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This year is my third attempt at incubating and hatching an ooth (stagmomantis species), and I feel like maybe this time I'll be lucky enough to have nymphs. I can't find any dedicated caresheets from the community about the hatching process and what to do afterwards, and I want to be prepared...

I've only ever found adult gravid females, possibly because at that point they've eaten their mates 😅 but if it helps, I always find them in early November. Mid or low leafy bushes or low small tree branches, especially if the plant attracts pollinators. They also like to emerge on sunnier...

Updates: The nymph I got in June earlier this year passed away suddenly in mid July, ten days before my other nymph of similar age died. RIP Josephine and Buddy. In better news, I welcomed home my 3rd adult stagmomantis this past Friday and renovated the terrarium. Expecting an ooth any day now...

Hana is a pretty flower. Also sorry to hear about your ghostie, may he rest in peace.

My babies from oldest to newest. Gertrude, Mistress of Doom Early November 2019 - Dec 21 2019 My first mantis, had not originally planned to keep her when I found her but I really quickly discovered how cool these insects really are! Lady Genevieve, Reaper of Wings October 2021 - Dec 15 2021...

Excellent packaging and service. The mantis looks bright-eyed and healthy upon arrival; you can tell they take good care of their bugs.

Thanks! They had a bunch of unhatched T. sinensis at my local Lowes so I might pick one up as backup if I can't find a good deal on a native species. Or wait until autumn again to go bug catching.

I recently discovered that home improvement stores sell mantis ootheca (alongside ladybugs in the garden department, intended as pest control). Compared to what it costs for a single nymph + express shipping out of state it's a pretty reasonable cost for potentially a few dozen baby mantids. My...

I'm looking for a California or Carolina mantis nymph, any age. Female is preferred if it's old enough to determine sex but I'm cool with either. Thanks!

They just found it in the wild somewhere? What sort of habitat (pond, lake, river, etc. assuming it's a freshwater fish)? 

Can the ovipositor on crickets be harmful to a mantid's digestive system if they ingest it? It looks really pointy and sharp like a needle.

Thanks, everyone! The underside of my girl's upper forearms are orange, if that helps distinguish the species. I can't get a good look at the mouthparts and I've never seen her wings. I'd like to try to overwinter the ooth to see if it hatches in the spring (just in case) but I'm nervous about...

Hello! Long time amateur naturalist, first time insect keeper here. After finding a lovely female mantis in my apple tree a few weeks ago I got attached and decided to adopt her (having a spacious terrarium lying around to use). I still can't ID her species but I found an ootheca when I got home...