Good beginner mantis?

Hello! I am looking for a good beginner mantis species, and a cheap place to get one. My dad brought six baby mantids home (I'm talking baby babies, not even first molt. Local pet store guy told me that.) However, after one (I named her Cordelia) ate most of her siblings, there were only a few left, and eventually, only Cordelia survived, until she fell off her molting perch partway through her very first molt. She died quickly I presume because I was only out for two hours. So I am looking to adopt one mantis and let it live the good life, with a midsized fishtank full of crickets and twigs and other mantis luxuries. I am not squeamish about the whole live pet food thing, I used to catch bugs to feed them to spiders as a little girl. I have most of the habitat built, it was Delia's palace, and now the only thing left is to find a good mantis breed, an honest seller, and put the thing to good use. I want one that will (hopefully) live over 1 year, a long life in the bug world. Are there any suggestions about which species I should look into?

Tl;dr: I just lost six babies and I need a mantis to replace them. Rewording that on re-read: I lost six MANTIS babies and I need a new mantis to replace them. Yes this is the right pet for me, I so want a mantis, not a cat or a dog.

Well full of crix isn't very good lol.. Crix can be bad but, Chinese and European are always good because if you end up not liking the hobby you could let them go outside.. As far as exotics, I hear sphodromantis is easy.. Oh and if your in the U.S the stagmomantis genera are good. But I keep rhombodera and they are decently easy.. There is a number of easy ones.. But I'd start off with the natives.

-Cole

Ps: over 1 year isn't super likely. Though some species can pull it off. Not all.

orchids are easy and super exotic. but they are expensive and hard to breed

I_love_mantids said:

orchids are easy and super exotic. but they are expensive and hard to breed

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I don't think anyone would recommend an orchid for a beginner.

they have the same care as normal mantids

If you're looking to purchase just one mantis, I would suggest choosing something tolerant of relatively lower humidity and a wider range of temperatures like Phyllocrania paradoxa, Popa spurca, or one of the species of Sphodromantis. Tolerance of lower humidity allows you to keep them in more ventilated enclosures without fear of dessication as long as you mist daily--low ventilation coupled with high humidity is probably one of the main causes of mortality in pet mantids.

If you're willing to start with more nymphs that will decrease in number due to relatively high nymph mortality, I'd suggest purchasing an ootheca of a Tenodera or Stagmomantis species. These mantids are fairly hardy once they get past the first few instars and are much more easily obtained--excellent for those just starting to learn how to care for mantids. Any extras can be released into your yard since they're already introduced and used as biological control.

Do not keep uneaten crickets--dead or alive--in a mantid's enclosure. Dead ones will decay and stink and live ones will take advantage of any moments of vulnerability your mantis has to injure and eat it.

I_love_mantids said:

they have the same care as normal mantids

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That is quite untrue and I don't think we should compare mantids by what we believe to be "normal" as a person's idea of normal conditions depends on experience and opinion.

The orchid mantis requires warm temperatures and levels of humidity higher than many commonly kept mantids while requiring pretty much the same amount of ventilation to prevent them from getting infections. They can be considered easy for people have have experience and knowledge of their care, but I would not call them easy for beginners.

they don't NEED high humidity and heat to grow into an adult and live there full lifespan. what I mean by normal mantids are chinese and european

Maybe orchids aren't a beginner mantis for everyone.

I_love_mantids said:

they don't NEED high humidity and heat to grow into an adult and live there full lifespan. what I mean by normal mantids are chinese and european

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From what you have told me is that you only have nymphs.. Which means you haven't raised them to adult, which means you don't know that.. So don't say it unless you have done it. And they aren't a beginner species.. There isn't the exception that you have raised these nymphs for a few instars, raising the mantid is the easiest part. And I can tell you that a orchid mantis with low humidity and low temps would not fair very well.

I_love_mantids said:

Maybe orchids aren't a beginner mantis for everyone.

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This is sort of the point that I make all the time when people ask what is the best beginner reptile. IMO one of the most overlooked criteria for determining what is the "best" beginner pet is what do you want. Sticking with mantids, but the theory applies to just about anything, if the only mantid someone wants is an orchid mantis it may in fact be the best one for them. It sounds to me like they have some special requirements but that it is not that difficult to provide these requirements. If someone only wants an orchid mantis perhaps he/she will do what it takes to keep one where as if they settle for an "easier" mantis they may not care for it.

I'll apply this this to snakes as I have a better knowledge of them. Obviously certain species are out of the question for beginners (venomous, species that get extremely large, those that have very specific and difficult to provide requirements etc.) just like I am sure is the case for mantids. However, if someone really wants a Brazilian rainbow boa (a species not considered too difficult but generally not recommended for a beginner) and had no desire to keep any other species getting a corn snake may not be the best option if they do not want a corn snake. A pet they had to settle for because someone else said it was more suitable for a beginner may quickly become an unwanted and neglected pet.

If someone truly wants the best beginner mantid and does not have their heart set on a particular species them by all means recommend those that are generally the easiest to maintain. On the other hand, if their desire is to have something a little more difficult but still within reason I see no reason why that species can not be recommended.

I am in no way suggesting that an orchid mantis is suitable for a beginner. I have no idea of the specifics in care they need. Obviously I_love_mantids doesn't feel their needs are that difficult to meet or perhaps he (she? sorry I do not know) likes them to the point that the extra steps he needs to take to keep them isn't viewed as anything out of the ordinary. he is willing to do that for a species he loves. Extrememantid is looking at the care of this species as compared to the care of others and obviously feels that they need something above and beyond what he would consider easy. It may not be that he thinks they are particularly difficult but rather they just need something more.

I can see both sides of the issue. For the most part I have a tendency to ere on the side of caution. I will stick to recommending the bullet proof species (if there is such a thing) when no other criteria are given but I do recognize that just because a species is easy is no guarantee that a person will be able to keep it alive if it is not something he or she really wants.

Something I am heard saying quite often is "This species has some fairly specific needs. It is not difficult to meet these needs but it is essential. If you are willing and able to take the extra steps needed it can be a very hardy and long lived animal but if you are lax in your care they will not do well."

I say the same thing for fresh and saltwater aquariums. Many people will recommend a beginner start with freshwater to get the hang of it for a while but if the person does not want a freshwater tank I do not think that is such good advice.

Anyway, sorry to get off topic. To pinkpalominos, I can't recommend a mantis for you as I do not know that much about them. All I can say is that if you are not dead set on a particular species (which it sounds like you are not) then go with one of the easier ones. If you do have your heart set on a more advanced species however, and you can provide it with what it needs then by all means go for it.

We may be beginners but that does not mean we have to begin at the beginning.

Good luck.