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Praying Mantid caresheet
A Praying Mantis (Hierodula patellifera) in typical 'praying' posture.
Photograph by OpenCage licensed under Creative Commons.
The Mantids are a group of 1,800 carnivorous insects (Order: Mantodea). Most mantids are from tropical countries although a few do occur in cooler climates. Their closest relatives are the stick insects, grasshoppers and cockroaches. Like their relatives the mantids undergo simple or incomplete metamorphosis; they do not have a maggot or caterpillar but go through several stages all of which look like miniature, wingless adults.
Feeding
Young mantids should be fed on fruit flies (Drosophila sp.), aphids or other small insects. They do well if supplied with as much food as they can eat although they can last quite a while without food.
As they grow they can be given larger prey, almost any insects (for example, blue bottle flies, grasshoppers, crickets, cockroaches) will be eaten. Some species will happily tackle prey as large as themselves. However, you should make sure that any insects that are not eaten (especially grasshoppers, crickets and cockroaches) do not chew the legs or wings of your mantid.
If you keep live food for your mantid then you should also ensure that the live food is kept in appropriate conditions (adequate space, correct temperature and humidity and access to food and water).
Housing
Many species are very aggressive towards each other and if kept in groups they will eat each other especially as one or two become slightly larger than their brothers and sisters.
Mantids can be kept in a variety of containers but many keepers use plastic fish tanks (these can be positioned vertically to provide a tall enclosure). Whatever type of cage is used a stick or branch should be provided for the insect to hang from when it sheds its skin. As a result it is very important that the distance from the top of the branch to the floor must be at least four times the length of the insect. As a result mantids need to be kept in tall cages. As the mantid grows it should be moved to larger containers.
Many Praying mantids are from tropical origins and therefore need to be kept warm, as a general rule 20°C to 25°C will be ideal. The temperature should be kept as constant as possible and this can be achieved using a heat mat and thermostat.
Spraying the cage once a day with fresh, clean water will provide the mantis with water and will also raise the humidity of the enclosure. Humidity is very important when mantids moult but large amounts of water droplets should be avoided as smaller mantids can become trapped and drown.
Breeding
Sexing mantids is difficult when they are small but fairly easy when adult, eight segments can be counted on the underside of the abdomen of a male and six on that of the female (in some species the end segments are difficult to see and only seven or five may be counted).
After two or three weeks as adults the mantids can be mated. Both should be fed as much as they will eat for several days before the male is introduced to the female's cage. It is advisable to use a large cage for the mating and feeding them well beforehand is essential otherwise the female will eat the male. Mating may occur immediately or it may take the male a day or so to make his approach. Mating may last a day or more so it is a good idea to keep the cage supplied with food so the female can eat while mating. The male should be removed as soon as mating has finished.
The eggs are produced in an eggcase called an ootheca this may produce 30 to 300 young mantids depending on the species. The ootheca is a frothy mass created by the female, the froth hardens to form a tough case for the eggs. Hatching usually takes between 3 and 6 months. The young may hatch all at once or in batches over a period of several weeks.
The ootheca should be suspended at least 5cm above the floor of the cage. When the young hatch they hang by a thread from the ootheca until their skin hardens off. The female will eat a lot and become very fat before laying an ootheca on a branch or side of the container if she is already fat she may well lay her first ootheca the day after mating.
She will lay several oothecae, usually about six, but only needs to be mated once. The young nymphs can be housed together for a time but the cage must be very large with plenty of hiding places and an excess of live food must be provided to prevent cannibalism. The mantids should be housed separately after the second or third moult.
Mantids will live for 12 to 18 months and the oothecae can also take several months to hatch.
Some species of mantis are parthenogenic so can produce a viable ootheca without mating.
Overwintering mantis oothecas (egg mass)
If you live in a location where mantids occur naturally you may find mantis oothecas (see the photograph on our Mantodea page) in the wild. People sometimes wonder how the eggs within the egg mass survive over winter. In the case of the mantis, the eggs will be buffered from extremes of temperature by being in the protective egg case (or by the position of the oothecae).
However, people occasionally bring mantis egg masses indoors to "protect" them over winter. Unfortunately the warmth can cause the nymphs to emerge early and be unable to find any food. Instead, if you want to keep and observe the ootheca, you should keep it in an unheated building (like a shed) and let the nymphs emerge at the correct time.
Lost limbs
Praying mantids undergo incomplete metamorphosis. Sometimes, often if their cage is too dry, a mantis may have trouble shedding its old skin and will lose a limb in the process of moulting. If this happens it is possible for a mantis to regrow the lost limb but only when they moult again. This means that, if your mantis is an adult (i.e. if it's got wings), then it won't be able to regrow the lost limb.
Suggested species
Sphrodomantis viridis from West Africa is an easy species to keep, very suitable for beginners. They are about 8 cm long and either bright green to light brown in colour. They will happily take food of their own size and they will also take pieces of uncooked meat if it is offered on a pair of tweezers. Their ootheca can contain up to 300 eggs.
Further information on Praying Mantids.
Remember: it is important that you know the needs and requirements of your pet before you obtain the animal. You should never, ever obtain an animal before researching its needs and preparing the housing and conditions.
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