# Spiny Flower



## king_frog (Feb 26, 2008)

I know that flying 'things' are the best to feed to a spiny flower mantis. But _can_ you feed it other things? Crickets? Worms like mealworms and waxworms.

And would I have to put it literally infront of them, or would they go down to get it.


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## blitzmantis (Feb 26, 2008)

Crickets are active enough to get the mantid's attention. If you had a jar with a plant in it the cricket would climb up and mantis would grab it.


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## macro junkie (Feb 26, 2008)

i feed them the the odd cricket but this species is best on flys so i read.I hear people say it dont matter if u feed them pure crickets but then i hear other people say only feed them flys..up to u i guees.u would have to talk to someone thats an expert on it..i have only fed them flys from day 1 so i couldn't tell u what there like on crickets..


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## king_frog (Feb 26, 2008)

What about ghosts? are they the same? or are they less 'fussy'


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## macro junkie (Feb 26, 2008)

same with ghost..easy to look after i feed mine on flys and the odd cricket..i hope my ghost ooth hatches soon..  il be stoked


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## Gurd (Feb 29, 2008)

Ghosts ain't fussy


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## darkspeed (Feb 29, 2008)

Gurd said:


> Ghosts ain't fussy


My ghosts *are* fussy. The will not eat more than a nibble or two of anything but flies. In fact my adult ghost ate nothing but hydei untill it became an adult. my subadult has eaten a small amount of both a cricket and a meal worm, but quickly dropped it and later regurgitated what it had eaten. They both now enjoy houseflies and have gone through about 50 in the last week. My L-3 Ocellatas have also had the privilage of devouring a housefly, which are damn near bigger than they are. When the got done they were so fat. I wouldnt expect Spiny's to be much different with worms... Unless the worms were to be so active to set off the mantid's motion sensors, they would have to be hand fed. With the ghost, I actually had to impale the worm with a toothpick, squeeze its guts out, and stick it in front of their mouths before they would even nibble on it... and even then my adult male would not grab it, but rather just sit there and nibble on the guts.


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## Gurd (Feb 29, 2008)

DARKSPEED said:


> My ghosts *are* fussy. The will not eat more than a nibble or two of anything but flies. In fact my adult ghost ate nothing but hydei untill it became an adult. my subadult has eaten a small amount of both a cricket and a meal worm, but quickly dropped it and later regurgitated what it had eaten. They both now enjoy houseflies and have gone through about 50 in the last week. My L-3 Ocellatas have also had the privilage of devouring a housefly, which are damn near bigger than they are. When the got done they were so fat. I wouldnt expect Spiny's to be much different with worms... Unless the worms were to be so active to set off the mantid's motion sensors, they would have to be hand fed. With the ghost, I actually had to impale the worm with a toothpick, squeeze its guts out, and stick it in front of their mouths before they would even nibble on it... and even then my adult male would not grab it, but rather just sit there and nibble on the guts.


Sorry I should have said my Ghosts ain't fussy, crickets, moths, small locusts as a change to the staple blu or greenbottle


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## macro junkie (Feb 29, 2008)

i know what u mean tho..the ghosts dont like to be full..i have yet to see there abdomen real fat.


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