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- Today
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Im glad I bought the kids a PS4, because keeping mantids is long, hard work! 🤣
- Yesterday
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We have an adult Iris!! She's gorgeous! Pictures will come soon!
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It’s party day!!!!
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I decided to only post molt updates weekly now, but i'll make exception on one because i'm so stoked. One of my R. megaera males just molted to what I believe is i7. You can REALLY see the size difference in molts with this one. And I suspect it'll continue to be so until he's an adult. I was just wrapping up for the night and saw he'd molted. So exciting!
Sorry for the spotty cup. Nonetheless, one can see the growth after the molt.
This will be his last instar spent in a deli cup.
This one with flash. I suppose we should see his shield become more and more prominent with each remaining molt. One can see a back leg has a curve to it. He completed the molt successfully though. It won't be an issue through his instar, i'm sure.
- Last week
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My golden Noël is doing funny stuff with her butt. Guess she's looking for love. 🤣
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I'm trying to find a mantis for a new keeper... and probably myself, of course. 😁 If anyone has any available species (except ghosts/orchids), please message me.
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Just ordered 5 more mantids; one for my nephew (the Chinese mantis I got him died from the thunder dome style shipping method) the spiny flower he originally requested is back in stock at my preferred place plus a couple more ghost mantis because my 5 year old just loves them. Well also keep 2 more nymph spinys besides the one that will be swapped for Spots. Spots is gonna leave with my nephew this weekend since the order won’t arrive in time BUT STILL lol Birthday crises averted! Winning? I think so lol
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Spots had a molt over night!
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vdawg08 joined the community
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Bentis changed their profile photo
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Is it just me, or do all yalls' orchid cups start to stink after just one day?
Pheeew!
- Show previous comments 5 more
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Yeh odd. Rinsed the cup / plastic plantsies and changed the pads last night. Tonight after work, one was rank, the other was on its way.
Washed everything up, installed two pads, and now using a mesh top vented 32oz lid.
The two pads should retain and release moisture. Hopefully this setup will keep their cups fresh between pad changeouts.
Maybe it's all the BSFL and waxworms they eat. Pheew!
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Well, they poop a LOT so that doesn't help, lol.
I change my cotton pads every other day and the cups will still start to smell if they aren't wiped frequently. The best routine I've developed is I mist and wipe the cups when I change the substrate every other day. Once a week, I use rubbing alcohol on a paper towel to wipe the cup instead of just distilled water. If you do this, just make sure all the alcohol fumes have evaporated before putting your mantis back.
I have no solid theory as to why the cups smell. I personally just assumed it was all mantis enclosures will smell due to frass and bug parts everywhere. I feel that my Ghost enclosures get smelly, too, so it's not just the Orchids. The Orchids get smelly a bit sooner, probably due to the higher humidity and temps
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Our female gongy finally molted to L6!!!
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Griesemer joined the community
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I see a pumping abdomen! Iris will molt soon!
Idk if it's just me, but my phone won't allow me to type 'molt' without trying to correct it to something else! 🙃🙃🙃 Every time...🙃
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Matty joined the community
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El_Cadejo changed their profile photo
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x0jennalee0x changed their profile photo
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Proud to report that Mocha molted last and she is still, well mocha! Haha! Operation will she turn green is in effect! Iris has swollen wing buds so I know a molt is coming soon! ButterRum-Verde is living life eating flies and dubias!
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How does this work @Graceface? My nymph already has a lot of green. She may lose it?
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Well, she just molted, right @hysteresis? Color post molt takes a few days to sort itself out. Iris didn't turn green until L6. Bellatrix was green as of L4 and stayed that way all through her molts. It depends on a lot of factors, including genetics, humidity, temperature, and perch coloration. I would say if she is green now, she will probably stay green.
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I agree with @Graceface! Remember ButterRum-Verde turned green a week after her molt but only after she was on a green perch and misted everyday multiple times a day. I think they change accordingly to what’s needed. When I got Iris, she was green but she has settled into a yellow green now. Many factors.
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Morgsmom joined the community
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Feoh joined the community
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I tire of hand feedings.
There has to be a way for a Canadian to buy pupae online directly.
I might have some BSF going in a week or two if i'm lucky. My prepupae are just starting to firm up.
I don't know what i'm doing. 🤣
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Bloyburt59 joined the community
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JoeBarrow joined the community
- Earlier
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Our female greenie molted to L4.
It would be cliche to name her, Green Goblin, and I said I wouldn't do ghosty names. But Emerald - Emmy for short. Jade. Good names.
We'll see if she stays green. Her coloration is patchy, and most prominent in the frilly leafy areas. She's actually kinda olive green. That's a candidate for a name too. Olive.
We'll see how she looks once her exo sets up.
- Show previous comments 3 more
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Yes, ideally you wouldn't want any prey in the enclosure for a molt, however... Ive had many mantids molt perfectly fine with flies in the enclosure (house, BBF and FF). It isn't necessarily a make or break it for the molt to occur, if you follow me.
But yes, try to remove any flies if you know a molt is due
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My crew molts predictably. She was next up and molted on time.
I have three more ghosts and a spiny on my molt shelf.
HAHA just looked over. Ghost 3 is dropping as I type this. She jumped the schedule by one day. Still, my molt shelf is for the next two molt days sequentially. Any can molt whenever they decide to. I just put them up and away from little hands.
I love this hobby. 😁
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Lost Boots😢 he jumped under Hubby’s boot as he was stepping...
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I can see this happening. My rhombo was taking three foot leaps to get away from me today and nearly ended up underfoot. He needed a bit of honey on an injured eye and he wasn't having it. I won in the end.
But the point is they can surprise you with their travel sometimes. EVEN when you're engaged in their handling.
❤️
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MarissaK changed their profile photo
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vyadha changed their profile photo
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The Chinese mantis that arrived yesterday are both dead 😢 they didn’t freeze they beat the snot out of each other in transit
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I am FULL of chicken and steak fajitas.
That is all. 😁
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BIG sigh of relief. My surviving bleph molted to L5! That explains her short eating hiatus. So back to bleph business soon!
Bummed about my rhombo with the bum eye! 😥
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🤦🏻♀️ oh no! It’s snowing! I’m waiting with bated breath for my nephew’s birthday mantis and my feeders to arrive!!! Pls don’t freeze!!!! 🥶
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I just swapped out the filter paper in my nymph cup lids with tulle. I wanted to increase ventilation.
To be able to do this is this dry house, I've reverted back to a steam humidifier in the room my mantis shelf is in. Now I keep a room humidity between 40 and 50%.
This should be far better than relying solely on cotton pads for humidity. Just a quick pump or two with my fine mister.
I think this will be safer for my spinys in the long run.
- Show previous comments 1 more
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@MantisGirl13 wow, i'm getting old. My eyes must be deteriorating, because I got in real tight with the DSLR zoom, and now I can see it's indeed damage.
From most angles, unaided eye, you see no irregularities in the spherical surface of the eye. Just the black patch. But as soon as I zoomed in, and more clearly in some angles of incidence than others, you can see a dimpling. The eye looks rotten. This guy, active and healthy as he otherwise appears, has a rotten eye. Maybe an injury during molt, maybe damage from a cricket. That would have been over a molt ago. I don't have any crickets nor do I have immediate plans to get any.
he
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