# Yay! My first O. distinctus ooth hatched :)



## Mantida (Nov 19, 2007)

The ooths I recieved from drizzt (@ Poland). One of them hatched today, bearing five little Oxypilus.

They are so tiny... I didn't expect them to be that small. I will have to get some d. melanogaster now, or some teeny leafhoppers outside... has anyone successfully fed them d. hydei at L1?

















I know, bad pictures. I couldn't take any good ones since they wouldn't stop running around! :blink:


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## macro junkie (Nov 19, 2007)

my jade mantis was that small when i 1st got it..how abour some fruit flys for it.?


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## Mantida (Nov 19, 2007)

macro junkie said:


> my jade mantis was that small when i 1st got it..how abour some fruit flys for it.?


d. melanogaster and d. hydei are the scientific names for fruit flies.  

Really? At what instar was your jade mantis...?

I never did a size comparison. Here is one of the Oxypilus, compared to my pinkie finger.


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## Sparky (Nov 19, 2007)

AAAHHH the monster finger is attacking it!


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## asdsdf (Nov 19, 2007)

Run little guy! Run!


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## Mantida (Nov 19, 2007)

asdsdf said:


> Run little guy! Run!


Oh, I'm sure he'll be able to do that for many miles judging by all the energy he has.  :blink:


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## Andrew (Nov 19, 2007)

They probably won't be able to take on _hydei_..._melanogaster_ is your best bet. A couple of mine are L5 now, and I've just moved them up to _hydei_.

Probably would've switched them at L3/4, but I didn't have any at the time.


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## asdsdf (Nov 19, 2007)

mantida said:


> Oh, I'm sure he'll be able to do that for many miles judging by all the energy he has.  :blink:


I know, mine try to run away at every possible moment. Open the lid, and immediately, all of them are on the edge, getting ready to jump. Once I put one back, it goes right up again.  Pretty cute/annoying.


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## Mantida (Nov 19, 2007)

Andrew said:


> They probably won't be able to take on _hydei_..._melanogaster_ is your best bet. A couple of mine are L5 now, and I've just moved them up to _hydei_.Probably would've switched them at L3/4, but I didn't have any at the time.


Oof. L4 at d. hydei?

I just ordered some stuff from Rebecca too... now I have to order again.  Ah well.


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## asdsdf (Nov 19, 2007)

mantida said:


> Oof. L4 at d. hydei?I just ordered some stuff from Rebecca too... now I have to order again.  Ah well.


Ya, however, I ordered D.Hydei on purpose. My two cultures just died out, and my D.melanogaster did as well, but I manged to save it with the few still alive. Hydei are too slow.


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## Malnra (Nov 19, 2007)

so cute ... cant wait till i have some lil ones to watch skoot about


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## Kruszakus (Nov 20, 2007)

I would not risk it - Hydei is soft, but quite bulky for a fruit fly - try Melanogaster, it's the only safe bet - they can take Hydei at 2nd instar with ease, but freshly hatched nymphs might not be able to.


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## macro junkie (Nov 20, 2007)

mantida said:


> d. melanogaster and d. hydei are the scientific names for fruit flies.  Really? At what instar was your jade mantis...?
> 
> I never did a size comparison. Here is one of the Oxypilus, compared to my pinkie finger.


i take it back..that thing is bloody tiny...good luck.your going to need it..lol..dam thats the smallest mantis iv ever seen!


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## acerbity (Nov 20, 2007)

I've got some acromantis that are about that size, probably L1/2 and they were able to catch hydei. There wasn't a whole lot size difference between the nymph and the fly!


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## Kruszakus (Nov 20, 2007)

Dude, Acromantids are born killers - mine are L3 and take down 9-10 milimeters wax moths just like that - Distinctus were able to do that when they were L5/L6.


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## Mantida (Nov 20, 2007)

Kruszakus said:


> Dude, Acromantids are born killers - mine are L3 and take down 9-10 milimeters wax moths just like that - Distinctus were able to do that when they were L5/L6.


Yea, just tried a d. hydei and he ran away from it.  

They are so full of energy and so interesting to watch. I love their little boxer movements.


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## yen_saw (Nov 20, 2007)

COngrate!! this species do not eat for the first 2-3 days, they will just run away. But they are able to handle small fruit flies no problem. or try to give them flies from older culture which generally produce smaller flies. Mist them lightly for the first few days. For this species, i only give them flies on the 3rd day, and noticed not every one of them is interested. Keep them warm like 85F. Here are few pics i took before i dropped it out of my list.


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## Mantida (Nov 20, 2007)

Thanks for the advice Yen.  Those 2-3 days will allow time for the D. melonagaster to arrive.

Did you have a high mortality/cannibalism rate with these guys?


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## yen_saw (Nov 20, 2007)

mantida said:


> Thanks for the advice Yen.  Those 2-3 days will allow time for the D. melonagaster to arrive.Did you have a high mortality/cannibalism rate with these guys?


Oh not at all, they are pretty hardy little creature. I didn't notice any cannibalism either and i keep them together (I have about 30-40 nymphs), but if you have only few, it will only take extra few minutes to feed them so worth separating. All the best!


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## Mantida (Nov 20, 2007)

A couple more crappy pictures. The flash of the camera seemed to produce a better pic when shooting this mantis.


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## yen_saw (Nov 20, 2007)

Ah nice, i like how they start to "punch" whenevr you take them out for a photo session.


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## Mantida (Nov 20, 2007)

yen_saw said:


> Ah nice, i like how they start to "punch" whenevr you take them out for a photo session.


I like when they're walking away from you. Their little heads are pointed at the top, and it makes them look like they're wearing a hat. :lol: And, when they walk away from you, their little heads and 'hats' wobble back and forth.  

More little monsters!

Another ooth hatched, this time with 11 nymphs. Now that I have 16, they're together in 2 oz. deli cups by threes.


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## Andrew (Nov 20, 2007)

Watch out...I think had around 10 from three ooths - then one surprised me with around 25!


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## Kruszakus (Dec 4, 2007)

A little question - how often you mist their containers?

Has anyone kept them together?

By the way - I'm out of _Melanogaster_, so I fed some _Hydei_ to my little nymphs, which hatched yesterday - well, they tackled them


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## Mantida (Dec 4, 2007)

Kruszakus said:


> A little question - how often you mist their containers?Has anyone kept them together?
> 
> By the way - I'm out of _Melanogaster_, so I fed some _Hydei_ to my little nymphs, which hatched yesterday - well, they tackled them


I do not mist much, every week, but I take them out to actually give them water. I had a couple of molts and my other two ooths hatched out.

I am currently keeping the L1's together. I noted my first cannibalism a couple days ago. I saw a head on the bottom of the cage unfortunately, even with a constant supply of melanogaster. I have to constantly throw in some food, otherwise they eat it all in 15 minutes.  Seems like they are getting more aggressive. :blink: Since the cannibalism occured, I am separating the L2's from the L1's once they molt.


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## asdsdf (Dec 4, 2007)

Oooh. Congrats for you. Out of the seven I had, 1 was cannablized at L4 so I separated them. Now, they are all subadult.  

Also, does anyone know how long it takes for male to become adult? Female?

P.S. I like how it is so easy to determine the sex.


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## Kruszakus (Dec 5, 2007)

I believe that they go through the same number of molts - so sexing isn't so important, besides my female molted into adult 10 days after the previous molt, the males needed 2-3 weeks - the female does not have to "fill" the wing buds, so she usually matures faster.


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## asdsdf (Dec 5, 2007)

Kruszakus said:


> I believe that they go through the same number of molts - so sexing isn't so important, besides my female molted into adult 10 days after the previous molt, the males needed 2-3 weeks - the female does not have to "fill" the wing buds, so she usually matures faster.


 :blink:  Oops...I need to heat up the males then(I kept females hot, and males cold)....How long after they matured did you breed them? Thanks.


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## Kruszakus (Dec 5, 2007)

asdsdf said:


> :blink:  Oops...I need to heat up the males then(I kept females hot, and males cold)....How long after they matured did you breed them? Thanks.


You mean how much did I wait before mating them? Well it way ten days, the female did not want to eat anything, so I assumed that it was safe to let the male inside her container - after the light were turned off, they started doing some funky stuff - and a couple of hours later, the first ooth was laid and this week twenty little babies sprung out of it, sweet B) 

But do not keep the adult males too hot - they may die after only one month, it's best to have them molt into maturity one week after the female.


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## Mantida (Dec 5, 2007)

asdsdf said:


> Oooh. Congrats for you. Out of the seven I had, 1 was cannablized at L4 so I separated them. Now, they are all subadult.  Also, does anyone know how long it takes for male to become adult? Female?
> 
> P.S. I like how it is so easy to determine the sex.


Cannibalism at L4?

I think mine are extra fiesty. I found half of an L2 today and it was still alive in a container with a bunch of L1's. The small ganged up on the big! :blink:


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## asdsdf (Dec 5, 2007)

mantida said:


> Cannibalism at L4? I think mine are extra fiesty. I found half of an L2 today and it was still alive in a container with a bunch of L1's. The small ganged up on the big! :blink:


Yep, although I fed my mantises till their little abdomens were huge in contrast with their body.

Wow.... :blink:


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## Kruszakus (Dec 6, 2007)

Damn it! Two nymphs died today - both with large abdomens - I do not know what happened...


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## Mantida (Dec 6, 2007)

Kruszakus said:


> Damn it! Two nymphs died today - both with large abdomens - I do not know what happened...


Aw, that stinks. How many do you currently have?

I just did a headcount, I have 35. :lol: 

Mine seem to be quite hardy, the only deaths I've had so far are from cannibalism, which is quite surprising since they are still at L1.


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## Kruszakus (Dec 7, 2007)

It's worse... four more died today, all with full abdomens - I should not have given them aphids, most likely little nymphs foud them poisonous...

So that leaves me with 30 nymphs - and a large number of ooths, no need to panic there.


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## drizzt (Dec 7, 2007)

mantida said:


> I do not mist much, every week, but I take them out to actually give them water. I had a couple of molts and my other two ooths hatched out.I am currently keeping the L1's together. I noted my first cannibalism a couple days ago. I saw a head on the bottom of the cage unfortunately, even with a constant supply of melanogaster. I have to constantly throw in some food, otherwise they eat it all in 15 minutes.  Seems like they are getting more aggressive. :blink: Since the cannibalism occured, I am separating the L2's from the L1's once they molt.


They eating _D. hydei_ very well, even in L1 stage


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## Mantida (Dec 8, 2007)

drizzt said:


> They eating _D. hydei_ very well, even in L1 stage


Mine kept running away from the d. hydei I gave them  , but they tackled smaller d. hydei instead of the normal sized ones.

The oxypilus from the third and fourth oothecae seem to be a lot more skittish than the first. Most of them haven't even touched a melanogaster and it's been around five days since they hatched. Some are evidently going to starve.


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## idolomantis (Dec 8, 2007)

mantida said:


> Mine kept running away from the d. hydei I gave them  , but they tackled smaller d. hydei instead of the normal sized ones.The oxypilus from the third and fourth oothecae seem to be a lot more skittish than the first. Most of them haven't even touched a melanogaster and it's been around five days since they hatched. Some are evidently going to starve.


do they dont have colembola(hoppingtails) in the usa?


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## asdsdf (Dec 8, 2007)

I personally hate the nymphs that won't eat....I would just put some flies in there. The ones that eat, food for them, yay, they get to live.....the others, well, there ends the no-eating gene.


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## Mantida (Dec 9, 2007)

idolomantis said:


> do they dont have colembola(hoppingtails) in the usa?


Hoppingtails? I'm afraid I don't know what that is.  

Do you mean springtails? If yes, then yes.


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## Mantida (Dec 9, 2007)

asdsdf said:


> I personally hate the nymphs that won't eat....I would just put some flies in there. The ones that eat, food for them, yay, they get to live.....the others, well, there ends the no-eating gene.


My first two ootheca that hatched out produced like, perfect nymphs. They always ate all the flies I put in there within 15 minutes, fat or not. I even had some cannibalism at L1 which shows that they're already really aggressive...

However, the others that hatched from the last two ooths are kind of skittish and a bit wimpy. I have around 30 dead melanogaster on the bottom of their shared cage and I've already had 6 of them die of starvation even with a constant supply of melanogaster. -_- Most of the survivors aren't even eating either.


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## idolomantis (Dec 9, 2007)

mantida said:


> Hoppingtails? I'm afraid I don't know what that is.  Do you mean springtails? If yes, then yes.


yes springtails i forget the english name sorry


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## Mantida (Dec 9, 2007)

idolomantis said:


> yes springtails i forget the english name sorry


It's alrighty, we know you're german!  

I know that these guys can take melanogaster, so that's why I'm not getting any springtails for them. They don't run away from the melanogaster like they are scared, they just sit there stupidly and let the fly walk all over and around them. *sigh*


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## idolomantis (Dec 9, 2007)

mantida said:


> It's alrighty, we know you're german!  I know that these guys can take melanogaster, so that's why I'm not getting any springtails for them. They don't run away from the melanogaster like they are scared, they just sit there stupidly and let the fly walk all over and around them. *sigh*


well you dont know becouse i,m dutch  lol thats why i like speciec where hatch out more then 120 there always are like 30 who reac adulthood


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