anyone have an example of a homemade enclosure for large mantids?

MantisGirl13 · Oct 8, 2018

They are beautiful! I need to figure out a way for me to make something like that, but maybe a cheaper option using recycled materials?

- MantisGirl13

ohaple · Oct 9, 2018

MantisGirl13 said:
They are beautiful! I need to figure out a way for me to make something like that, but maybe a cheaper option using recycled materials?

- MantisGirl13

Something like this might be a good option. You can replace a side with mesh for ventilation, and you would have mostly the same thing. Acrylic is strange because it is cheap in bulk, but very expensive in hobbyist quantities. Some local plastics manufacturers will sell scrap acrylic for pretty cheap. Their scrap is often large enough to complete projects like this. You then glue the edges with acrylic weld or superglue and you are in business. Another place to look is thrift stores. I often see small aquariums and display cases that would work as a cool enclosure.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/US-12-Big-Acrylic-Plastic-Display-Box-Perspex-Showcase-Self-Assembly-Dustproof/172201312980?hash=item2817ff82d4:rk:1

f:0

PowerHobo · Oct 9, 2018

I don't have any pictures of it, and I haven't actually used them yet, but I've gathered a few of those big containers of bargain cheese balls you can get at the grocery store. They're super cheap, and if you've got kids the container will be empty in no time (whether you like it or not). I poked a bunch of holes in the lid (it's super dry where I live, so small holes is better for me than cutting the entire middle out) and a few in the side, and hot glued some fiberglass window screen into the lid, as well as a strip up the side as a ladder. Then, coconut fiber in the bottom with a fake plant as furniture.