# holding mantis



## C.way (Dec 5, 2009)

hi to all, I come across a few statilia sp. lately when I enter some plantation for works...as usual, they escape as I have no idea how to catch them without any equipment with me, any one would teach me how to hold a mantis without hurting it or letting it escape especially those adult one with wings, thanks


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## Rick (Dec 5, 2009)

Just grab it by the thorax. Have a container handy. Grab it and put in container. Done.


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## sufistic (Dec 5, 2009)

C.way said:


> hi to all, I come across a few statilia sp. lately when I enter some plantation for works...as usual, they escape as I have no idea how to catch them without any equipment with me, any one would teach me how to hold a mantis without hurting it or letting it escape especially those adult one with wings, thanks


Use a net. Works well for nymphs. For adults on higher levels, use another stick or similar instrument to distract them and guide them into the net. For those on the lower levels just use any container that could fit them in.

Hold the mantis by its thorax, something like this:


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## sufistic (Dec 5, 2009)

Rick said:


> Just grab it by the thorax. Have a container handy. Grab it and put in container. Done.


+1


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## C.way (Dec 5, 2009)

thanks for the guidance, will try it out if i come across any


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## sufistic (Dec 5, 2009)

C.way said:


> thanks for the guidance, will try it out if i come across any


Good luck and keep your eyes peeled.


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## Rick (Dec 5, 2009)

Obviously you can't grab if out of your reach. That would be where a net could be handy.


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## C.way (Dec 7, 2009)

many thanks for the guidance, caught 2 mantis today with this method under 5 minutes, really useful


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## hierodula (Dec 8, 2009)

doesn't it hurt?( i mean the mantids forelimbs?)


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## hierodula (Dec 8, 2009)

doesn't it hurt?( i mean the mantids forelimbs?)


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## C.way (Dec 8, 2009)

well, it is rather itchy since what i got is still small without wings, all I need is their single movement, then it'll catch my attention, with the method I learn here, catching them is rather easy now


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## PhilinYuma (Dec 8, 2009)

hierodula said:


> doesn't it hurt?( i mean the mantids forelimbs?)


No!


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## Opivy (Dec 8, 2009)

Hurts so bad! I've been taking oral morphine ever since I started keeping mantids...

Eh, comes with the territory


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## sufistic (Dec 8, 2009)

C.way said:


> many thanks for the guidance, caught 2 mantis today with this method under 5 minutes, really useful


Awesome, what mantids did you find?


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## C.way (Dec 8, 2009)

no idea, something with very long body, nymph only, it was somewhere south west of Tapah, lowland condition, some how I have much more luck on getting mantis in Tapah compare to some where else, it took me 5 minutes to spot 3 of them hanging on 3 different oil palm trees in my father plantation


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## sufistic (Dec 9, 2009)

C.way said:


> no idea, something with very long body, nymph only, it was somewhere south west of Tapah, lowland condition, some how I have much more luck on getting mantis in Tapah compare to some where else, it took me 5 minutes to spot 3 of them hanging on 3 different oil palm trees in my father plantation


Yeah we spotted a couple of long grass-like mantids at the Tapah lowlands. Could be the same kind. Tapah is the place to be! People say I'm lucky that Singapore is near, you must be really blessed to live there!


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## C.way (Dec 9, 2009)

well, more of a curse, live there 11 years before, live like slave, plenty of waterfall, jungle and fishing spot around but I simply have no time to enjoy, get forced to work like ###### every day

went there just now, get another few pieces, all together I got 6 of them, sadly all female, got an ooth too, hopefully I'll be back to Selangor later to take some pic of it


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## JoeCapricorn (Dec 10, 2009)

I notice that gently pinching them by the nape of their thorax is a good way to quickly transport a mantis. They may even get used to it. When I had my Chinese mantises, they would just spread out their legs as if they were falling through the air and flutter their wings. As if they were going "weeeeeee! I'm flying!"


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## C.way (Dec 10, 2009)

thanks again for the tips, I have yet to come across any adult mantis since learning how to hold them, all I come across are nymph

I did come across one mantis that has just molted, feeling so "yucky" as it's body bend softly when I hold on it as if I have killed it


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## sufistic (Dec 10, 2009)

JoeCapricorn said:


> I notice that gently pinching them by the nape of their thorax is a good way to quickly transport a mantis. They may even get used to it. When I had my Chinese mantises, they would just spread out their legs as if they were falling through the air and flutter their wings. As if they were going "weeeeeee! I'm flying!"


LOL.



C.way said:


> thanks again for the tips, I have yet to come across any adult mantis since learning how to hold them, all I come across are nymphI did come across one mantis that has just molted, feeling so "yucky" as it's body bend softly when I hold on it as if I have killed it


I prefer catching nymphs. Adults are boring. Post photos bro!


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## C.way (Dec 10, 2009)

no camera bro, gone to those spot for less than 30 minutes and move on to next spot, all my time in those crappy place are spent on hunting mantis, after wikipediaing for the past few hours, I realized those mantises I caught in Tapah lowland were all long neck mantises, 1 male 6 female and 3 baby nymph, pretty peaceful and clumpsy species


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## sufistic (Dec 10, 2009)

C.way said:


> no camera bro, gone to those spot for less than 30 minutes and move on to next spot, all my time in those crappy place are spent on hunting mantis, after wikipediaing for the past few hours, I realized those mantises I caught in Tapah lowland were all long neck mantises, 1 male 6 female and 3 baby nymph, pretty peaceful and clumpsy species


Nice! They're awesome aren't they? I believe they can get quite huge. Saw a really long adult in Tapah back in 2007.


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## C.way (Dec 10, 2009)

sufistic said:


> Nice! They're awesome aren't they? I believe they can get quite huge. Saw a really long adult in Tapah back in 2007.


they are the easiest mantis to spot, residing on ferns that grow on those oil palm trees in the plantation, just need to walk around those trees one by one and they will react, moving it's body and head towards me, those movement is the key for me to spot them, once approaching, they will usually jump off from those ferns to lower ferns or straight to the ground, then by using the method taught, catching them becomes easy, they are way clumsier than those ordinary green color mantis and ant mimic mantis I caught

so far, I have no luck on spotting adult one, all I caught are at least one or two shed to adulthood, have been spending all my time hunting for mantis, forgot to hunt some bugs for their meal :lol: 

having 6 female accompanying one male...I'm planning to release some back since I won't be using so many female to breed with the male


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## sufistic (Dec 10, 2009)

C.way said:


> they are the easiest mantis to spot, residing on ferns that grow on those oil palm trees in the plantation, just need to walk around those trees one by one and they will react, moving it's body and head towards me, those movement is the key for me to spot them, once approaching, they will usually jump off from those ferns to lower ferns or straight to the ground, then by using the method taught, catching them becomes easy, they are way clumsier than those ordinary green color mantis and ant mimic mantis I caughtso far, I have no luck on spotting adult one, all I caught are at least one or two shed to adulthood, have been spending all my time hunting for mantis, forgot to hunt some bugs for their meal :lol:
> 
> having 6 female accompanying one male...I'm planning to release some back since I won't be using so many female to breed with the male


Awesome. Yeah they give themselves away sometimes. Why not keep 2-3 females?


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## C.way (Dec 10, 2009)

most likely that's the case since I don't want to take up big space for their housing and also keeping without being able to let them mate, unless I found more male, else releasing will be the case


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## sufistic (Dec 10, 2009)

C.way said:


> most likely that's the case since I don't want to take up big space for their housing and also keeping without being able to let them mate, unless I found more male, else releasing will be the case


You do know that you can mate one male with multiple females right? Not at one go of course lol.


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