# fungus?



## wuwu

one of my female orchids had a wound on her arm, i believe a cricket bit her while it was being eaten. it started off as a small black dot, then it grew bigger and bigger and soon the top half of her arm fell off. it seems to keep spreading and spreading. should i just amputate the whole arm?


----------



## yen_saw

I would to avoid the wound from spreading over to the rest of the body part as it sounds like it is "contagious". I have also noted that it is faster to regrow a leg than an arm so i hope your orchid female still has many molts ahead. good luck.


----------



## wuwu

man, that sucks. this is why i hate crickets! i never use crickets but i just did that once because i ran out of flies so i just bought a dollar worth at the petstore until my flies arrived.


----------



## Jwonni

i saw a cricket try and bite my adult female sphod when she had hold eating it and she let go with one arm and gave it one heck of a smack then it was limp like she had knocked it out  god i miss her


----------



## rlechols

I had a sub-adult african mantis with a similar condition on one of the front claws. I realized it was spreading and decided I better amputate to save her life. I clipped her claw off at the elbow, stopped the bleeding with pressure, and she's been fine ever since. She hunts fine with one claw and seems happy.


----------



## Rick

I highly doubt it was the cricket. I use crickets almost exclusivly and they have never bit a mantis enough to cause a wound.


----------



## Ian

I will have to disagree with you rick. In the past I have had crickets consume nearly a whole mantid...although most vulnerable just after they have shed.

However, from your description wuwu, I would think that was some kind of infection? Black patches spreading...have seen this in Taumantis before, and just like you say, it lead to the arm falling off. I don't think there is much you can do about it I am afriad.


----------



## Rick

> I will have to disagree with you rick. In the past I have had crickets consume nearly a whole mantid...although most vulnerable just after they have shed.However, from your description wuwu, I would think that was some kind of infection? Black patches spreading...have seen this in Taumantis before, and just like you say, it lead to the arm falling off. I don't think there is much you can do about it I am afriad.


Ok but in my experience with using crickets they are not dangerous.


----------



## Ian

I have found just the oppposite, hence the reason now I use mainly flies, roaches and some locusts. I have had countless specimens been eaten just after they have shed their skin, which is really quite annoying.


----------



## rlechols

I agree that crickets can be dangerous, but usually only at molting time. It just means caution must be exercised--take the cricket out if the mantis isn't interested and you suspect it's ready to molt.


----------



## wuwu

so i finally got the courage to amputate her arm where the first joint is. i noticed that the infection was spreading at a very fast rate so i had to do it. i hesistated at first because i knew she's ready to molt, so i figured it might heal the infection when she does. i'm happy to report that she is fine now and the infection is gone!

and rick, if the cricket's bite was not the cause, what can cause a fungal infection like that? it had to be some kind of wound right?


----------



## Rick

> so i finally got the courage to amputate her arm where the first joint is. i noticed that the infection was spreading at a very fast rate so i had to do it. i hesistated at first because i knew she's ready to molt, so i figured it might heal the infection when she does. i'm happy to report that she is fine now and the infection is gone!and rick, if the cricket's bite was not the cause, what can cause a fungal infection like that? it had to be some kind of wound right?


Can you confirm without a doubt it was a fungal infection? It may of been a bite but I was simply saying I have never had a single issue with crickets biting mantids.


----------



## Ian

Funagl infection can be caused by many things. The main case you will find fungal infection is with wild caught specimens, from infection they had from their wild habitat. Also, lack of ventilation and to high humidity can both be causes of fungus.


----------



## wuwu

i'm sad to say that she passed away tonight. she was a sub sub adult too, what a shame. 

i don't know why she would just die all of a sudden. after she molted successfully, she even ate 5 bluebottle flies.


----------



## jellyflakes

i visited a mantid care page and it said crickets r not sutible food ( including crickit bats)


----------



## Rick

> i visited a mantid care page and it said crickets r not sutible food ( including crickit bats)


Not suitable food? Crickets make up 90% of my mantids food.


----------

