Feeder insect colony for only 1 mantis?

[AlfredLofgren]

Hello all keepers!

I had a mantis that died a few months ago. I really liked keeping it and i think it is such a fun hobby. I thought that i'd maybe get a new mantis or other preferably easy to keep invertebrate.

But there was one thing that i was king of struggling with when i had my mantis, and that was keeping a consistent source of food for him.
I dont have any pet or reptile shops near me that sells crickets, mealworms or any other type of feeder insects. Instead i used to buy maggots from a fishing shop. But sometimes they could pupate without warning, and they were to big for the mantis when it was little and to small when it grew bigger.

I could buy feeders from the internet but it wouldnt work in the long run as the shipping would cost way to much. So maybe i could buy some and try to start a smaller collony.

So my question is, should i try to start a colony of some sort of feeder and if so, wich feeder species should i choose and how would i avoid it getting to big? Keep in mind i only want one mantis, there will not be a lot of consumtion. Or should i stick with the maggots?

Thanks for any help!

 

[isabel]

Try crickets and dubias, I doubt that worms if any type would be active enough for it to be interested. I’ve read that if you keep crickets properly you can breed them, never tried it myself because my local florist sells them and I have a 3 reputable pet shops within 35mins of me. Look into it and see what fits best. It depends on the size of mantis you would like, and how easily you want to breed!

 

[Bob Lee]

Roaches are the top feeders, just keep a small bin.
There is quite a few tutorials on the internet on how to house them and breed them, if you don't want too many of them just throw out the newborns.(Make sure you keep enough to keep breeding)

 

[isabel]

Yeah, i would agree! They are sort of nice too, so you can just pick them up in your hands. I keep hissers as pets and they’re quite cool

 

[AlfredLofgren]

Thank you all! It helps!