# New Idolo stopped eating!



## nicoledougherty (Mar 10, 2012)

Help!! My Idolo is so restless and hungry but for some reason it's not able to get the flies it's striking at. It was successful just up until two days ago. Dont know what the change is. I tried feeding a worm with a toothpick but she/he wont have any of it. Also tried hanging a worm from the ceiling. The flies are slow from the refrigerator at first so she can get at them but that doesn't help either. Any suggestions?


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## mkayum (Mar 11, 2012)

it might be the sign of her getting ready to molt. I hope everything goes well for your Idolo.


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 11, 2012)

Hopefully that's the case. I'm thinking maybe I'll remove the flies then before going to bed tonite if they're still not eaten up. Thanks Mkayum


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## CoolMantid (Mar 11, 2012)

Probally gonna molt. Mantids flick away food when they are preparing to molt. My H. Majuscula has been refusing food for a week now. I am on a vacation so I don't know if he has molted yet. But before I left his wingbuds were bluish purple


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## agent A (Mar 11, 2012)

it's a safe bet it will molt

and hertarem, i'm sure he has molted by now


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 12, 2012)

Yep still not eating. Guess it's molting time. Hopefully I have everything set up properly. I think I've been reading the forum about these Idolos and how to set them up so they dont die or get injured during a molt up to the point to where my brain was about to explode. Looks like I've turned into a helicopter parent hovering constantly over the Idolo instead of my own kids lol. Oh well guess we'll see what happens.....


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## dlemmings (Mar 12, 2012)

My violin was doing the same thing, but after 3 days she still had not molted so I tossed in a Blue Bottle fly Saturday night.

yesterday she molted...I saw the fly dead on the enclosure floor, she must have killed it knowing she was about to molt.

So sometimes they go days and days with no chow before a molt. although I have had creos eat one day and molt the next.


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## CoolMantid (Mar 12, 2012)

No his wingbuds are blue? He has been refusing food for a week but I expect he will molt in 48 hours


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 13, 2012)

My Creobroter did the same. Maybe they're smart enough to want to clean their enclosures before molting (and always ready to eat!).


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## Psychobunny (Mar 13, 2012)

My idolo's do that too, not eat for a week or so before molting.

Taking out the flies and any other feeder is a good idea so as not to interfer with

the molting.

I nearly had one mis-molt! it had nearly shed it's old skin, then fell to the floor!!

Good thing I caught it in time. I carefully put her upside down on a piece of screen and she

finshed stretching and drying w/o further problems.


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## CoolMantid (Mar 13, 2012)

I hope he molts real soon;.

I dont think you should worry, he will molt when he thinks the time is right


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## Mantiskid (Mar 13, 2012)

The longest I've had to wait for one of my sub-adult Mantids (Tenodera) to molt was 2 weeks, at which time he would not eat ANYTHING, not even a pinhead cricket!!


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## patrickfraser (Mar 13, 2012)

I thought there was a problem with one of mine, as it wasn't eating. Today, when I got home, it had molted. Looks like a good one.


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 19, 2012)

Well Day eight has come and gone. I've tried BB, House flies, large fruit flies, Wax worms, all with no luck!! ( just a fancy threat pose when a wax worm was offered by toothpick) :blush: .

She wanted out yesterday and walked around on our hands and seemed lively. Don't know where she's getting the energy. Really bummed. Hope she figures it out soon. She use to eat a long time ago.......I keep looking for that pose they go into before the molt but so far i haven't seen it. She does hang upside down alot and let a 4th leg just dangle in mid air. It's never the same one. Don't know what that means.


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## CoolMantid (Mar 19, 2012)

Aww. I hope she suprises you and molts.

btw do you have a youtube channel. With a video titled Our Praying Mantis Hanna? THe acount name is liek Nicole somthing. Just curious...


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 19, 2012)

Hertarem45 said:


> Aww. I hope she suprises you and molts.
> 
> btw do you have a youtube channel. With a video titled Our Praying Mantis Hanna? THe acount name is liek Nicole somthing. Just curious...


Hmm....only one we have up on Youtube is of my son Shane doing a toy review of his Millenium Falcon haha. Yep hopefully she'll surprise me in a good way


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## CoolMantid (Mar 19, 2012)

Me too!


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## sporeworld (Mar 19, 2012)

What instar...?


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 21, 2012)

Sporeworld said:


> What instar...?


2nd Instar


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 21, 2012)

Ahhhh finally I saw her eat one small housefly. Yayyy! :clap:


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## CoolMantid (Mar 21, 2012)

Yay!!!!!


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## sporeworld (Mar 21, 2012)

Nice. I mentioned this in a different thread, but I keep mine on Hydei until L3, with just the occasional housefly or small wild-caught moth. They need to catch a lot more (obviously), but, hey... they need the practice.  But, seriously, the reason is, they really don't eat much OF the housefly... whereas, with the FF, they eat it all. Plus, the buzzing around can be problematic - knocking them from their perches, and just generally being a nuisance.


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## nicoledougherty (Mar 22, 2012)

Oh wow didn't think of this. Better put the Hydei back in and take out the houseflies. This Idolo has caused me more pain !! Actually out of the six mantids I own she is the sweetest though. She seems to like to come out of the enclosure much more than the others and hang out on my hand. But then again, maybe she's just starving and trying to get out to find out where all those yummy Hydei went?? Thanks Sporeworld.


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