# Really stressed Lobata males, anything I can do to help?



## Aryia (Jan 31, 2014)

I received three lobata adult males yesterday. One of them was dead on arrival, the other two are REALLY stressed out. I handfed them a little honey last night, they reluctantly ate a little before I decided it might be costing them too much energy to eat more.

This morning one of them was laying on his back, but he is still hanging on, barely. He wasn't playing dead, he was actually too weak to move or flip himself around. The other one moves a little more but is too weak to stand up.

I put them in separate containers in the semi-dark right now, hoping that it'll help them.. any more ideas?


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## SilentDeviL (Jan 31, 2014)

Sounds like Old Male ..... Unless is was too cold during shipping ... But if u got ur Package from US .... Is like 1-2 days ... shouldn't be a problem ... From what u r saying .. Just old male .. 1-3 days shipping will not kill adult male that easy ....


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## Aryia (Jan 31, 2014)

I think shipping 3 of the adult males in a small container might've stressed them out to this point though :/ Idk, they were being sold as 6 week old males


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## Extrememantid (Jan 31, 2014)

Aryia said:


> I think shipping 3 of the adult males in a small container might've stressed them out to this point though :/ Idk, they were being sold as 6 week old males


That is pretty old for adult males


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## Ranitomeya (Feb 1, 2014)

It sounds like they were shipped improperly. During shipping, they'd end up grasping and injuring one another if they were in a small container together. It would have caused them quite a lot of stress and mantids are surprisingly susceptible to stress.


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## Aryia (Feb 1, 2014)

Thank you for all your input. I want to lay aside all the possibilities of them being old, or other issues, my main question is if there is something I can do to make them more comfortable or help them recover?

They are still alive, one of them barely moves at all, but he's still hanging in there. The other is a little better off, but he's definitely not perking up like he should be. Should I keep handfeeding them honey?


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## sally (Feb 1, 2014)

I would also make sure they have good amount of humidity, maybe a little warmer temp and lots of airflow. I also would keep offering honey and water. Hope everything goes well.


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## Krissim Klaw (Feb 1, 2014)

Make sure you offer lots of water in case they are dehydrated.

I'm surprised to hear they were all shipped in the same container. I can see that being done with nymphs, but with adults I would think the tight quarters would be very stressful.


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## Aryia (Feb 1, 2014)

Thank you very much for the input. He's still hanging on, as of this morning.

I handfed him some water along with the honey last night. I think he took some water, but refused to eat the honey. His mouth is so small that it's hard to tell if he's eating. Stupid question, but is there any chance I will "drown" him in honey or water if I hold it to his mouth too long? I have no idea how insects breathe.


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## HungryGhost (Feb 1, 2014)

Aryia said:


> Thank you very much for the input. He's still hanging on, as of this morning.
> 
> I handfed him some water along with the honey last night. I think he took some water, but refused to eat the honey. His mouth is so small that it's hard to tell if he's eating. Stupid question, but is there any chance I will "drown" him in honey or water if I hold it to his mouth too long? I have no idea how insects breathe.


You can't drown it by holding honey to its mouth. Insects don't breath through their mouths, it's done through openings in the abdomin.


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## devetaki9 (Feb 1, 2014)

I use a syringe and squeeze out a drop, when they drink it I can see the droplet size diminishing


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## Aryia (Feb 1, 2014)

ok thanks! that puts me to ease a little more. didn't want to hurt him.

unfortunately he's just getting weaker and weaker :/ I'm thinking he might pass away tonight..


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## Krissim Klaw (Feb 2, 2014)

Aryia said:


> Thank you very much for the input. He's still hanging on, as of this morning.
> 
> I handfed him some water along with the honey last night. I think he took some water, but refused to eat the honey. His mouth is so small that it's hard to tell if he's eating. Stupid question, but is there any chance I will "drown" him in honey or water if I hold it to his mouth too long? I have no idea how insects breathe.


Nope, no worries about accidently drowning through offering water/honey. Usually you can tell if a mantis is flat out not interested in eating/drinking because they will bend and try to wipe their faces on the ground to get the food/water away from their mouths.

I'm sorry things aren't looking good.


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## Ranitomeya (Feb 2, 2014)

Insects breathe through thoracic and abdominal spiracles. There are no breathing orifices on the head, so there is no need to worry about drowning them through offering liquids to their mouth.

It's unfortunate, but it seems that once mantids start to become lethargic or lose mobility due to stress or other factors there's a low likelihood they will recover. You've done all you could by trying to keep them hydrated and offering them honey as an energy source. All you can do is keep them comfortable and wait and hope they improve.


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## Aryia (Feb 2, 2014)

I couldn't really tell if he didn't want it or not because that's how weak they were. One of them could still jerk away from the honey stick, and that's the only way I could tell but he degraded pretty quick too.

Sad to say that the third of the three males past away last night :/

Thank you all for your help and input, it's nice to know that there's a good community here!


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## sally (Feb 2, 2014)

Sorry... That sucks


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## Extrememantid (Feb 2, 2014)

Sorry to hear that


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