insects. They do well if supplied with as much food as they can eat although they can last quite a while without food. Many species are very aggressive towards each other and if kept in groups they will eat each other especially as one or two become slightly larger than their brothers and sisters. Some species will happily tackle prey as large as themselves. As the grow they can be given larger prey, almost any insects will be eaten. Mantids do not usually need to drink. However if they are kept in a heated cage a small dish of water is a good idea in order to provide some humidity, alternatively the cage should be sprayed with water every other day........
HOUSING
As the mantis grows it will shed its skin several times, becoming larger at each stage. Initially a small container such as snall jar will make suitable cage, as the mantis grows it can progress into a larger pickle jar and finally into the smallest of the critter keepers.. The top of the your jar can be covered with a nylon stocking cut to size and a rubber band put on it to hold in place...Whatever type of cage is used a stick or branch should be provided for the insect to hang from when it sheds its skin and the distance from the top of the branch to the floor must be at least three times the length of the insect maybe also some leafs or blades of grass......
BREEDING
Sexing mantids is difficult when they are small but fairly easy when adult, eight segments can be counted on the underside of the males abdomen and six on that of the female (in some species the end segments are difficult to see and only seven or five may be counted). After two or three weeks as adults the mantids can be mated. Both should be fed as much as they will eat for several days before the male is introduced to the female's cage. It is advisable to use a large cage for the mating and feeding them well beforehand is essential otherwise the female will eat the male. Mating may occur immediately or it may take the male a day or so to make his approach. Mating may last a day or more so it is a good idea to keep the cage supplied with food so the female can eat while mating. The male should be removed as soon as mating has finished.....
The eggs are produced in an eggcase called an ootheca this may produce 30 to 300 young mantids depending on the species. Hatching usually takes between 3 and 6 months. The young may hatch all at once or in batches over a period of several weeks. The ootheca should be suspended at least 5 cm above the floor of the cage. When the young hatch they hang by a thread from the ootheca until their skin hardens off. The female will eat a lot and become very fat before laying an ootheca on a branch or side of the container if she is already fat she may well lay her first ootheca the day after mating. She will lay several oothecae, usually about six, but only needs to be mated once. The young nymphs can be housed together for a time but the cage must be very large with plenty of hiding places and an excess of live food must be provided to prevent cannibalism. The mantids should be housed separately after the second or third moult...........
SUGGESTED SPECIES
Sphrodomantis viridis from West Africa is an easy species to keep, very suitable for beginners. They are about 8 cm long and either bright green to light brown in colour. They will happily take food of their own size and they will also take pieces of meal if it is offered on a pair of tweezers. Their ootheca can contain up to 300 eggs.
Adult mantis should be givin crickets or grasshoppers, flies and other bugs that are easy to subdue..Just about any reptile dealer or invert dealer will carry a few diffrent mantis, sometimes you can only get them durring spring and summer.. Theres alot of these going around at reptile swaps to.. hope this helps some....
The African Neon green mantis....
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Re: For Lori!!!
Lori, heres a site you can go to and look at all the diffrent mantis that are out in the pet trade, this is a UK site ..should help you get a good idea of how they all look....
Check this one out,,
'Alien Head' Mantis, courtesy of Invertepet..Comment
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Re: For Lori!!!
Next to my parents house there was a lilac bush that mantids would always lay their egg sacs on every year. One year we took the branch that the egg sac was on and put it into a jar. Well, I guess we poked a bit too large of holes in the lid, because we came home one day to find my parents entire head board and bed covered in baby praying mantises!!!!! Boy are they tiny!!! There were still a lot of them in the jar as well. We were still catching them and putting them outside on the bush a month later!!!! What a mess!!! Actually it was kind of funny.Comment
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Re: For Lori!!!
I never knew bugs could be so beautiful. Those first two are unbelievable. Barricuda you should honestly change your user name to the bug lady, just a sugestion lol;D. I have learned more about cool bugs from you that in all my childhood years of exploring nature.
Thank you for all the great knowledge.Comment
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Re: For Lori!!!
;D ;D Hey im just wierd what can i say hehehehehe!!! I just love all critters great and small and "everyone" can and should be able to enjoy the strange world of bugs....
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