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I agree with the general advice to stick with flies. I use crickets as a semi-regular feeder for many mantid species but not for Violins. In my experience, crickets are ignored and left alone, thus serve little value as food and even poses a health risk to the violin nymph(s).

Have a good time camping! I look forward to tent camping but that's still months away for the pacific northwest. Ima bit jealous of you folks with warm weather and wild mantids! ;)

So? It doesn't matter. The advice in this thread generally works for anyone who questions mantid ownership and parents are always going to be parents, regardless of age.

Lots of good advice already! Some additional ideas: 1) During a random moment (not while she is grumbling), tell your Mom you think the mantid longevity aspect is actually a good thing. Mantid keepers can enjoy their pets without the time committment that other popular pets demand (10-15+...

Yeahp, it appeared as "BUGSNCYBRSP" on my statement.

Just received my first order from Yen and couldn't be happier. Swift communications and great packaging, a couple of nymphs even molted in-transit without issue. Yen is obviously a big asset to the mantid community and comes highly recommended.

Catchy with a bizzare, macabe twist. I like it. But I wanna hear it develop and open up. Maybe I've been listening to too much Skrillex.

Welcome from Seattle! Twins eh? Identical or fraternal? Some identical twin brothers I went to school with had some hilarious lines. "Where's that jerk that stole my face?", said one while looking around for his brother.

Welcome from Seattle! One of the easiest ways to post your pics is to upload 'em to a free service (e.g. Photobucket) and then just embed them into your posts here using img tags. If that last part sounded confusing, I recommend using the "Share" feature on Photobucket. :)

I am currently using a single infrared bulb (guessing it's a 75W or 100W) to heat an 18x18x24 Exo-Terra terrarium and it works pretty well. I use a 150W ceramic heat emitter to heat the general area of my mantid desk, including pots/cups of various sizes and a couple of netcubes (you can search...

+1. Sorry that I'm clueless about millipedes and unable to answer any of your questions. But nice job on the macro shots! Good luck, I'm curious to hear the scoop of how things develop over time (eggs? etc.)

Welcome from Seattle Bill! Your job sounds cool. :)

:lol: +1 on the Sporeworld 6-star mantid hotels!

Be sure to read the Idolomantis Consolidated thread (at least the caresheet outlined in Sporeworld's second post.) I would recommend keeping temps at a minimum of 80-90F, as outlined there. You'll also notice that Yen mentions nymphs stop eating when temperatures drop below 70F, so I think...

I have used Petsmart several times when I need feeders in a hurry (usually crickets) and I haven't had a negative experience yet. But I do suspect the big-store feeders are more expensive and not as high-quality as the various reputable small companies operating online. Even with shipping...

Thanks to everyone who was complimentary of my green Violin picture! I'll try not to let my crappy camera prevent me from sharing pics of my mantids. :) I'm not a pro. :) I'm just a person who likes mantids, same as you, but thanks for the kind words!

I can see the tiny hairs on the mandibles. Awesome!

Interesting! I'll let you know if I ever see a green male. And I agree with you, I believe coloration is purely genetic. I'm not convinced mantid owners can influence the coloration of their nymphs or adult mantids but I'd love to be proven wrong.

Awesome Nikkko, I didn't see that video before! She looks very similar to yours, very cool. Though now I'm spooked, I hope my green gal isn't more fragile (thus far I haven't noticed any differences between her eating, behaviors, etc. compared to her tan hued brethren.) Time will tell! :wacko:

Agreed, that's the first time I've seen that cap/helmet in a new hatch. I wonder if it's more common and occurs with various species but just not something I noticed previously?