Mantis issues

[Necromion]

Ok, so I have lately been able to get my hands on some orchid mantids but i keep having the same EXACT issue. To put it simply the mantis grow fine for a few molts till they start to out grow their prey, in which case i have to change to a different feeder type. Thus I go to my local pet store buy the same feeders I do for my Tarantulas, and slings especially, and within days the or sometimes even hours I see the mantis start to die. Im wondering if this is the cricket virus ive done some reading on, but crickets from other sources produce the same results.

Now I really love this species, and would love to have success with them but I'm growing frustrated and its starting to take a toll upon the wallet. so could anyone point me in the right direction here. Now I will admit ive bred local mantids, ive done some spiny flower mantids, as well as my numerous T's and Dart frogs so I'm at a loss on this one as I've never encountered this issue before.

 

[basin79]

Could you not get untreated maggots and let them develop into flies? There are different ones you could use depending on the stage if the mantids.

Also I'm not sure on their nutritional value but wax worms turn into moths quite quickly. They'd be the right size for a large female.

 

[Necromion]

haven't considered that as an option, Right now I'm just trying to narrow down the possible causes before attempting again in the future.

 

[chanda]

I'm afraid I don't have any insight as to why it keeps happening, but if you want to try a different feeder, bugsincyberspace has fly pupae for sale. If you keep them in the fridge, they'll stay dormant. Just toss a couple in the cage every few days and the warmer temperatures will encourage them to mature.

 

[Toxoderidae]

crickets are never good for a delicate species like an orchid. Use moths or flies, and always try to hatch them yourself.

 

[Ranitomeya]

Crickets should never be used straight from the store for mantises. They're pretty filthy and are gut-loaded with a microbial stew from feeding on moldy, old food and dead crickets. If you're going to use crickets as feeders for mantises, you need to keep them for a while and make sure they've had time to clear their system. Mantises simply do not have the ability to deal with the garbage store-bought crickets have been feeding on. The different duration between feeding and death may be because of when you purchased the crickets. Crickets that have been recently delivered to the store would obviously be healthier than crickets that have been at the store for a while as they haven't been living in the crappy conditions as long.

If you can keep the crickets alive for at least a few days to a week after purchase by providing them with clean water daily and fresh food while making sure to keep their enclosure relatively dry and always free of dead crickets, then you can use them for your mantises. If you can't do that, you need to find an alternative food source.