# earwigs



## Engraver30

I have a ton of earwigs beetles running around my yard. Does anyone see a problem with feeding some of them to my Chinese mantids?

Thanks


----------



## Asa

Nope. Just don't feed them too much of the same thing.


----------



## OGIGA

I wouldn't feed them earwigs. One time, when my mantises were little nymphs, I got an earwig and chopped it to pieces so it wouldn't be so big. However, no mantis would eat it. Maybe it gives off a warning scent? I also tried putting an earwig in with a spider and the spider wouldn't attack the earwig too. The earwig can attack pretty harshly with the pincher.


----------



## Asa

> I wouldn't feed them earwigs. One time, when my mantises were little nymphs, I got an earwig and chopped it to pieces so it wouldn't be so big. However, no mantis would eat it. Maybe it gives off a warning scent? I also tried putting an earwig in with a spider and the spider wouldn't attack the earwig too. The earwig can attack pretty harshly with the pincher.


Perhaps because it was dead? I wouldn't feed the earwigs to the mantids unless it was older (the mantid)


----------



## OGIGA

They'll eat dead things if they taste the juices and they like it. I fed them a lot of fruit flies with crushed heads.


----------



## athicks

Interesting... I thought mantids only ate things that moved!


----------



## Rick

You can feed them about any insect you want. If the mantis can't or won't eat it they will drop it.


----------



## Asa

> They'll eat dead things if they taste the juices and they like it. I fed them a lot of fruit flies with crushed heads.


So you do handfeed them?


----------



## OGIGA

I did once in a while back then with toothpicks.


----------



## athicks

> You can feed them about any insect you want. If the mantis can't or won't eat it they will drop it.


I had a mantis whip a pillbug away from himself when the pillbug tried to close on him! It was kind of funny.


----------



## OGIGA

Oh yeah, I tried pillbugs too. I think their shells are too hard for a mantis to chew.


----------



## Asa

> Oh yeah, I tried pillbugs too. I think their shells are too hard for a mantis to chew.


Don't bother with pillbugs.


----------



## Nick Barta

Ogiga,

I just can't get the picture out of my mind of you crushing fruit fly heads!! You have skills I won't even attempt!!!!!!!! Perhaps you are a surgeon in real life?

Nick Barta


----------



## Asa

Yeah, OGIGA, why did you do that :?:


----------



## OGIGA

Haha... I'm sure I'm not the only one who did that. Anyway, I get one fruit fly on a piece of paper on my desk and crush its head with a toothpick. Initially, I just wanted to crush it anywhere, but I always seem to get the head and red juices go everywhere.



> Yeah, OGIGA, why did you do that


I did that to feed nymphs that didn't have that much as much of an appetite. Yes, I know... time consuming like crazy.


----------



## Asa

> Haha... I'm sure I'm not the only one who did that. Anyway, I get one fruit fly on a piece of paper on my desk and crush its head with a toothpick. Initially, I just wanted to crush it anywhere, but I always seem to get the head and red juices go everywhere.
> 
> 
> 
> Yeah, OGIGA, why did you do that
> 
> 
> 
> I did that to feed nymphs that didn't have that much as much of an appetite. Yes, I know... time consuming like crazy.
Click to expand...

I still don't understand. If there is food in their cage, and they are hungry, they will eat.


----------



## AFK

> You can feed them about any insect you want. If the mantis can't or won't eat it they will drop it.
> 
> 
> 
> I had a mantis whip a pillbug away from himself when the pillbug tried to close on him! It was kind of funny.
Click to expand...

lol


----------



## AFK

> Interesting... I thought mantids only ate things that moved!


mantids only eat things that taste good. one of the signs that something might taste good is if it moves like something that might taste good, i.e. a living thing. if the mantis somehow skips that moving step and jumps directly to taste, and it tastes good, then it's game!


----------



## OGIGA

> I still don't understand. If there is food in their cage, and they are hungry, they will eat.


Not the crippled ones.


----------



## AFK

an assisted diet has more control and consistency.


----------



## Asa

> I still don't understand. If there is food in their cage, and they are hungry, they will eat.
> 
> 
> 
> Not the crippled ones.
Click to expand...

Ahh. You get a lot of those then?


----------



## OGIGA

> I still don't understand. If there is food in their cage, and they are hungry, they will eat.
> 
> 
> 
> Not the crippled ones.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> Ahh. You get a lot of those then?
Click to expand...

Yeah. Didn't have good containers for them back then so I got a lot of mismolts.


----------



## Nick Barta

You could make a little guillotine with a razorblde, toothpicks and thread... just trying to help the process.

Nick Barta


----------



## Asa

Honestly Nick, be more mature! :arrow: :idea: :wink:


----------



## captainmerkin

earwigs should be ok, but they do tend to run under things and prefer not to climb around much.

Mine will sometimes venture down to take woodlice, devils coach houses and earwigs but they prefer moths and butterflies really


----------



## Asa

I can't stand feeding mine butterflies. It rends my heart to rip the beautiful things wings off.


----------



## OGIGA

Has anybody actually tried feeding earwigs to their mantises though??


----------



## Asa

Yeah, I just gave them some I caught outside. They ate it fine.


----------



## OGIGA

Oh okay. I guess it is fine then.


----------



## captainmerkin

> I can't stand feeding mine butterflies. It rends my heart to rip the beautiful things wings off.


not sure why you would want to take the wings off myself... kinda makes feeding them the things pointless.

I do buy butterfly cysalis ready to hatch however so not taking the beauties out of my garden  but its pretty rare that I buy them fopr my mantis (maybe once every month at max)

and we get loads of moths in the house, mostly fabric moths, though plenty of others!


----------



## Asa

Sometimes the mantid is a little small for the butterfly, and the butterfly's wings bash the mantid. Moths have much smaller wings (at least the one's I catch for them)


----------



## captainmerkin

I would consider most mantis able to handle a butterfly or moth with ease, the first thing they do is bite the wings off in most cases I have observed, and usually the butterflies are pinned shut and cannot flap them whatsoever.

But its very thoughtfull of you to take their wings off so they do not get bashed on the head.


----------



## Asa

> I would consider most mantis able to handle a butterfly or moth with ease, the first thing they do is bite the wings off in most cases I have observed, and usually the butterflies are pinned shut and cannot flap them whatsoever.But its very thoughtfull of you to take their wings off so they do not get bashed on the head.


 :lol: :lol: 

You wouldn't believe some of the size comparances between the some mantids and a butterfly :lol:


----------

