# How to evict a mantis who won't leave?



## swords (Jun 13, 2010)

Hey guys, got a bit of a dilemma, I want to move my mature male ghost from his small vivarium to a much bigger one and he doesn't wanna get out of his old one. Here's a pic of what I've got setup:







I put a few active crickets in the new cage and a cup of flies on the far side of the new tank so he could see them. I see him watching them, and a cricket got on the twig bridge and crossed to his enclosure and got eaten so he's in good health, just stubborn! This has been going on two days now and he's no closer to emerging from his first enclosure. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to get him moved? He just scoots out of the way when I try to gently prod him with my finger so I'm at a loss as to ideas on how to move him! LOL


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## lancaster1313 (Jun 13, 2010)

:lol: He is like,


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## sbugir (Jun 13, 2010)

Just grab him really hard.


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## more_rayne (Jun 13, 2010)

Seriously, stick your hand in there, poke him a bit and he'll climb onto a finger, then transfer :lol:


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## davestreasurechest (Jun 13, 2010)

put your finger gently under his legs and with other hand push the back of him onto your finger

at least its not a pissed off giant asian female


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## lancaster1313 (Jun 13, 2010)

Try blowing a breath on him, when he has a stick, or your hand, in front of him. It makes my mantids move in a forward direction.  This ia a gentle way, if you don't want to grasp him. Don't blow right at his face, though, lol.


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 13, 2010)

No problem. Just put on a chicken suit -- our Zoe might be able to help you -- and make clucking noises and pecking gestures at him. He will run into his new home!

BTW If you do use this well tested method, could you get someone to make a video for us?


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## hibiscusmile (Jun 13, 2010)

Dont listen to them, they are bug crazy! Just take your little stick and slip it under his feet, he will grab on and u can move him, I assume u have already moved him by now.


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## lancaster1313 (Jun 13, 2010)

:lol:


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## ZoeRipper (Jun 13, 2010)

I agree with Phil. I have sewn many a chicken suit for members of this forum, and it's a tried-and-true method.


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## swords (Jun 14, 2010)

My chicken suit is at the cleaners! But I did finally get him to move onto a new stick and do the transfer. I made him get on by keep slowly advancing the stick until he had no choice. he climbed right off as I was taking him out though and got back on his perch a few times before I did finally maneuver him out. I just can't believe he sat there looking out an open door for two days and didn't get the drift... He watched a cricket use the bridge! I was afraid to grab him because of how fragile he looks. I would feel awful if I broke a leg or wing in trying to get hold of him so I had hoped he'd take it on his own volition to wander over - nah! But teh insistent stick does work!

Well here is some victory shots of him finally in his new home:











I hadn't seen his wings from behind yet so the big "X" was a neat surprise! Some gangster tagged my mantis!


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 14, 2010)

Very nice setup, swords. He looks very happy, and if he doesn't lay some nice ooths in there, he won't lay them anywhere.


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## swords (Jun 14, 2010)

Well I hope HE doesn't lay any, but hopefully my green female ghost will.  

Do you think I should introduce him to her or her to him or doesn't it make much dif. who's in whose territory with the more "communal" species?

I'm building the new tall vivariums for the female and the other male who have yet to mature (should on their next molts). I will post pics of the new enclosures construction from start to finish so if you guys like them and are adventurous you can do one for yourself. They are 8" L x 8" W x 12" H, all glass with a sliding front pane and glass &amp; screen top.


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## Rick (Jun 14, 2010)

&lt;_&lt; Uhhh just reach in there and grab him.......


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## hibiscusmile (Jun 14, 2010)

I wouldn't wait to long to mate them, males don't live to long.......


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## swords (Jun 14, 2010)

The green female and other male are not mature yet but they should be molt into adults in a month or less.

How short are the Ghost males life span once mature? Should I feed him more or less at this stage? I thought females are supposed to eat a lot to get in breeding/gravid condition is it the same for males?

Rick how do you "grab" a mantis without hurting it? I don't grab any of my bugs, if they crawl onto me during tank maintenance or whatever then we'll play treadmill hands/climb the T shirt a bit but otherwise I'm mostly hands off and just use something to coral them onto or into and move them from one place to another. I'm afraid to hurt them by applying any finger pressure not knowing how much will be too much.


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## lancaster1313 (Jun 14, 2010)

Rick said:


> &lt;_&lt; Uhhh just reach in there and grab him.......


I have only had a mantis since May 11th, and haven't had to grab him yet. Now I have some chinese nymphs. I think there will probably come a time where grabbing is necessary. Do mantids ever drop legs or become injured, even if someone is careful and gentle as possible. I would like to be prepared, in the event that I will have to grab them, like if they escape and are stubborn.

Oops, I decided to post a new topic for handling, or manhandling, lol.


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