Whick Mantid?
- Thread starter mantid
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your basic african mantis is a good choice, medum sized, docile (well mine is) and good feeders.
mantids are brilliant pets, they are incredible to watch hunt, so i'd advise against a dead leaf or Viollin mantid since those are somewhat passive.
you'll get some better advice from the more experienced keepers here.
mantids are brilliant pets, they are incredible to watch hunt, so i'd advise against a dead leaf or Viollin mantid since those are somewhat passive.
you'll get some better advice from the more experienced keepers here.
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Phyllocrania paradoxa are both impressive looking and very easy to take care of. However, I would reccommend you try an african mantid (Sphodromantis spp.) too, they are very neat, and easy to care for.
Thanks I think I'll try the African Mantid and I'll also buy some bigger ones such as chinese and the african mantis. Which is the best way to buy them if you want to breed them? I live in Canada and am having trouble finding a mantid breeder that ships here, could you help?
Thanks for your help.
Thanks for your help.
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the chineses mantid is a mean one, and it will bite/grab at you making it hard to care for when your inexperienced since you don't know how they move/ react.
i strongly recomend just getting an african mantid (Sphodromantis spp) and then after you've had it a few weeks at least, get a chinese mantid (if you still really want one), though its not the biggest, but it is the nastest.
i strongly recomend just getting an african mantid (Sphodromantis spp) and then after you've had it a few weeks at least, get a chinese mantid (if you still really want one), though its not the biggest, but it is the nastest.
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I've actually experienced the opposite, most of my Sphodromantis are very aggressive, but I just don't mess with those individuals. I have never had a chinese try to bite me or act defensive toward me.ghost_tomb said:
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Mantid, Im going to consolidate all your posts, because it's driving me crazy!
You want to know what mantid species to get, well I'd say start with something simple. All of the following arn't too hard:
Hierodula sp.
sphrodomantis sp
tendora sp.
carolina mantis (cant remember the latin name)
mantis religiosa
Polyspillota aeruginosa
Any one of those mantids will be fine as a starter. However I have never had any trouble when handling, but they are all exceptionally aggressive toward food. Infact I would say that the polyspillota is one of the most aggressive species going. I managed to feed an adult (dying) violin mantis to my sub adult male polyspillota. He regulary from a young instar would take on food that was easily 3 times his size.
As for flower mantids, leave them alone until you've had some experience with others first. Seeing that you are in Canada I would sugest that you wait until the spring to get hold of the more exotic mantids as they will have to be in the post for a few days and the cold could easily kill them.
Breeders, there are a few in America that I know of, DeShawn of www.mantiskingdom.com is one, Jezzy runs http://www.exoinverts.com/ (Jezzy if you read this - did you make your site yourself? Its very cool!) and Leah of http://www.wildeyereptiles.com/ I dont know of any in Canada, but I think these guys may ship to you. Then again when I was in Canada last summer, all the pet shops told me that Mantids are not allowed in because it could damage their ecosystem.... That means you may have problems getting it accross the line.
You want to know what mantid species to get, well I'd say start with something simple. All of the following arn't too hard:
Hierodula sp.
sphrodomantis sp
tendora sp.
carolina mantis (cant remember the latin name)
mantis religiosa
Polyspillota aeruginosa
Any one of those mantids will be fine as a starter. However I have never had any trouble when handling, but they are all exceptionally aggressive toward food. Infact I would say that the polyspillota is one of the most aggressive species going. I managed to feed an adult (dying) violin mantis to my sub adult male polyspillota. He regulary from a young instar would take on food that was easily 3 times his size.
As for flower mantids, leave them alone until you've had some experience with others first. Seeing that you are in Canada I would sugest that you wait until the spring to get hold of the more exotic mantids as they will have to be in the post for a few days and the cold could easily kill them.
Breeders, there are a few in America that I know of, DeShawn of www.mantiskingdom.com is one, Jezzy runs http://www.exoinverts.com/ (Jezzy if you read this - did you make your site yourself? Its very cool!) and Leah of http://www.wildeyereptiles.com/ I dont know of any in Canada, but I think these guys may ship to you. Then again when I was in Canada last summer, all the pet shops told me that Mantids are not allowed in because it could damage their ecosystem.... That means you may have problems getting it accross the line.
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worship my knowledge at www.mantidae.tk its still a bit messy as i still have alot to sort out.
Sheldy, nice website, like your flower mantid photos...how many do you have?
where did you get them?
Oh by the way i tried some of those sites and some of them will ship to Canada thanks again..must worship website and knowledge :worship:
where did you get them?
Oh by the way i tried some of those sites and some of them will ship to Canada thanks again..must worship website and knowledge :worship: