Mantid Egg Cases

[xanadu1015]

First off, are they called cases?


Anyway, my husband came home from work with these two egg cases. Seems a lady there heard I like mantids and other "creepy crawlies" and she thought I would like to raise some. Problem is, I'm not too sure on how to do that. So I figured I'll ask around my favorite arachnoboards' site and find out. How exactly do I raise these future little guys? I know what they can be fed, but how often do you feed them? Is it everyday like slings? I don't know what kind of mantids these are, but they are the ones usually seen in gardens around here in Southern New Jersey. Any advice would be great. As you can tell I am a little nervous. I've raised little slings and birds, but never young mantids.

 

[Alex S.]

The correct term is oothecae, but there is no harm in using the word egg cases.

I rarely keep mantids, but have had an ootheca from Mantis religiosa hatch out at around room temperature (70 deg. F) with higher humidity. The nymphs are fairly easy to raise. There will be cannibalism among the nymphs if kept together, so it is best to keep them solitary. The nymphs I kept did well on a diet of one small (1/4") cricket fed to them every other day.

Alex S.

 

[xanadu1015]

I have easy access to pinhead crickets, would they work? As for a set up for the case until they hatch, what should I do? Would I be better off putting them in a bush off of the ground? I have heard that this time of year is when they hatch.

 

[BigBadConrad]

I grew up in Philly and have hatched a few ootheca in my day. Yes, they're cannibalistic, but I can't imagine trying to separate them all and house and feed them. That would be a full-time job. Pinheads should be fine. We had plenty of flowers covered with aphids and leafhoppers, so I would just put a few flower buds in there and the little mantises would go to town on them. I just kept them communally in as big a tank as I had to minimize the cannibalism a little at least. I'd put in plenty of small branches and clippings from bushes for they to climb and hang out of and change them every few days when they became dried and brown (many will also hang upside down from the screen, so be careful when removing it). When the mantises grew to about 3/4" I would release most of them into the garden and keep a few of the larger ones in separate habitats for the Summer so I could observe them, then release them in the Fall so they could mate before they died and there would be more in the yard next year I love mantises. I've been finding them in my yard and keeping them again the last few years. The native ones here in AZ are small and shy by comparison to those I remember from Philly. But I keep them for the Summer and release them and so far there have always been more showing up the next year. I've had more mantises and fewer pest insects in my yard each year. They're so cool!

Oh - another thing: DON'T put any sort of water dish in there, not even a small one. Mantises are very good at drowning in any water whatsoever, no matter how shallow. Just mist the branches and maybe the inside glass of the tank every day or two. They will get plenty of water from these droplets and from their prey.

Hope you enjoy them,
John

 

[Alex S.]

I have easy access to pinhead crickets, would they work? As for a set up for the case until they hatch, what should I do? Would I be better off putting them in a bush off of the ground? I have heard that this time of year is when they hatch.

Yes, pinhead crickets will work. I house oothecae in medium to large-sized jars. The ventilation holes in the lid should be very small. I simply heat up a pin and melt tiny holes into the lid. I only kept around 10 nymphs solitary. The rest I released.

Alex S.

 

[xanadu1015]

Thank you so much! This is a big help! I had an idea on how to take care of them, but I wanted to be sure so I don't do anything wrong.




Thanks again!!!


Laura

 

[Brak]

If you want to go the fruit fly route start some cultures (about 7 ). Just leave some banana peels out and they will come. Put them in a jar when they appear. This is what I did to feed about 5oo hatched Sphodromantis. I separated them, 5 to a cup initially. After about 4 molts I put them 1 to a cup. I managed to get about 290 to that stage. Probably a little excessive but I wanted to see how many I could save. Very time consuming as we fed 2 x a day. Check out the method here. Good luck.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=21604

John

 

[BigBadConrad]

Well...did they hatch yet? Curious how it is going. I'm jealous - I want lots of baby mantises for my yard!