"We're not having any more pet mantids..." Everyone, meet Lazarus

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callisto9

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So with Thing 1 nearing her one-year anniv, we knew we'd be mantid-less soon. I was ok with that. Despite being fascinating pets, I no longer want to keep them as so. Thought it'd just be best to enjoy them in the wild and on the internet.

I'm cleaning up our yard several weeks ago, getting ready for winter and what do I see crawling out of a yard waste bag? A Chinese mantis! Since she was such a fighter (I obviously did not intend to throw her away with the brush I'd been cutting down!), so we named her Lazarus. As soon as I held her on my hand and my husband gushed about her, I knew we'd take her in. Despite hatching several ooths in our yard this year (only saw nymphs come out of the Carolina mantis egg sacs), we did not see one mantis at all! No Carolina or Chinese mantids in our yard.

So Laz has laid one ooth so far and is enjoying the rest of her life indoors instead of freezing to death in what would have been her first and last Iowa winter.

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That's a cool looking old girl!  You bringing her in gave her an extra life for sure. Plus a couple bonus ooths!  Keep on feeding her, and she might crank out another!

 
When we brought Barry in last year, she was our first ever mantis and she laid at least five. She was a Carolina mantis. I really need to wait until I name them... LOL

 
awww, love the story and the pics are amazing! How does she get those black eyes? After being in the dark?

I don't suppose she's still with us? What about the ooths?

 
Sadly, but not unexpectedly, all mantids are gone. This one (Lazarus) passed after laying 4.5 ooths. Unfortunately, one of the ooths hatched (I didn't get it out in time), but I didn't discover it for a few days. There were no survivors.

I have three of her ooths downstairs and will put them outside soon. Here's hoping to a new mantids in my yard this year!

My mantid keeping days are over though. Just going to let nature take its course...

 
Sadly, but not unexpectedly, all mantids are gone. This one (Lazarus) passed after laying 4.5 ooths. Unfortunately, one of the ooths hatched (I didn't get it out in time), but I didn't discover it for a few days. There were no survivors.

I have three of her ooths downstairs and will put them outside soon. Here's hoping to a new mantids in my yard this year!

My mantid keeping days are over though. Just going to let nature take its course...
Same here I think... But they were fun days!

 
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