# Breeding is hard.... for me at least



## CoolMantid (Feb 17, 2012)

So I have been gut loading my Adult female Popa since i got her and she is pretty fat. Today I decided to breed them and the female seemed ready BUT the male was just not interested and walked around her.They are about 3 weeks old. How much longer should I wait until he is ready?


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## agent A (Feb 18, 2012)

She should be, how long has the male been adult for??

Also, it helps to put the male in a different area of the house for 2 days and then reintroduce them


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## Rick (Feb 18, 2012)

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=7112


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## CoolMantid (Feb 18, 2012)

The male has been adult for 3 weeks


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## agent A (Feb 18, 2012)

he should be ready

feed him a fly, keep them in separate rooms for 1-3 days, then intro them in late-afternoon/evening since thats when mine seem most willing to mate, but that's my experience

keep tryin


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## CoolMantid (Feb 18, 2012)

I was skimming though website and if he isnt ready you are supposed to try every night? But if he is still not ready you leave him in a different room? I will leave him in a diffeent room until tonight, thats when I will try again. Does this sound ok?


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## agent A (Feb 18, 2012)

sure, also a good idea to have him in a large cage u easily can open and stick the female into

also if u just leave them the female wont move and trigger him to respond so u may need to nudge her gently


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## CoolMantid (Feb 18, 2012)

I prefer the out of the cage technique. SO they have enough room and all. But I am still feeding the female


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## Ben.M (Feb 18, 2012)

These are a very slow species to breed, I would suggest an in-cage method of putting the male in a good size enclosure, leave him a day to settle then introduce the female infront of him. Try to disturb the male as little as possible and give the female something to eat.

They can take their time so be patient and keep an eye on them so you can intervene if the male needs saving


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## CoolMantid (Feb 19, 2012)

Ive had a while back, the male grab the female and there were wings going up and they were fighting but the male got away to the top of my bookshelf. I am trying again tommarow morning and again tommarow night


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## Rick (Feb 19, 2012)

Not sure what you hope to accomplish by feeding the female. I know many people like to feed the female thinking it will somehow save the male from becoming food, but that is far from a guarantee. Just like everything else in this hobby, you have to see what others do and then find what works best for you.


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## CoolMantid (Feb 19, 2012)

I thought feeding the female alot will help her produce a larger, healthier ootheca?


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## agent A (Feb 19, 2012)

that's after mating

when the male notices the female u gotta get her to move but not so fast he can't catch up and mount her

if he mounts her without scaring or surprising her, mating should be a snap


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## CoolMantid (Feb 19, 2012)

Ok I will try again


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