# completley new to this!!!



## upmybracket (Sep 8, 2006)

hello all, i am very new to this, although i have kept stick insects in the past i know this is a totally different ball game. my name is matt, i am 20 and live in nottingham, uk. i currently havn't bought a mantis because i am deciding on which to get. i have found a starter kit on the web which comes with either a giant asian or africna mantis and essentials such as tank, heater etc. i have a few queries i would like to put up there so get ready for some dumb questions uv probably all been asked before.

how are they at travelling? i know they are sent in the post but after settin up its habitat am i able to take it with him in it maybe an hour journey to university?

alsdo, i read a post on how none of u handle ur pet, i am going to be handling mine all the time! i read it gets used to you after a while and handling no lionger becomes a problem.

which mantis do u think i shud start with and what are the best places to get fomr?

thanks, any help wud be much appreciated.

matt


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## Ian (Sep 8, 2006)

Hi Matt,

Welcome to the forum!

Firstly, mantids are great at travelling. I get species in from various places around the world, which can take around 5-6 days to arrive, and they survive that fine. So, a trip to uni would not be a problem at all!

Handling wise, it depends what species you are getting. Like you say, an Asian _(Hierodula sp.)_ or and African _(Sphodromantis sp)_ are pne of the best species to get for a starter, and will tollerate handling.

Also, I think you (along with the majority of beginners in the hobby) might have been drawn into buying a starter kit, that is totalyl overpriced? The majority I see for sale online certainly are! All you need is to purchase a smallish tank (at least 3 times the height of an adult mantis, to allow room for successful shedding, and obviosuly room to roam). These can be picked up for around £5 from stores such as Wilkinsons. Then all you will need is some branches, some other foliage if you like, and obviously the mantis (which you can almost certainly pick up for under £10). What size mantis was it you were looking for?

So really, you can build your own starter kit, as opposed to forking out a lot of money on a pre-made kit. Things like thermometers, hydrometers, substrate and books are not needed for such an easy species!

Speak soon,

Ian


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## worldofmantis (Sep 8, 2006)

welcome to the forum i have never had an african mantis but the giant asian was perfect for me when i was a begginner got big was very strong and i really enjoyed it. plus i enjoy handling my mantids and my giant asians wernt jumping all over the place so they were a treat :wink:


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## Rick (Sep 8, 2006)

Welcome


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## upmybracket (Sep 9, 2006)

is a all that stuff really not necassary?? what about a heater during winter thugh, surely that is???


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## Ian (Sep 11, 2006)

No, it isn't. A heat matt will do just fine. Lets face it, your house doesn't get that much colder in the winter than it does in the summer


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## upmybracket (Sep 12, 2006)

sorted, well iv made a list of things im gonna buy off the website i am using (www.faunology.co.uk) but cannot find vermiculite substrate, only real vermiculite, would this be ok anyway or does it have to be in substrate form? also, found a decent heat mate thanks. also, this website does not sell live food unless with a starter kit, i have decided to get a giant african female, if they will let me pick gender. what would be the best food to get and where from? i think the mantid will be L1/L2


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## Ian (Sep 12, 2006)

Okay, sounds good. Although a little over priced, Les Pickin from Faunology has some great stock, so you are sure to be happy with your purchase!

She will be feeding on fruit flies, or mirco crickets. I can reccomend livefoods.co.uk for these, I have never had any problems with them in the past. Although, you might want to invest in some micro crickets as well as fruit flies (may as well buy both) as the flies might take around a week or more to emerge.


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## upmybracket (Sep 12, 2006)

nice one ian, have ordered an african should be here thursday! they havn't got micro crickets as far as i can see from the website so will order a fruit fly farm and just feed him from random flies etc until they hatch. last question, when setting up habitat, which uk plants do u recommend for the tank?


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## Ian (Sep 12, 2006)

Well, I don't use acutal plants. I either use fake plants, or branches. Plainly for the fact that they are cheap, easy, and do not die!

But if you are using live plants, then I would reccomend the Ficus family. I use these for my chameleons, and have also in the past (when I first started my collection) used them for a couple of my mantids.

These trees are non toxic, and have been reccomended in the past to use them myself. Also...they are very cheap, and you can get them in lots of different sizes to suit the habitat you are creating. I think probably fruit trees/plants would be good as well, but I think these might be a little on the large side


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