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*Sold* Thanks to all those who responded! Selling 10 L3-L4 Sibylla Pretiosa nymphs for $35 (including priority shipping). U.S. only. Please PM if interested. Thanks! (=

I am moving up to the Northern San Francisco Bay Area in late July/early August and will need someone in the area to care for my mantises at some time. I am willing pay for "babysitting" with mantises. If you live in/near the Bay Area or Sacramento and are willing to help, please let me know...

So, while raising different varieties of flies outside, my fly rearing container all of a sudden got filled up with the following larvae. They are definitely different than houseflies or black soldier larvae. Hopefully I can find out what they are... Will anyone help me ID these please?

Hey there Everyone, Quick question: I have a subadult female spiny flower that has had her exoskeleton get cloudy and been in position (with the related bottom movements) to molt several times in the last couple days but nothing yet. Humidity is good so I am not sure what may be holding her...

Just thought I would say, with the poor rain this last several winters, the Southern Arizona mantis population has plummeted. Where I once saw ten or more ootheca I am now lucky to see one. :unsure: Have any of you in California noticed the same thing?

Okay – perhaps this is just me – but I have problems with naming a mantis until it reaches adulthood. For some reason I have difficulty with making the commitment of a name until I am pretty sure my mantises wont end up writhing at the bottom of the enclosure from a freak mismoult. I wonder if...

As part of getting back into the hobby I have been experimenting with an outdoor fly attracting/raising enclosure. Here is an account of my experience. I attract a lot of flies each day - enough to feed all my mantids. I also culture enough larvae to supply me for a while - if I could ever...

Hi everyone! Quick question: What is the optimal temperature and humidity for house flies to hatch from their pupae form?

Hey there other Mantis enthusiasts. Here is how I quickly make my drosophila (fruit fly) rearing containers using Gatorade or Vitamin water containers and here is a picture of the finished product: I linked to my blog because I did not want to repost all the pictures, but hopefully the...

Just a quick question for those of you who are in the know… Some of my fondest memories of growing up were going to the San Francisco insect zoo and seeing the mantids in the enclosures there. The majority of the time the enclosures were made so that the mantids blended into the scenery. Each...

Though I initially thought that I was the only one who experiences “issues” with keeping my hobbies, or as my wife calls them “obsessions” in moderation, it seems that there may be others in this hobby that feel that any time spent on enjoying their hobby cuts into some kind of valuable family...

Here is a clip from a newspaper when the Iris oratoria, or Mediterranean mantis begins to hatch in Tucson in the spring (with the day I noticed hatching of multiple ootheca circled). In the winter Tucson and the surrounding foothills generally experience 55-75˚F highs and 32-45˚F lows with a few...

Hello Avid Mantis Friends! What dimensions do you think this Exo Terra Habitat is? It looks pretty large. It may be too big for my purposes. Thinking about using it for subadult/adult communal varieties (one species at a time of course).

Hello everyone, As I am making enclosures and my wife is extremely hesitant about me getting back into the hobby I have a few questions for those of you who have been taking care of your mantises for a while. First: How much time, on average, do you spend caring for your mantises each day...

Hello Everyone, I used to come to the forums a lot, but when my fourth child was born I decided to put it aside due to the amount of time it took. However, after many years of another hobby (gardening) I have really got the desire to go back to raising a small mantises and my wife is willing...

Native Arizona Ground Mantis (Perhaps Obscure Ground Mantis) for sale. Species is small, fed fruit flies as adults. They are fast runners and a fun small species. If raising of next generation is desired culturing of Springtails is HIGHLY recommended as nymphs are very small at L1. $25.00 for...

Apologies ahead of time for the large pictures- I don't know how to make them much smaller. Here are a couple of pics of a type of mantis from Southeast Arizona. Of the hundred or so oothecas I found only a handful were viable because of already having been hatched or because of attacks from...

Okay- I have heard that some here keep housefly larvae refrigerated. How do you refrigerate housefly larvae? How long can you refrigerate them until they start going bad? What do you keep them in? I am asking these in an effort to decrease the time it takes for me to maintain my flies, and...

Hey there guys. I have a question for those of you who have had Ghost mantids. I bought 9 P. paradoxa nymphs at L1. Now I have 8 left at L2. Unfortunately one took a while to start moulting and when it did it mismoulted. I am able to keep them at about 75-80 and 50-65% humidity. Does the chance...

Adam was a very good seller and was willing to have me pick up the mantises from him on a date that would work for me. The mantises I received from him were healthy and well. Thank you Adam. -Jay