# Mating Chinese mantids



## LGMS (Sep 5, 2005)

After big meals and several days indoors since I caught her, the female was placed on the floor and I introduced a male. They both stared at each other for ages, then he moved along her side but stayed a couple of inches away and behind her. After 30? min's he jumps on her, holds his front legs over her eyes/head and I thought the worse was about to happen to him the way she reacted. In a few seconds he moves the legs down to her thorax and then for the next 2 hrs all he does is stay at her side with one leg straddled over her.

She slowly seems to become more passive and at one point he must have gotten off her and moved to the front along side of her. Her body was almost flat on the ground, her front legs were extended and her head was bowed toward the ground. All he did was look.

I gave up after 3 1/2 hrs of this and seperated them. Tried three other males which never even looked at her and spent their time trying to fly away. The fifth male got her to turn her back to him which I've read is a good sign, however. After a 1/2 hr of just looking at her he jumps/flys up onto a cardboard barrier I had placed in front of them to prevent them from getting away from me, she got spooked, end of mating.

Guess this is a hit or miss deal. Do they take forever to get it on and just look, move, touch, clean themselves, look at me (what are you looking at bud?), stand still for hrs, do nothing and then bang?

Just hate to see her get bit by an anxious male so I'm holding off on the mating until I know more about their habits. I can't just leave them alone, it's the basement, too many hazards. Should I gamble and place them in one of my 20 or 70 gallon fish tanks. I've read mating can take hrs, but is that the actual copulation or the ritual of getting to the copulation?

Rgds,

Louis


----------



## Rick (Sep 5, 2005)

First of all she won't get bit by the male. I recommend you get them off the floor and put them on a higher surface so the male can more easily fly away if he needs to. Place the male down and give him time to relax. Then let the female walk off your hand in front of him about six inches away. Make her walk away from him by blowing gently on her or prodding her with a stick. If he is ready he will jump on. Be ready to seperate them if she goes crazy. If she does it means she's not really ready. If he doesn't do anything he's nto ready. Sometimes they have to be adults for a few weeks before they are ready. Older males will initiate mating much quicker. Chinese are easy to breed and once they start mating they will be connected for several hours. The male does nothing to get the female to turn away from him.


----------



## LGMS (Sep 5, 2005)

&gt; once they start mating they will be connected for several hours.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you,

thank you...!!! That was the answer I couldn't find up till now. So the last time I should have just left them alone and eventually - maybe - they would have connected.

She was receptive, he moulted a month ago but I have no idea when the other males I recently found moulted but I can wait a while longer on them.

How often can a male successfully mate? Every day, once a week? It's an issue of how soon he can build up his sperm count. I ask since I don't know how often the female needs to be mated, have heard only once is necessary. Plus, I caught two more very obvious females this morn. Surprise surprise.

&gt; Place the male down and give him time to relax. Then let the female

&gt; walk off your hand in front of him about six inches away...

Hello! They must love me, I can't get them off my arm for nothing &lt;VBG&gt;. Must be all the food I give them  I got him off and start prying her off, he flies back onto my arm. Get her off and try to remove him, in the process she crawls onto my hand, sigh, it took almost an half hr to get them onto the floor! I had to laugh. Breeding tropical fish, even Oscars seems easy compared to these two mantids!

&gt; The male does nothing to get the female to turn away from him.

Read that somewhere and she did it once and just waited, swaying back and forth. A different female did it again today, back to him, stays still and sways back and forth. He of course mounted her from the wrong end ala Peloquin's post "foreplay?" on this board :lol: 

Eventually he got it right  Sorry, no pics of that.

Rgds,

Louis


----------



## Rick (Sep 6, 2005)

Yeah sometimes the male jumps on backwards. I think it's an attempt to reduce his chances of being grabbed by the head. I've noticed several different species doing that. I usually mate mine on a houseplant. That way they are not on the floor where I may step on them. Besides they like to be elevated.


----------



## agent A (May 31, 2009)

My males usually jump on backwards. It's fun to breed them.


----------

