# urgent help!!!



## twisted_fire

i belive my mantis to be dieing its not moving it wont drink and theres strange movement in the abdomin i live in the south east uk i need help


----------



## Peekaboo

There are several things we need to know first.

What kind of mantid do you have and how old is it?

What are you keeping your mantid in, what's the average temperature and what % is the humidity in your enclosure?

Lastly, what have you been feeding your mantid?


----------



## twisted_fire

its a asian mantis as far as i know its been feed on store bought crickits and the odd wild moth and i keep it in a plastic fish tank with a very well ventilated roof my room temp is about 86 deg f

its about 3 months old


----------



## Peekaboo

It sounds like you're doing everything right, though it might be a little warm. That shouldn't make the abdomen move the way you described. Is your mantis an adult (does it have wings)?


----------



## twisted_fire

no wings as yet tho it looks like its only 1 shed away as u can see the beggings of them,

the pulsations of the abdomin are ocuring on the right side which is larger then the left and are ireguler ocasualy moving up and down the length of the abdomin, the mantis has good color, it will still move its legs if promted tho its holding its arms in prayer position and wont move them.


----------



## Peekaboo

Is the mantid hanging upside down or is it on the floor of its enclosure? Mantids often won't eat if they're ready to molt. Maybe that's what's going on. What's the humidity level in the enclosure?


----------



## twisted_fire

its lying floped on the floor it isnt suporting its own weight , im not shure of the humidity altho recently it was been much warmer and more humid than normal


----------



## twisted_fire

iv opend my window in a hope of reducing humidity and temperature however its reacting less and less to stimulus, it dosent look like it will make it to morning if it is ill


----------



## Peekaboo

I'm sorry, I have no idea what could be wrong with your mantid. Maybe you will get lucky and it will be fine tomorrow.


----------



## twisted_fire

ty for trying, i can only hope your right


----------



## Jolt

Mine kind of just did the same thing yesterday. It was dead this morning. Its abdomin was pulsing for a while.....it was hanging upside, then its legs started hanging down one by one. eventually it was hanging upside down by 1 leg. I tried picking it up, and it couldnt support its own weight. It was dead this morning on the floor of the tank.


----------



## dino

Sorry twisted fire, but did it just molt? My PW did the same after it just molted, but it is fine now.


----------



## twisted_fire

last molt was over 2 weeks ago


----------



## twisted_fire

altho still alive its front limbs have now gone limp and it no longer has control off them the abdomin is still pulsating (posibly a parisite)


----------



## dino

Hello,

It is a Asian mantis correct? If you are keeping it on 86% that is the highest temperature they can go to.So it is not to warm.


----------



## twisted_fire

it was still alive at lunch time today however by 6pm it was dead no phisical damage, or discoleration iv purchesed a hymidity meter which is reading around 60%


----------



## dino

Hello,

Sorry to hear the news. Maybe the humidity was a little too much. I read that these species humidity has to be 50%

http://www.mantisuk.com/variety/africanmantis.asp


----------

