# Ischnomantis gigas



## Jackson (Dec 15, 2005)

Ok, so i've searched mutiple search engines, searched mantid forums and terratypica and i can still find no information or pictures on this speices.

All i know is males = 15cm. females= 17cm which makes it the largest speicies of mantis in the world. And that they live somewhere in africa.

Does anyone have any info on this species?

Pics?

Are they easy to get hold of in the trade and what are they like to care for?

I'd imagine a species like this would be desired in this hobby...i mean 17cm! Thats as long as a pencil!


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## Christian (Dec 15, 2005)

Hi.

This species is not in culture. It looks a bit like a mix between _Tenodera superstitiosa_ and _Heterochaeta strachani_ (elongation tendencies), females brachypterous. Not a real beauty, just large. Brownish.

It is not known whether it is easy to breed or not. As a savanna species, breeding should not be a problem, once it is available. It occurs in the African sahel zone, in countries where there are no ooth exports or something. It seems to be not very frequent (rare in collections), so the chances that it appears in stocks are rather low. Other species of that genus occur in E-Africa, maybe one of those will be imported.

It has to be that someone visits the Sahel at the right time, has the chance to search for mantids, find some females, and finally recognize one of them as this species, in order to bring them over here.

There still is, however, the possibility that it will appear in culture purely by chance...  

At the moment, I do not know of any pic of living specimens.

Regards,

Christian


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## Jackson (Dec 17, 2005)

Does that men u have pics of dead ones?

I'm very very interested in this species....i mean, if we could bring this into the hobby :shock:


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## Christian (Dec 18, 2005)

Hi.

I do not have pics of either living or dead ones. I once saw one in a collection.

Regards,

Christian


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## Brandon (Dec 18, 2005)

Can you post the pics?


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## Obie (Dec 18, 2005)

He can't post any pics. There are no pics. Thats what he was just saying.


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## pseudocreobotra (Oct 13, 2010)

haha well i found some pics:

medium size LIVING female:


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## brancsikia (Oct 17, 2010)

carlos agraz said:


> haha well i found some pics:
> 
> medium size LIVING female:


No!

I do not know about the source of the pictures. Where did you find them? It is misidentified.

If you check the picture at mantisanddragons you will see the same specimen.

The species is _Solygia sulcatifrons_.


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## pseudocreobotra (Oct 19, 2010)

oh thats true thank you for correcting me!


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