# Why are all my iris oratoria mantids dying after I feed them honey?



## [email protected] (Jun 4, 2014)

Could the honey be bad? Or would they all have died anyway? None of them would eat due to mismolts and one eye infection from an injury. My new adult male died this morning after feeding him honey last night. He seemed fine except his wings were terribly disfigured from the molt.

I feel like I can't do anything right. If they are not eating, it must be for a reason. Maybe I should just let them be?


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## Gill (Jun 4, 2014)

After a moult to adult it is a few days till they will eat. And adult males rarely eat, quite different from before they were adult. Adult females a few days- a week after a moult will start eating and eat loads. If they have honey they might then not want to eat and it is best to stick to theur natural diet. I think letting be is better than honey. A spray of water can be useful though..


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## [email protected] (Jun 4, 2014)

I did not know that. Thank you. The adult male that I thought died, is actually half alive now. I think I must have bad honey. He was literally on his back half the day with his legs curled up, and not moving at all. Then when I came home tonight, he was upright and alive! He's got honey stuck to his legs. I'm afraid he will eventually try to lick it off. Should I try to get it off, or just let him be for a while?

I don't know what to do with him. He is so scared.


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## Gill (Jun 5, 2014)

It might stress him a lot getting the honey off. Leave him another day then put a small fly like a green bottle, in with him. If the honey is still bothering him tomorrow you could try getting him to walk across a shallow bit of water in a saucer.


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## Rick (Jun 5, 2014)

It sounds like they were not well to begin with maybe. I don't feed honey as it is not a natural food for mantids but it seems a lot of people do for some reason. I do feed it to feeder flies though.


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## Ntsees (Jun 5, 2014)

Not sure why you would be feeding them honey. I never feed mines honey and they do fine. What's your set up (lighting and temperature) and do you mist? The environment I keep mines is dry, there is light, and I mist only for them to drink (not for molting).


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## PlayingMantis (Jun 5, 2014)

I used to feed honey to my mantids, but not anymore. Now I only feed diluted honey and water to ailing mantids - for example, vomiting from eating bad food. Now I only use honey and honey powder to gut load my flies. I wonder if you could try giving them plain water? And let them rest. Oh, and also increase ventilation because you mentioned an infection.

Good luck!


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## [email protected] (Jun 8, 2014)

Thank you all for your advice. He died yesterday. He was just scared, so he squashed against the glass after he molted, when he was still soft. I just thought that the honey would give him protein to heal. I won't do that again.

This is my set up: I have 5 gallon tanks that are 1 1/2 feet tall. They are double ventilated, and I have many sticks that are horizontal and moss for substrate. I keep a wet sponge, dried fruit, sometimes honey and organic lettuce for the feeder insects, and I only mist 1-2 times per week. I mist more if the mantids are not eating.

My problem is that they are scared due to cannibalism. I put about 6 on my house plants and they have less anxiety. I let some go, but the cats killed 1. The others I let go disappeared. I am afraid that even though they are a naturalized species in AZ, they cannot survive the environment. There are no bugs outside and they are not acclimated to the heat here.

I am so sad, I have no choice but to let them go.


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## MantidLord (Jul 1, 2014)

Iris oratoria is a desert species, they can survive the heat there, and they'll find something to eat, don't worry about that. Unless you eradicated every insect in your immediate area, they should be fine.

And even if they aren't, it's not like they're a native species anyway...

Like others said, I'd keep away from the honey. These are pretty easy to rear since they thrive in dry conditions (makes worrying about humidity unnecessary). Gut load the food, but don't try to feed the mantis anything not natural. Still, I don't really think the honey is what caused it. I HAVE had specimens of this species die a couple of days after the final molt. It didn't happen frequently, but enough to take notice of it.


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