# Deroplatys lobata



## planetq (Dec 20, 2009)

This is my first image post!

I was a little shy at first, but man.. I gotta share a snapshot of my new adult female D.lobata.

She turned into adult while I was gone for a snowboarding trip.

I came back, turned the lights on, noticed that she was significantly larger.

I take a look and what a surprise  

These are taken with my iphone- sorry for the crappy quality..







This is the happy(?) couple. Male on the left..

Hopefully something happens between the two in the future..






The new adult female is so awesome-looking. Freakin' lovin' it.

Cheers!


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## yeatzee (Dec 20, 2009)

I've been searching for someone selling this species at a decent price....needless to say im jealous


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## Katnapper (Dec 20, 2009)

Congrats, they are beautiful! ^_^


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## planetq (Dec 20, 2009)

yeatzee said:


> I've been searching for someone selling this species at a decent price....needless to say im jealous


Hopefully when they mate and if she lays an ooth I can get you some in a very cheep price.  



Katnapper said:


> Congrats, they are beautiful! ^_^


Thanks!

I have to say that I have no experience breeding these species- So any info/tip on mating the male and the female will be helpful.

I have read from a couple sources that the male can be finicky.

Any tip would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!


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## yeatzee (Dec 20, 2009)

Let me know


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## sufistic (Dec 21, 2009)

calarts_security said:


> I have to say that I have no experience breeding these species- So any info/tip on mating the male and the female will be helpful.I have read from a couple sources that the male can be finicky.
> 
> Any tip would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!


Congrats calarts! Trying to get _Deroplatys sp._ to mate can get on your nerves, especially _Deroplatys lobata_. Just follow Rick's guide on mating mantids, works for almost all mantids as far as I know. Only problem for _D.lobata_ that we encounter is the difficulty of trying get the male to notice the female. This won't be an issue if your female is active and moves around in front of the male a lot. If the male still doesn't notice the female even if she's moving around a lot, then he's just not ready yet.

If the male is on top of the female, you might have to wait quite a bit for them to connect. That's the second problem we face with _D.lobata_.

Here's a couple of photos I just took of our male on top of one of our females. My brother just got the male to notice the female and he's on top of her as I post this. Our two other females are terribly inactive and the male won't even look at them. This one is particularly active.











Now we wait for them to connect and that might take a while!


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## Peter Clausen (Dec 21, 2009)

Great photos of a great species! I personally like _D. lobata_ more than _D. desiccata_. Feminine lines and a better mimic, I think! (though smaller)


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## sufistic (Dec 21, 2009)

Sorry to hijack your thread calarts but after nearly 4 hours, they connected.


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## hibiscusmile (Dec 21, 2009)

No Way! can't believe they connected! Did u use glue?


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## khabirun (Dec 21, 2009)

hibiscusmile said:


> No Way! can't believe they connected! Did u use glue?


Haha no we didn't  , just tried as per normal, didn't expect him to climb on her as soon as he spotted her. Wish us luck on this, it's one of my favorite species.


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## revmdn (Dec 21, 2009)

Congrats.


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## sufistic (Dec 21, 2009)

hibiscusmile said:


> No Way! can't believe they connected! Did u use glue?


Haha our male's a stud.



revmdn said:


> Congrats.


Thanks!


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## [email protected] (Dec 21, 2009)

Nice!!!


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## yen_saw (Dec 21, 2009)

calarts_security said:


> This is the happy(?) couple. Male on the left..Hopefully something happens between the two in the future..
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 Congrate Minkyu! Sufistic has pointed out some issues dealing with breeding this species so keep them in large encliosure with plenty of leaves and sticks for the male to sneak up on the female. The male will follow the female for a while before making the move so lot of hiding spot is recommended before he becomes the meal. Let the lady has lot of food before putting them together and the only thing left is pray.  


sufistic said:


> Haha our male's a stud.Thanks!


 haha what do you feed all your male mantis with Shaik  i want the recipe :lol: I also have some D. lobata from the new generation from the one collected from Cameron highland and have one stud male too he was the 'Tiger Wood' but as good as he is one of the female got him by the end, not by trashing the window with the 'iron' but far worst! :lol:


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## sufistic (Dec 22, 2009)

yen_saw said:


> haha what do you feed all your male mantis with Shaik  i want the recipe :lol: I also have some D. lobata from the new generation from the one collected from Cameron highland and have one stud male too he was the 'Tiger Wood' but as good as he is one of the female got him by the end, not by trashing the window with the 'iron' but far worst! :lol:


Thanks Yen, I dunno what's going on but our males are all really performing. I'm guessing it's probably just mating season or something. Also, the heat is probably making all of them horny. I don't feed them anything special other than some wild-caught butterflies when we have the time to catch those. Sorry to hear about your male. Are you intending to breed D. lobata again bro? I hope you are!


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## yen_saw (Dec 22, 2009)

sufistic said:


> Thanks Yen, I dunno what's going on but our males are all really performing. I'm guessing it's probably just mating season or something. Also, the heat is probably making all of them horny. I don't feed them anything special other than some wild-caught butterflies when we have the time to catch those. Sorry to hear about your male. Are you intending to breed D. lobata again bro? I hope you are!


 Yes i can only hope this current batch can carry on for another generation but there are breeders here with this species so hopefully we can see continue to see them here. I would love to have your 'stud' though  but it is the best he is being kept there with you


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## sufistic (Dec 22, 2009)

yen_saw said:


> Yes i can only hope this current batch can carry on for another generation but there are breeders here with this species so hopefully we can see continue to see them here. I would love to have your 'stud' though  but it is the best he is being kept there with you


Once he's mated with all our females, I'm pretty sure my brother (he's taking care of the Deroplatys sp.) would be willing to send the male to you in a heartbeat bro. Just say the word.


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## planetq (Dec 22, 2009)

Wow, thanks Yen and Sufistic-

I will try my best to breed them. This is my first time so there are no guarantees..

But I will try to use my intuition and be as sensitive and discreet as possible to their behaviors as I can.

Thanks again!


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## sufistic (Dec 23, 2009)

calarts_security said:


> Wow, thanks Yen and Sufistic-I will try my best to breed them. This is my first time so there are no guarantees..
> 
> But I will try to use my intuition and be as sensitive and discreet as possible to their behaviors as I can.
> 
> Thanks again!


Interesting that you should mention intuition bro. I use that a lot too. If you face any issues with these, you can always ask Yen (I refer to him a lot). Good luck on breeding them!


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## planetq (Dec 23, 2009)

sufistic said:


> Interesting that you should mention intuition bro. I use that a lot too. If you face any issues with these, you can always ask Yen (I refer to him a lot). Good luck on breeding them!


Yeah man.. I think intuitive observation is one of the most important assets in mantis rearing..

It's like how the Dog Whisperer is always trying to think of the dog's inner motivations haha.

You gotta really see and read the mantis' behavior and needs. If they are moving restlessly because they are unhappy with the temperature or if they are thirsty, what their favorite feeder insect is, are they gonna molt soon.. Also if your presence is bothering them (This one gets in the way a lot)..

It's like trying to decipher why the baby is crying.. is he hungry? did he poo? is he cranky because it's nap time.. etc

haha

...it's a great hobby.


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## sufistic (Dec 23, 2009)

calarts_security said:


> Yeah man.. I think intuitive observation is one of the most important assets in mantis rearing..It's like how the Dog Whisperer is always trying to think of the dog's inner motivations haha.
> 
> You gotta really see and read the mantis' behavior and needs. If they are moving restlessly because they are unhappy with the temperature or if they are thirsty, what their favorite feeder insect is, are they gonna molt soon.. Also if your presence is bothering them (This one gets in the way a lot)..
> 
> ...


I like your style.


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## hibiscusmile (Dec 23, 2009)

is he crying,,,, hahahah, love that one, of course it's crying.... bad babies.... wishing u the best of luck!


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## MantidLord (Dec 23, 2009)

sufistic said:


> I like your style.


+ 1


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## Katnapper (Dec 23, 2009)

calarts_security said:


> Yeah man.. I think intuitive observation is one of the most important assets in mantis rearing..It's like how the Dog Whisperer is always trying to think of the dog's inner motivations haha.
> 
> You gotta really see and read the mantis' behavior and needs. If they are moving restlessly because they are unhappy with the temperature or if they are thirsty, what their favorite feeder insect is, are they gonna molt soon.. Also if your presence is bothering them (This one gets in the way a lot)..
> 
> ...


+2


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## planetq (Dec 24, 2009)

Haha thanks guys!


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## planetq (Jan 8, 2010)

Soo-

I finally got the male to hop on the female!

The first time I tried to mate them, the male noticed the female,

but when he made the jump-move he ended up squeezing the female's abdomen pretty hard-

It freaked out the female (she was doing a threat pose, looking around .. kinda like she was searching for what she was threatening)

and it also freaked me out a little because it really looked like he was squeezing her abdomen hard

so I separated them.

Thankfully when I checked VERY THOROUGHLY (haha almost half panicking) the female's abdomen was fine.. no wounds.. FEW!

After a few hours I gave them another go, and this time the male got it.

he is on her back right now, trying to_ 'seal the deal'._

But his _'end'_ is having a hard time searching for the _'other end'._

These are terrible pictures, I know, but I really don't want to disturb them right now..

taken with my iphone (thus the quality)











He is still searching-

Sufistic your post about your male taking 4 hours to connect does encourage me. haha

Let's see how long it takes for him to 'make the connection'. haha


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## sufistic (Jan 8, 2010)

That's fantastic calarts! They'll connect eventually. Add in some crickets in their enclosure so that the female will be distracted and willing. I wish you all the best!


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## khabirun (Jan 8, 2010)

Congrats my man. May she lay you a big one!


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## planetq (Jan 8, 2010)

Hah- thanks guys-

Do you think I should just let them be and go to bed...(cause it's late now)

..or should I keep a close watch on them?

I feel like I should always be checking..


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## sufistic (Jan 8, 2010)

calarts_security said:


> Hah- thanks guys-Do you think I should just let them be and go to bed...(cause it's late now)
> 
> ..or should I keep a close watch on them?
> 
> I feel like I should always be checking..


If they're in a big enclosure with some food in it, we'd usually just leave them be. I'd check up like once in two hours to see whether they've connected or not though.


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## planetq (Jan 9, 2010)

So after more than a day of nothing- finally they 'made the bond'.

wow. that only took... 26hours.


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## Katnapper (Jan 9, 2010)

Congratulations!!!!  I hope it results in many excellent ooths for you!


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## sufistic (Jan 9, 2010)

Congrats calarts! The female looks kinda thin and well capable of going after the male when he dismounts. You have some food for them in there?

May she lay you lots of ooths!


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## planetq (Jan 9, 2010)

Thanks guys!

there is one cricket in that enclosure, but for some reason everytime it passes them by, the female just strikes it to shoo it away.

I am a little concerned too, about the female maybe not being 'full'.

I need to buy some more crickets...


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## sufistic (Jan 9, 2010)

calarts_security said:


> Thanks guys!there is one cricket in that enclosure, but for some reason everytime it passes them by, the female just strikes it to shoo it away.
> 
> I am a little concerned too, about the female maybe not being 'full'.
> 
> I need to buy some more crickets...


Well at least she knows there's another critter in there other than the one on her back! Good luck calarts!


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## sufistic (Jan 15, 2010)

Well thought I should just hijack this thread instead of start a new one.

An ooth laid by a wild-caught female unpaired in captivity hatched out 83 nymphs today.


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## ZoeRipper (Jan 15, 2010)

As I said in the other thread, holy crapparooney, I want one.


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## sufistic (Jan 15, 2010)

ZoeRipper said:


> As I said in the other thread, holy crapparooney, I want one.


Sure Zoe! Just tell me when the weather's alright to send some over.


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## [email protected] (Jan 15, 2010)

Amazing!!!


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## mantisfart2 (Jan 15, 2010)

Nice one Shaik


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## drizzt (Jan 15, 2010)

D. lobata is very strange mantid to play with  

When i breed this species (~2007 or so), only one from 5 males got lucky.

Females can eat 3-4 males straight, and males are shy like virgins:&gt;

I hope, truncatas are easier to breed.. i keep couple of pairs together without problems.

We will see.

And what about D. trigonodera?


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## khabirun (Jan 15, 2010)

drizzt said:


> D. lobata is very strange mantid to play with  When i breed this species (~2007 or so), only one from 5 males got lucky.
> 
> Females can eat 3-4 males straight, and males are shy like virgins:&gt;
> 
> ...


Very true drizzt, lobatas have very unique temperament, or maybe it's just the whole Deroplatys family. About the trigonoderas, I don't really know anything about them but I'm aiming to get those probably when I visit Tapah Hills again.


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## sufistic (Jan 15, 2010)

khabirun said:


> Very true drizzt, lobatas have very unique temperament, or maybe it's just the whole Deroplatys family. About the trigonoderas, I don't really know anything about them but I'm aiming to get those probably when I visit Tapah Hills again.


+1 to what my brother said drizzt. Some breeders say that _D. truncata _is more difficult than _D. lobata_ when it comes to breeding. We're not really sure though because our mantids seem to do alright so far.


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## drizzt (Jan 16, 2010)

sufistic said:


> +1 to what my brother said drizzt. Some breeders say that _D. truncata _is more difficult than _D. lobata_ when it comes to breeding. We're not really sure though because our mantids seem to do alright so far.


What about Asiadodis and Choeradodis?

My czech friend haved many of them, but all his efforts failed.

Adults were not interested in each other..


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## khabirun (Jan 16, 2010)

drizzt said:


> What about Asiadodis and Choeradodis?My czech friend haved many of them, but all his efforts failed.
> 
> Adults were not interested in each other..


Oh I've always wanted those, how bout setting me up with your friend?


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## drizzt (Jan 16, 2010)

khabirun said:


> Oh I've always wanted those, how bout setting me up with your friend?


That was 2 years ago :-(


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## agent A (Jan 17, 2010)

drizzt said:


> males are shy like virgins:&gt;


I think they want to keep their chastiste  . looks like the female needs to seduce the male this time...


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## JoeCapricorn (Oct 4, 2010)

I know this is quite a big bump for this thread, but it is relevant as I just got my D. lobatas to successfully connect. I'll post pictures soon, but here are some behaviors I noticed.

Not all D. lobata females are aggressive. I have two females and one male, their names are Angus, Gnarles and Leather Rebel. LR is the male. Angus is a sweetie, while Gnarles can be quite jumpy and aggressive. Neither did a threat display even though I tried to coax one out of them, Angus is near impossible to anger though.

Still, I took no chances and I fed Angus several crickets. Yesterday I fed three, today I fed one more right as the male hopped on her. I found it was much easier to get them to mate in the day time than at night, at night the male had no attention whatsoever and the female didn't move much. When he did notice her he got frightened and flew away to the nearest light source - my computer monitor. Today I used the same trick when getting H. membranacea to mate. I put the male on my keyboard and a roll of paper towels in front of him, and coaxed the female to climb up the paper towels. The male noticed her eventually and focused his attention on her.

One thing I noticed is that it's not immediately clear what sort of attention the male is giving to the female. In many species the male narrows his antennae and points it straight at the female, while in this case Leather Rebel did not do that right away. He narrowed his antennae, but not quickly and it wasn't noticeable until after they connected when he returned his antennae to a more normal state.

When the male first mounts the female, he focuses in on the tip of her abdomen, as if he were trying to catch a bug and he strikes his forearms. It looks like he is grabbing her tightly but he is not. He is just holding on for dear life, and he does this first to gauge how aggressive the female is. Over about a half hour he will turn around and it took about one hour to connect.

Every so often I'll hear a sort of buzzing sound, or rapid clicking sound. This is the male doing a "tapping" motion on her back, similar to what Orchids do but shorter. I never saw this behavior in mantises before in person though.

The only thing I am not sure of is how long they should be connected for the mating to be successful. They have been connected for about a half-hour. I know Angus to be a very still mantis and Leather Rebel to be quite flighty and active, so I am leaving them on the paper towel in my room under observation. Hopefully when they are done, LR can fly off to the nearest light source, hopefully land somewhere where I can find him. As for Angus, I once went to bed and rested my eyes with Angus on my desk. I fell asleep accidentally and woke up 6 AM the next morning. She was at the same location. I didn't even bother moving her right then, was too tired to get out of bed, so I slept more.

I have photos, I can upload them later. I actually didn't notice at first that this thread was in "Mantid Photos" instead of "Breeding..."


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