Gray Ghost nymphs?

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agent A

the autistic flower mantis
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hey all, i have 9 ghosts left and a friend here also has 1 so in CT we have 10 and i noticed a few have taken on a lighter brownish gray color with a bit of greenish in between segments

these nymphs r L3/L4 now

r they on the road to becoming green nymphs??

 
At L4 you can usually tell. If you're not sure they're probably not.

 
I just had a ghost turn green yesterday after a molt. Do they ever turn back? It's L4.

 
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They can change back if kept dry or the cage decorations are changed. Also, the males always change back to brown (or at least a very dark brown green) at adulthood.

 
They can change back if kept dry or the cage decorations are changed. Also, the males always change back to brown (or at least a very dark brown green) at adulthood.
Why are there no green males? Is there an Evolutionary reason for it?

 
Why are there no green males? Is there an Evolutionary reason for it?
Evolution does not reason. However, males don't stay green at maturity likely because their shape no longer resembles leaves and they'd stand out rather than blend in.
 
If males were to not remain green because of their shape, wouldn't it stand to reason that females would face the same evolutionary process since they pretty much also do not resemble leaves any more?

 
If males were to not remain green because of their shape, wouldn't it stand to reason that females would face the same evolutionary process since they pretty much also do not resemble leaves any more?
I'm guessing you're not familiar with this species nor how adults and nymphs appear?
 
Yep, only have four nymphs so far, three male and one female and all brown, no green so am only familiar with the nymph form and pictures of the adult form. The female has that extra "leafy" bit at the abdomen, but still the straight lines from the wings. So what I'm getting at is if the reasoning is that evolution rejected green for adult males based on the fact that they no longer look like leaves, wouldn't it have done so for the female as well? While the female may have somewhat more resemblance to a leaf, I'd still say as an adult the move away from the very leaf-like imitation of the nymph form, do they not?

 
Evolution does not reason. However, males don't stay green at maturity likely because their shape no longer resembles leaves and they'd stand out rather than blend in.
Just to be clear, I'm not trying to dispute this hypothesis, just genuinely cuirious as to why it might not also apply to the female ghost.

 
Just to be clear, I'm not trying to dispute this hypothesis, just genuinely cuirious as to why it might not also apply to the female ghost.
The female looks like a big nymph with wings that blend into the body. The male is a big sheet of rectangular wings and does not resemble the nymph. If you think they look the same then we simply differ in our opinion of their appearance.
 
The female looks like a big nymph with wings that blend into the body. The male is a big sheet of rectangular wings and does not resemble the nymph. If you think they look the same then we simply differ in our opinion of their appearance.
I'll have to wait until mine reach adulthood to form a solid opinion, so far everything is just based off of pictures for me :)

 
I remember hearing that only females are green. Well the person that I got it from told me to keep misting and keep it humid so its final molt will be green.

 

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