# Found a mantis nymph



## TylerFerretLord (Aug 3, 2008)

Well, my sister just ran screaming out of her room a few minutes ago. A mantis nymph had climbed in through the window and was perched on the ceiling above her bed. I went in and just picked it up.

It is green, a little over two inches in length and slender; your stereotypical mantis. I don't know my mantis species, sorry. Will get a pic soon.

I've been considering keeping a mantis for a long while now. Do you think it would be advisable to keep this one, or should I let it go? I have a small food supply ready; our attic is full of house moths and out garage has a fly problem, and I think that would be okay for a mantis this size?

Right now s/he's in a tupperware container, and I gave him/her some sea sponge to sit on. I have a ten gallon tank ready, and since it is from NY I don't think it would need any extra heating.

So, opinions?


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## Mantis Dictator (Aug 3, 2008)

Sounds like you have nice conditions for you mantis and it should thrive


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 3, 2008)

So you think it would be okay to keep him/her(I really need to figure that out)? :lol: Yay!

So, damp paper towel at the bottom of the enclosure is necessary, correct?

Any tips for a new mantis keeper?

EDIT: I just remembered that my uncle used to breed them when they were sparse around here. I'll ask him for advice when I see him later today.

EDIT2: S/he caught and is currently eating a fly.


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## MantidLord (Aug 3, 2008)

You don't need anything at the bottom. As long as it has a place to climb, hang, ec. it will do fine.  Please post a pic.


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## Meiji (Aug 3, 2008)

Tyler,

Even without a picture, we can probably guess what it is. If it's green and caught in NY, there's like a 95% chance it’s either the so-called "European mantis" _Mantis religiosa_ or else (and more likely as they're more common) the so-called Chinese Mantis _Tenodera aridifolia sinensis_. Here's how you tell: Look at the insect face-to-face. Look at the inside of its specialized forelegs. If there is a black mark on a white background on each side (sort of like an iris in a pupil) it's _Mantis religiosa_. If it has little black marks on a green background (even if there's a little whitish-cream color where the forelegs join with the thorax) then it's _Tenodera aridifolia sinensis_. Yeah, those are relatively easy to care for. When you have a question about food, molting, or whatever just search the appropriate sub-heading in the forum: your answers are probably already there. _Bon chance_.


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## chrisboy101 (Aug 3, 2008)

chinese i bet


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 3, 2008)

Yep, it's a Chinese. Two black marks on the inner side of each foreleg. That's good, I was planning on getting a Chinese anyway.  












The tank:






(excuse the messy hermit tank on the other side)

I love how I put in the fake ivy thinking s/he'd feel safer being able to hide in it, but instead s/he uses it to climb to the top and hang from the mesh.

Also, how do you get the silly thing to sit still long enough to see if it's a boy or girl? Every time I try to look under him/her s/he jumps onto my face. _Every time._


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## Rick (Aug 3, 2008)

Yep Chinese nymph.


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## The_Asa (Aug 3, 2008)

Chinese mantids have a tendency to jump on your face like that. A good time to sex it, is when it is eating something.


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## Mantis_Whisper (Aug 3, 2008)

The fact he/she keeps jumping on your face dif means it's a chinese. They adore people's faces... I don't know why though.

The cage you have set up is fine for him/her. Just feed him/her flies, moth, or crickets if you can't get the other stuff. good luck!


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## Hypoponera (Aug 3, 2008)

How about a narrow-wing nymph, (T. angustipennis)? They are not as common as Chinese, but they are found in NY.


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## hibiscusmile (Aug 3, 2008)

Lucky you, the chinese is I think just about the most beautiful mantis, especially if it gets the brown coloring in it.


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 4, 2008)

Yeah, I think so too.  

How can I tell if she's about to molt(Oh yeah, I think it's a girl, she has six segments)?

She's hanging from her hindlegs from the top of the cage, and the pictures of molting I've seen on here look like that. She also has a darker green line on her back where she would come through her old 'skin'. I don't want to bother her in case she is molting, so I'm not going to try to feed her.

What would happen if she fell down while molting? The wire mesh on the top of her tank has large gaps between the wires, and she sometimes slips and hangs by a few legs when walking up there.

I tried searching for answers but nothing useful came up.


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## The_Asa (Aug 4, 2008)

Six segments=Female. Congrats B) 

You can probably tell they are about to molt by their actions---either they refuse food, and/or they are acting sluggish. It sounds like she is about to molt. By the hindlegs, you are talking about all 4 or just the 2 backlegs? If she does fall during the molt, something that can be prevented by misting it lightly, then...death is really the only option-although there are some forum members who have kept the mantids alive like that by handfeeding the mantis...unlikely. &lt;_&lt;


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 4, 2008)

Just the two back legs.

EDIT: It would be on the safe side not to disturb her for the next day or so, right?


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## The_Asa (Aug 4, 2008)

Do NOT disturb her. If just her two backlegs are hanging, I wouldn't mist her directly either.


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 4, 2008)

She moved over to the side of the lid and is now holding on to the glass with her middle pair.


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## The_Asa (Aug 4, 2008)

:lol: Good!


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 4, 2008)

And now she's walking around and looking at me when I look at her.

Maybe she's not molting? :huh:


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## joel (Aug 4, 2008)

i only know my mantis is molting when i offer it food and it refuses, or just strikes at it not grabbing it

because it will just hang upside down for ages if undisturbed


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## The_Asa (Aug 4, 2008)

TylerFerretLord said:


> And now she's walking around and looking at me when I look at her.Maybe she's not molting? :huh:


Strange, cause they usually don't hang on just their two back legs like that. It's easier just to let them be, mist, feed, and they'll molt when they molt.


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 4, 2008)

She climbed down and sat on the leaves for a bit, so I tried to feed her and she grabbed the fly instantly and ate it.

Guess it was a false alarm.  

I'm planning on feeding once every three days, is this alright? I'm not going to breed her(although if I find a male I'll let them mate and put the ooth out in the garden) so I'd like to have her live a little longer than average, and the caresheets I read said this would help.


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## The_Asa (Aug 4, 2008)

Once every two days is the norm.


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## TylerFerretLord (Aug 4, 2008)

I'll do that then.

Thanks for all the help!


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