# I may have an S. californica! (maybe)



## cloud jaguar (Nov 1, 2009)

Yesterday I went to a party dressed as Harry Potter (the middle years) and took a mantis pet as my familiar. I realized at the party that her abdomen was much more narrow than my other mantids and am thinking she perhaps may be a californica! Anyways, when she dies eventually, Yen Say will be able to tell for sure if she is s. californica after all.


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## Ntsees (Nov 1, 2009)

Interesting. We have discussed earlier in this forum about that species. If her under-wings are ~yellow, then it's not a californica. If her under-wings are ~purple/black/red, then you've hit the jackpot because I think PhilinYuma will pay you big for it (if he's still up on his offer). Anyways, show us a picture of her if you can.


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## cloud jaguar (Nov 1, 2009)

this one is already promised to Yen Saw - i haven't been able to see her inner wings yet. Last year I had a black camo morph s. californica and she did have the color wings you say.

Anyways, perhaps this one is the elusive s. californica - or a pretty small and slim s. limbata. She does seem to have the broadened prothorax of the s. limbata, so perhaps she is just one of those... i will update if I get a glimpse of her inner wings.


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## Rick (Nov 1, 2009)

Why not just take some pics?


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## sk8erkho (Nov 4, 2009)

Pics'll do it!!


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## kamakiri (Nov 4, 2009)

...and Phil was offering a $10 bounty!  

Pics please!


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## PhilinYuma (Nov 5, 2009)

kamakiri said:


> ...and Phil was offering a $10 bounty!  Pics please!


Not was offering, is offering! Had you thought of maybe taking a few pix?


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## cloud jaguar (Nov 5, 2009)

I will have my wife take some - probably just a narrow bottomed s. limbata but definitely seems different from my other s. limbatas! I have not seen those inner wings yet


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## kamakiri (Nov 9, 2009)

Any updates? Maybe you just need to get her really annoyed and angry...or put her next to one of your other girls? I'd love to see pics, even if not of the hind wings.


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## cloud jaguar (Nov 9, 2009)

A dull toothpick works great for lifting the tegmina a bit! Definitely she is an s. limbata (shucks). She has the characteristic lime/clear speckled wings so, unless she is some hybrid, she is definitely a limbata.


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## Ntsees (Nov 9, 2009)

Arkanis said:


> A dull toothpick works great for lifting the tegmina a bit! Definitely she is an s. limbata (shucks). She has the characteristic lime/clear speckled wings so, unless she is some hybrid, she is definitely a limbata.


I don't think you have to worry about hybridism in mantids because there might not be any (at least there hasn't been any records yet). But yeah, it's too bad that mantid wasn't a californica. If it was, you're going to be getting a lot of requests from me and other people on this forum before you send it off to Yen Saw.


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## kamakiri (Nov 9, 2009)

Sorry to hear, but thanks for the update. I was really hoping she was _californica_


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## bassist (Nov 9, 2009)

Ntsees said:


> I don't think you have to worry about hybridism in mantids because there might not be any (at least there hasn't been any records yet). But yeah, it's too bad that mantid wasn't a californica. If it was, you're going to be getting a lot of requests from me and other people on this forum before you send it off to Yen Saw.


Hybrids are possible but they are usually infertile and can only occur with species in the same genus, someone has mixed _Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii_ and _Pseudocreobotra ocellata_ there are photos of the results.


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## Ntsees (Nov 10, 2009)

bassist said:


> Hybrids are possible but they are usually infertile and can only occur with species in the same genus, someone has mixed _Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii_ and _Pseudocreobotra ocellata_ there are photos of the results.


Really? Wow. This is a first for me. Where can I get more of this information?

(re-edited: for those who want to know the difference)

http://www.mantisphotos.com/comparingpseudo.htm


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## bassist (Nov 10, 2009)

http://ttwebbase.dyndns.org/mantid/view/153.html


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## yen_saw (Nov 17, 2009)

Arkanis said:


> A dull toothpick works great for lifting the tegmina a bit! Definitely she is an s. limbata (shucks). She has the characteristic lime/clear speckled wings so, unless she is some hybrid, she is definitely a limbata.


That's alright Roland. Thanks for looking!


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