Hi everyone,
I'm looking for some advice regarding food for my Budwing Mantis nymphs. When I received the nymphs about a month ago, they were very small (about 3/4 inch) and I fed them with a diet of small flightless fruit flies. I used the fruit flies until they molted, at which point I tried putting some very small crickets in the mantises' cages to see if they would eat them. They seemed to have no problem with the crickets, so ever since then I have been feeding them exclusively on small crickets which I dust with some "Yen's blend" bee pollen/powdered honey mixture (which I bought from MantisPlace.com). The mantises seem to be eating the crickets, but they don't eat nearly as often as when I was feeding them fruit flies. Is there something else that is preferable to give them at their current size? The reason I wanted to switch to crickets was because I don't like dealing with the fruit flies - it's far too messy and difficult to manage. I can only imagine it'd be more difficult if I used bugs that were capable of flying.
Speaking of which, what is the best way to transport feeder bugs from their habitats (which can be rather crowded) into the mantis environments? I've tried various methods but none of them work very well and I can only assume that after all this time, someone has found a better way.
Lastly, how should I be giving water to the nymphs? Should I mist them directly or just spray their habitat? (up to this point I have been doing both) Is it possible to give them too much water?
Thank you,
-Rob
Here is a picture of one of my mantis nymphs, next to a rather large cricket. The ones I have been feeding the nymphs are generally smaller than this one, but some of them have been the same size... is this cricket too much for the little guy?
I'm looking for some advice regarding food for my Budwing Mantis nymphs. When I received the nymphs about a month ago, they were very small (about 3/4 inch) and I fed them with a diet of small flightless fruit flies. I used the fruit flies until they molted, at which point I tried putting some very small crickets in the mantises' cages to see if they would eat them. They seemed to have no problem with the crickets, so ever since then I have been feeding them exclusively on small crickets which I dust with some "Yen's blend" bee pollen/powdered honey mixture (which I bought from MantisPlace.com). The mantises seem to be eating the crickets, but they don't eat nearly as often as when I was feeding them fruit flies. Is there something else that is preferable to give them at their current size? The reason I wanted to switch to crickets was because I don't like dealing with the fruit flies - it's far too messy and difficult to manage. I can only imagine it'd be more difficult if I used bugs that were capable of flying.
Speaking of which, what is the best way to transport feeder bugs from their habitats (which can be rather crowded) into the mantis environments? I've tried various methods but none of them work very well and I can only assume that after all this time, someone has found a better way.
Lastly, how should I be giving water to the nymphs? Should I mist them directly or just spray their habitat? (up to this point I have been doing both) Is it possible to give them too much water?
Thank you,
-Rob
Here is a picture of one of my mantis nymphs, next to a rather large cricket. The ones I have been feeding the nymphs are generally smaller than this one, but some of them have been the same size... is this cricket too much for the little guy?
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