Just got a new mantis! It is awesome! Need advice...

[Gr8Reptile]

Hey I just got an captive born African Flower Mantis today at the bug fair and was wondering about some odd behavior he/she was displaying in the cage. It was flying to the roof of it's critter carrier and crashing into the sealing then falling. It did this for a good minute then stopped. And started hanging upside down. Should I be worried?
Oh and how big will this species get? Right now he/she is about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in length.

 

[Tunedbeat]

If it can fly, it's most likely an adult.
And, hanging upside down is a part of what they do.

 

[Galapoheros]

In the past I've only kept adult native mantids I've found. Only recently did I pick up an ootheca I found and so now I'm raising several of the mantises from babies. They need a lot more attention and food than say a T, pede or scorp. I feel stuck because I'm obsessed with getting at least some to adulthood. Anyway, enough about me, ...that one sounds like an adult if it's flying around (got it's wings with it's final molt). Their molting stages are much like roaches with winged mantids getting wings with their final molt. After I read something about roaches and mantises being closely related, the similarities in ootheca structure of some roach sp and mantises crossed my mind. Now a roach looks kind of like a squatty mantis to me. I see Hissers hold their food with their front legs, looks really mantis like ..if I use my imagination. I don't think they live long after they reach adulthood, a matter of months for some if not weeks. But I know nothing about the species you have. I'm referring only to general basic info I've come across about mantises. Maybe some pros will comment later. Hanging upside down I think is normal after they calm down. All mine hang down from the top of the container they are in. If you put too much food in the container they will panic and try to get away since they will feel threatened by all the movement of the feeders running around close to them.

 

[Tunedbeat]

I think, males only live for a few weeks and females a month or more.


Male & female, should be relatively the same for adults too.

 

[Gr8Reptile]

You guys sure it isn't a baby? Cause it can't really fly, it just flaps it's wings and hops. Should I worry about it killing itself? And how long would you say it has left to live? I mean one of you guys must know just by judging from the size. I mean it is so small. barely two inches. I thought mantids reached at least 5.....

 

[Galapoheros]

I've realized that the visual size of mantises is deceiving at first glance. I found what I thought was at least a 4 incher last year. I put a ruler to it ...it was only 2.5 inches. The fact that the one you have is flapping "any" wings is a sign of it being an adult. I don't know a lot about mantises but I've read there are not many species that go over 5, but there are some.

 

[Farom]

If it's flying like that, it's a male. As Galapoheros pointed out, the simple fact that it has wings at all means it is an adult. Adult males are timid and you will probably only get around two more months of life out of it, depending on how old it is. It will eat small prey and sparingly. Few mantids in culture will reach five inches. You're probably thinking of Tenodera sinensis, which is supposed to be able to reach that size.
Most mantids are around the 2-3.5 inch range.

 

[Gr8Reptile]

Yeah he doesn't appear to be eating any food I give him... Darn it!

 

[cjm1991]

I've realized that the visual size of mantises is deceiving at first glance. I found what I thought was at least a 4 incher last year. I put a ruler to it ...it was only 2.5 inches. The fact that the one you have is flapping "any" wings is a sign of it being an adult. I don't know a lot about mantises but I've read there are not many species that go over 5, but there are some.

I live i Missouri and we have HUGE green mantids that get at least 6 inches.

 

[Galapoheros]

Cool. If so, it must be a very thin species. I'd like to see a pic ...next to a ruler.

 

[Gr8Reptile]

Ok now I talked to the guy who sold me it and he agreed to either swap it out or give me a discount on next mantid. I am undecided but either way I will end up with a Unicorn Mantis.
I think he said it was from either Texas or Arizona....
So............... Is there anything I should know about this species? Anyone experienced with it?

 

[MooSmoo]

As for the feeding, we have a chinese adult, which ate viciously as a nymph, up to sub adult it was a greedy little bug, but now hes become adult and got his wings he eats maybe half a locust or half a cricket every few days, he enjoyed eating as a nymph but now has more fun evading me when I open his tub to mist him, and enjoys a bit of a fly around the room lol.

Never heard of a unicorn mantis though, sounds interesting

 

[Farom]

Both the Texas and Arizona species are easy to care for. They like it warm, with a mist every few days. Flying prey is preferable.

 

[Gr8Reptile]

Flying prey? How am I supposed to get that? It isn't something you come across everyday in pet stores. I have crickets.... Do they like those? What animal is used as a flying feeder?

 

[Farom]

Crickets work fine, but they will thrive and produce more with flying prey. Either catch it yourself or buy some housefly pupae from spiderpharm.

 

[petshopguy]

Crickets work fine, but they will thrive and produce more with flying prey. Either catch it yourself or buy some housefly pupae from spiderpharm.

Yes - most serious mantis keepers use/buy fly pupae. You just throw the pupae in the containers and let them hatch and get eaten. They are a supercheap feeder. If it weren't for the smell, I imagine more people would raise them as feeders. Another good source of free food is to leave the porch light on at night and catch a couple moths. It's cool watching a mantis snatch a moth right out of the air.