Look What I Found :)

Was pulling Spanish Moss out of my Plumeria tree before trimming it

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Look what I found attached to a clump of moss

By the shape I'm guessing Miomantis Caffra

Well shape & the fact that I found one a few blocks from here last year

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The ooth she laid looked the same

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=32003&hl=dethcheez&page=2

{Last Pic}

It's starting to get dark now

But you can bet I'll be taking a closer look for more in the morning

Just thought I'd Share

PEACE...

PS: Has anyone else in the SoCal area noticed any Mio mantids hanging around

Have seen 2

​The one I caught & another one the was hanging out on a fence

But couldn't to that one / It was in some ones yard

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Now the ooth

Just wondering if they're starting to get established around here

Cool find... lucky! Guess you are going to keep it... keep us updated...

awesome! hah its so tiny.

Sure is a tiny one - Nice find, a free ooth. Looking at photos it seems you identified it correctly though.

You are finding these in the wild?

Yup. Looks like a Miomantis caffra ootheca to me. Very interesting. It seems a colony has been established in your area...

could also be a stagmomantis californica ooth

pardon my skepticism but it would not be good for the mantis hobby if word got out that ANOTHER nonnative mantis became naturalized in this country

agent A said:

could also be a stagmomantis californica ooth

pardon my skepticism but it would not be good for the mantis hobby if word got out that ANOTHER nonnative mantis became naturalized in this country

Click to expand...

That is what I was thinking as well. Introduced species would be nothing but bad for the hobby. I am not familiar with the species and it looks very similar to Stagmomantis in pictures I found online.

Rick said:

That is what I was thinking as well. Introduced species would be nothing but bad for the hobby. I am not familiar with the species and it looks very similar to Stagmomantis in pictures I found online.

Click to expand...

skeptic club swag but seriously we should establish that its not stagmo cali before we say its mio caffra

Let's see if I can answer a few questions at once

Yes to finding them locally

Found the ooth in my front yard

What I'm going by on ID is

I found a mantid on a trash by a bus stop about a year ago & posted pics for an ID since I wasn't sure what it was & it didn't look like any locals that I've seen

Also saw another live one but it was in some ones fenced in yard & I couldn't get to it

Here's the link to that post / With pics

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=32003&hl=dethcheez

There's a pic of one of the two ooths she laid before she died on the 2nd page

From the replies I went with it being M. Caffra

Not every one agreed but it was the most popular reply & seemed to fit

&

That's what I'm going by / The fact that the ooths looked the same

I sold one of the ooths on here / Can't remember to who now but I know they said it hatched

Something Ate the ooth I kept

It was weird the only thing that was left of it was just a thin layer where it was attached to the lid

So I didn't get any nymphs so no possibility of any escaping

My zip's 90810 if that helps pinpoint the area I'm finding them in

I'm Open On Suggestions / Possible Different ID

Will post a better ooth pic a little later

PEACE...

DETHCHEEZ said:

Let's see if I can answer a few questions at once

Yes to finding them locally

Found the ooth in my front yard

What I'm going by on ID is

I found a mantid on a trash by a bus stop about a year ago & posted pics for an ID since I wasn't sure what it was & it didn't look like any locals that I've seen

Also saw another live one but it was in some ones fenced in yard & I couldn't get to it

Here's the link to that post / With pics

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=32003&hl=dethcheez

There's a pic of one of the two ooths she laid before she died on the 2nd page

From the replies I went with it being M. Caffra

Not every one agreed but it was the most popular reply & seemed to fit

&

That's what I'm going by / The fact that the ooths looked the same

I sold one of the ooths on here / Can't remember to who now but I know they said it hatched

Something Ate the ooth I kept

It was weird the only thing that was left of it was just a thin layer where it was attached to the lid

So I didn't get any nymphs so no possibility of any escaping

My zip's 90810 if that helps pinpoint the area I'm finding them in

I'm Open On Suggestions / Possible Different ID

Will post a better ooth pic a little later

PEACE...

Click to expand...

I wasn't doubting your ID. I don't know anything about that species. I just find it concerning if it is a non-native and it is breeding. It reminds me of that other species a member found in FL that is non-native. You might consider reaching out to a local university and their entomology department. I see that I replied to your other post about these but forgot about it.

Rick said:

I wasn't doubting your ID. I don't know anything about that species. I just find it concerning if it is a non-native and it is breeding. It reminds me of that other species a member found in FL that is non-native. You might consider reaching out to a local university and their entomology department. I see that I replied to your other post about these but forgot about it.

Click to expand...

What other species was it?

Rick said:

I wasn't doubting your ID. I don't know anything about that species. I just find it concerning if it is a non-native and it is breeding. It reminds me of that other species a member found in FL that is non-native. You might consider reaching out to a local university and their entomology department. I see that I replied to your other post about these but forgot about it.

Click to expand...

Didn't think you were

Sorry if I sounded like I was

Didn't mean to

Just trying to provide as much info. as I can

'Cause honestly I'm not 100% sure

I was guessing / basing everything on the ID post from last year

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As cool as it is to find an ooth / Specially one from a non native Sp.

I know it raises several concerns

Why I was asking if any one else (locally) had noticed any hanging around lately

My only two guesses If It Is a Mio is

1. It was an escaped pet or some one did something stupid & let theirs go in their garden

2. It / They came in on a shipment of ??? from NZ

Kind of thinking #2

I'm just a few miles inland from San Pedro / Port of LA

Which is a "Major" port from cargo ships

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There's a lot of container storage yards & warehouses in my area

The female I found last year was at a bus stop in front of a warehouse / That whole street is nothing but warehouses

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There's a huge container / truck loading / distribution center right behind that street

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It was (ironically) right across the street from a customs inspection facility

So it does seem very possible that it / they may have came in on a shipment???

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Got established???

If that is the case

It's one of the last thing We need

More Regulations

Which I kind of say tongue in cheek

But if you live in CA you know what I mean

If you don't

It's d@m near impossible to get anything in CA as it is / At least legally / Compared to other state

We'll be lucky to able to own cats & dogs in a few years

Like they're trying (have been for a while) to ban pit bulls

The USDA would have a field day

Here's a better pic of the ooth

Hoping maybe it'll help with getting a proper ID

&

Thanx For The Input

Appreciate It

M. Caffra or pinstripe mantis would be a little bigger than your thumb nail as adult. And ooths are about the of a candy dot, or paper dot/ punch out, like in a three ring binder. This is I. oratoria. and if you showed us a cured ooth, and not the fresh ones just laid it would clear up the confusion.

This species was introduced in the central valley, mostly around the Fresno area for the vinyards. And slowly has made its way down here to southern California over the last decade.

wat is concerning is the fact that m. caffra r naturalized in new zealand, suggesting they r very adaptable

SSimsswiSS said:

M. Caffra or pinstripe mantis would be a little bigger than your thumb nail as adult. And ooths are about the of a candy dot, or paper dot/ punch out, like in a three ring binder. This is I. oratoria. and if you showed us a cured ooth, and not the fresh ones just laid it would clear up the confusion.

This species was introduced in the central valley, mostly around the Fresno area for the vinyards. And slowly has made its way down here to southern California over the last decade.

Click to expand...

Hmm... I'm not convinced it's Iris oratoria.

If it is Iris oratoria, then why is there no red-orange spot on the ventral side on the fourth (second to last) abdominal segment? Here's the photo Dethcheez took of an adult last year:



Also, an adult Miomantis caffra can range in size from 32 to 60 millimeters. I'd say that is well within the size range of the mantis shown in the photo.

Now, I'm not saying I'm 100 percent convinced it's a Miomantis caffra, (mainly because the coloring is darker than I would have expected), however, I'm also not convinced it's an Iris oratoria either.

Just my two-cents worth.

Cheers

I don't believe it is I. oratoria based on the lack of the abdominal spot and the wings that reach the end of the abdomen. I. oratoria also have a large dark spot on the flying wings with a partial red border. What do the flying wings look like on this one? I suppose individual variation could account for some of these if it is I. oratoria but I doubt it would account for all of them.