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Not at home now to take pics. I got it off my one mantid, but it is really stuck in my other old girl. I think she is completely egg bound now. Thank you!

My adults are getting pretty old. My 9 month old laid a small ooth a couple days ago and part of it is hanging and stuck in her still. I tried luke warm water and I can't get it off. I haven't seen any droppings in her cage. Can she still have a bowel movement, or whatever you call it for a...

Oh yeah, as far as mating, I have iris oratorias (don't require a mating) and even though I thought some of them mated, I only have females so far! They are just as healthy!

Last year when didn't know better, one of my sub adults was not eating for a while, I did not know why. (a dry species). So, I wanted to make sure she was at least hydrated and I put a drop of water on her front raptor. Of course when she molted that night, her raptor was stuck and caused her...

We had a few tropical grade storms last year that brought in all kinds of new bugs! I mean that it was uncharacteristically humid here. We'll see if the ants make it though the summer!

It worked!!! I got at least 7 new nymphs yesterday! But today, the ooth stopped hatching. I wonder why. Maybe it is too hot and sunny where I placed the ooth. That's why there are no ants there I think?

Yes, they hatch in waves. In my experience the ooth usually hatches daily a few nymphs for about a week, and yes there will not be as many clones as if the ooth was fertilized. The ooth could also have a second hatching a few months later. I just took an iris oratoria ooth inside today. It...

I looked up the argentine ant. It is possible that is what it was. They are extremely small and black. Much smaller than the nymphs. Once the nymphs hatched they were ok, but these tiny, tiny ants swarmed while they were hatching. I never bothered trying to kill them before because they...

Ha Ha! I'm thinking of it for a couple days anyway. I have half an ooth left. (I'd probably end up keeping them indoors because I love them so much!.) Last year I had the same thought. I thought if I started them indoors they would do better outside. It didn't work because here in AZ they...

Ok. Thank you! I'll try and let you know what happens. I have feeling that the ooth will stop hatching. I noticed that the only outdoor places the ooths are not getting attacked by ants are in the direct sunlight like on my wall. I live in AZ and it gets hot!

Yeah I meant decoy. That is amazing about the ants. Such a small ant to release enough pheromones for alarm. Wow! I used to think they were telepathic. (Not really, but I wondered how 1 little ant could call an army!) I will try to remove the ooth like you said, but I can't use superglue...

Wow! Killing them attracts more? that is crazy! Thanks for your advice! I was thinking that maybe instead of killing them I could deter them with cat food. It would only work if I applied above and below the ooth as I see the first nymph start to hatch. I would catch the nymphs as I usually...

I have iris oratoria. I have a few ooths laid on a tree in my backyard. Each ooth usually hatches 6-14 nymphs at a time for about a week. This last week, I saw that my ooths were hatching, but only found a couple nymphs. Today I saw an ooth start to hatch about 14 nymphs, then an army of...

Ha ha! I love it! This is a funny thread, but seriously. . . Hi, my name is Maria and I am a mantidoholic. I've been late for shifts and I have stolen petri dishes (from school) for this addiction. I have tried to quit as my heart has been constantly broken from loosing my bugs to the black...

Thank you!

I have 4 adult female iris oratorias. I adopted 3 of them as adults, from the outdoors. One of them has been an adult for almost 7 months now. She still seems very healthy and hungry still. What is the average time a female (iris oratoria) can be an adult? I don't want to loose my babies!

With my first mantis, I thought giving her exercise was a good idea. I did try to get her to fly by throwing her up in the air on to the bed. (before she was pregnant). She ended up loosing her legs. I did not realize how sensitive their little bodies are. I wouldn't recommend trying to make...

DO NOT GIVE ANTIBIOTICS EVEN LOW LOW DOSE!!! I would not have tried it if there was any hope. The antibiotics killed them in hours and turned them to moosh! I'm afraid they suffered. This was the most disturbing experiment I have conducted. I feel awful.

Makes sense. thank you!!

I used a speck of my cat's antibiotic (like the size of a pin head) for my 2 dying mantids. I never would have if I thought they had any chance of survival. DON'T EVER USE ANTIBIOTIC!!! They were dead in hours and turned to moosh. They probably suffered too. I can't forgive myself for this...