An unfortunate laying place...

[BugLover]

So I have a bit of a problem...

I haven't kept mantises since last year, and I found a Female Chinese mantis in my back yard the other day which looked gravid so I took it in. It turns out I was right, but she laid in a very bad place... The top of it is attached to the lid of her enclosure, while the bottom is attached to the enclosure's side, so that if I try to open it the ooth will break. It is a snap on lid with a smaller door on top, so I can still get in, but it would be harder to access her or her enclosure. And she laid while I was away, so it has already hardened, if that makes a difference. Any ideas on how I should remove it? Should I just wait until it hatches and then remove it, or try to use a razor to get it off?

 

[Ranitomeya]

If it's already hardened, you should be able to try removing the lid. It may break the connection from either the lid or the side rather than break apart.

 

[Aryia]

Is it a plastic lid? Both my S. Quinquedens female did that, I let the ooth dry for 1-2 days and then gently removed the lid. The ooth came right off and its perfectly fine. Most of the ooth is insulation anyway, only the center is filled with eggs, so don't worry too much about it.

 

[Domanating]

The structure that makes the ooth is incredibly strong. You need to apply quite a decent amount of force to actually rip an ooth apart. You should try it yourself on an old ooth. Once dry, it's the part it is attached to that will give way first.

 

[BugLover]

I tried on an old ooth in my yard and it worked, tried it on my ooth and it came clean off! thanks guys!

 

[Katattack]

This thread helped settle my nerves!

My T. Sinensis, Wildling, just laid her ooth today and did the exact same thing; lid and wall.

It did create a shape I wasn't expecting.

Did you happen to take a picture of the ooth while attached to the lid and side?