Susanna - Carolina mantis (Stagmomantis carolina)

CosbyArt · Dec 7, 2014

I've got a couple of new camera items coming this week to allow me to set-up my Jerry-rigged camera gear together much better; however, in the meantime I thought I'd try it out in it's current form to see how well it works. Especially as I am starting to worry about how much time Susanna has left, as she has laid her 6th ooth recently.

These photos are my best yet with my current camera, especially photos 3 thru 5 - which are nowhere near a normal macro for my Canon Powershot. Those are done by using a prime lens reversed on my main lens (and adjusting various settings and zoom levels to get the results).

With my few camera gear items coming I'll be able to take steadier images (better focus), able to do focus stacking (yay!), even zoom in closer with stronger macro, and a few other tricks. I can't wait to see what I'll be able to photograph - with my mantis Susanna willing at least. She sprinted around a bit, took a bath, and climbed all over my camera lens - while I took these photos.

* The last photo #5 is a full-size crop from the photo in #4 (right above it).

dmina · Dec 7, 2014

Wow she is beautiful... Your pictures are great...this closeup is really close up...hehe Can't wait to see what you can do with the new gear...

6 ooths??? Are you gonna hatch them all? or are you saving them for spring?... Wouldn't you love a couple hundred Susanna's running around?

CosbyArt · Dec 7, 2014

dmina said:
Wow she is beautiful... Your pictures are great...this closeup is really close up...hehe Can't wait to see what you can do with the new gear...

6 ooths??? Are you gonna hatch them all? or are you saving them for spring?... Wouldn't you love a couple hundred Susanna's running around?

Thanks, I'm happy with how they turned out. Yeah with a close-up like that I know she is mite free if nothing else.

Same here, I've experimented with focus stacking but was unable to get usable results due to stability problems - but that will be solved soon.

Yeah she laid 6 and I found 3 wild ooths (same species) too. I plan on saving a few of Susanna's ooths for spring hatching, her latest ooths, so she will have some babies still running around outside. So even then that means if all the ooths are fertile I should have anywhere from 70 to 560 soon.. at least from the 10 to 80 nymphs per ooth rate I've read.

It would be great to see that many nymphs, it would be a stunning sight. I'll definitely will have to find many of them new homes as there is not enough space in the entire house for that many babies. :blink:

From what I read, properly fed there will be no problems housing them together for the first molt, afterwards it will be a horror show - as their not a communal species (are any really?) Although it seems rates of the nymphs surviving to L2 to L3 stage will be much less than the original hatch rate.

LAME · Dec 8, 2014

Flora layed six before leaving me... If you slow her metabolism she'll live a bit longer. I hope you can squeeze more time out of her my friend, as I hope I can with Echo. I am not looking forward to that morning...

edit: Also, I've read that ghost's can actually be housed together for quite awhile.

CosbyArt · Dec 8, 2014

LAME said:
Flora layed six before leaving me... If you slow her metabolism she'll live a bit longer. I hope you can squeeze more time out of her my friend, as I hope I can with Echo. I am not looking forward to that morning...

edit: Also, I've read that ghost's can actually be housed together for quite awhile.

Thanks for the tip, but the only way I know to do that would be to put her in a cold room by herself or feed her less. In the end though I'd rather keep her as I have, healthy and happy, and beside my desk.

I am not looking forward to it either, but if it is in the morning like that I'll assume she went peacefully in her sleep. Much better than the occasional tale of them getting old and brittle and literately falling apart. I hope Echo and Susanna can make it to the new year, that would be great.

I've been reading up on different communal mantis species. Seems the smaller they are fully grown the more likely they can be kept together; however, many others say they are still cannibalistic and should be kept separate. So in the end it seems most are only communal at best as small nymphs that are feed plenty.