Beginner enclosure- 3rd instar Ghost Mantis

[suzypike]

Okay, I ordered a 3rd instar Ghost Mantis today thinking that with my many many spiderling enclosures I would have something acceptable to house it in. Now, after reading, I don't think I do.

Here is what I have to work with-

Acrylic cubes from Hobby Lobby- different sizes- tall, square, etc. They already have small holes drilled for ventilation. I kept .5" legspan spiderlings in them.

All sizes of critter keepers.

Some deli cups (but I don't like them because the lid is so hard to get off.

I brand new exo-terra Nano tall terrarium.

I can get anything that Wal-Mart sells, but I live out in the country with no pet stores nearby.

I have been reading threads this evening, but I am still unsure. My mantis will be a baby.

Help!!!

 

[suzypike]

I don't know if this is relevant, but I will be keeping my mantis in my Spider Room. The temp is kept at a steady 80 degrees and I keep humidifiers going to keep humidity around 70%. That is just in the room. It is a little higher in the enclosures.

 

[Precarious]

The spider room sounds perfect!

You'll want an enclosure small enough that food won't get lost in it. Ghosts are not active hunters. They generally wait for food to come to them. Really, for a single L3 Ghost a 32 oz deli cup with screen lid is ideal. It's not pretty but very functional. Put in some twigs and/or glue some screen or other grippable surface to the side and you're good to go.

Critter keepers won't hold the house flies you'll need to feed it. And the lids are not good to molt from unless you glue burlap or something to the inside.

Whatever enclosure you choose, be sure it's 2 to 3 times taller than your Ghost is long.

Once your baby is a little bigger the Nano would be a very nice home. Just be sure to plug any cord holes to keep the flies in.

Best of luck!

More suggestions here:

Enclosures and Housing: The Basics

 

[suzypike]

Thanks so much! I have an idea now. I'll post a pic tonight of what I am thinking of putting together.

 

[dlemmings]

My ghost were deli-cup nymphs til L-5 or so...once they were big enough to take house flys they went into small critter keeper with tigs glued to the lid and "brillo-pad" as a subtstrate and a few silk flowers. i did find it nessesary to remove the handle and hot glue their openings as house flys could escape from there...but the bigger wild-caught flys could not. my two adult mantids still reside in critter keepers.

 

[suzypike]

I worked on an enclosure today. I have double of everything, so if it's bad, I'll start over. There will be paper towels in the bottom of course. The top is fastened with velcro, so I can get in from the top or the bottom.

Please critique and feel free to make suggestions. I've never made an enclosure like this before. I've never dealt with screen or mesh. I will say, that I HATE deli cups and will go to great lengths to avoid them. I don't hate how they look. I can never seem to get them open and traumatize whatever animal that's in there while I'm trying. :blush:

 

[lunarstorm]

That's a nice looking enclosure! Here are a few modifications I'd recommend:

1) Add a feeding port (if there isn't already one) to make it super easy to add feeders without disturbing the mantis. I generally prefer ports on the top of my habitats, as gravity makes everything easier.

2) Your enclosure looks great for an adult mantis but might be a bit too big for a single small nymph. Keep an eye on how easily your ghost finds their food; it is often beneficial to use a small enclosure so the feeders don't have so many places to hide.

3) Consider affixing something to the side walls to allow the nymph to easily climb (e.g. a mesh net or webbing). You'll obviously lose some visibility in that area but if you don't, there's a good chance the mantis will waste a lot of energy clawing and trying to climb the sheer surfaces.

 

[suzypike]

Thanks!

The screen at the top is fastened with velcro on one side. I think I can feed through that. I need to check now that the glue is dry.

There was one of these jars half the size of this one. (This one is a gallon I think, and the other one had the same width, but was half as tall. I may go back and get it to use the smaller one at first while I'm just learning to care for my mantis. I started to get it today, but My cool sticks and stuff wouldn't fit in it... LOL!

I bought window screening, and a mesh laundry bag to put on the side, but haven't done it yet. The reason why is I don't know what to attach it with. I use a hot glue gun for sticks and silk plants, but on mesh, the glue is going to ooze through. Won't that be sticky?

I had terrible visions of my baby mantis being stuck in a sticky glob of glue used to attach the screen to the side.

Anyway, I have both screen and cloth mesh. I just don't know the best way to stick it to the side.

Help!

 

[suzypike]

Okay tomorrow I am going to get the jar that's half that size. Doesn't the mantis spend most of the time at the top? If so, I'm going to keep the lid at the bottom for easy maintainence, but I'm going to do Velcro all the way sound the top.

And I read that thread again and it did say to hot glue the screen inside, so I'll stop being paranoid and do that too.

Different pics tomorrow

Thanks!!!

 

[Chivalry]

I bought window screening, and a mesh laundry bag to put on the side, but haven't done it yet. The reason why is I don't know what to attach it with. I use a hot glue gun for sticks and silk plants, but on mesh, the glue is going to ooze through. Won't that be sticky?

I highly recommend the "Bugatorium" thread for habitat creation. You can put a tiny bit of something greasy (Rebecca/hibiscusmile recommended ear wax in that thread lol) on the hot glue to keep it from being sticky... or I think there's a low-tack type of hot glue. Tons of good info in that thread tho.

I also recommend small if you're getting nymphs. I made these pretty habitats for my new S. viridis and then they got here and they were much tinier than I anticipated, so they are all still living in their individual sauce cups with lined lids and floors, and raffia to climb on. For now. Ghosts especially don't pursue food, from what I've read, so a small enclosure makes it easy for the prey to get to them.

Rereading this, it just sunk in that you have a spider room. Do people come and visit you?

 

[suzypike]

LOL! 34 tarantulas, Dubia roach colony, Superworms, Confused Flour Beetles and fruit fly cultures... I don't see a problem! :stuart:

Thanks so much for the tip. I really have been concerned about the stickiness of the glue- not just with the netting, but around my little 'windows' too. I ripped the top off that enclosure and am going to start over. I ordered a couple of medium 'mantis mansions' and some stoppers, and some other little things from a web site advertised on here. I'm pretty stoked about getting them too.

I was going to work on another enclosure tonight, but first it started snowing (a HUGE deal in Alabama.. haha), and then I had one of my favorite tarantulas molt, and I wanted to confirm that it was a male, so I was taking and posting pictures on a T forum.

It is a male by the way- good news for me because I have an unrelated female of that species! I got a pair of Nhandu tripepii. If you are a tarantula person, you will probably know why I'm pretty excited about that.

Anyway, I didn't work on it tonight. But I have all weekend, and Those acrylic jars are really really cheap and so I'll keep on experimenting. I'll pick up some half-gallons tomorrow. Whatever size they (I sort of added to my order... now I am getting Ghost and Indian Flower mantids :clap: ) are, I will be ready.

I will check out that thread before I start on another one.

Thanks!!!

 

[Chivalry]

LOL... See, nobody can have just one.

And I am starting to buy snacks based on the fact that they come in nice big plastic jars.

 

[suzypike]

Hey the Bugatorium thread- that's who I bought my enclosures from! Haha!

Great thread. Her enclosures are beautiful. Can I ask questions on that thread about them?

 

[Mvalenz]

Rebecca has some very thorough instructions for builing enclosures. I followed them and my mantis did very well in it.

 

[dlemmings]

LOL... See, nobody can have just one.

And I am starting to buy snacks based on the fact that they come in nice big plastic jars.

haha...I was at target and they have this huge jug of cheezy-poofs and I thought "wow my ghost colony would luv this as an apartment"

and I saved an empty raspberry twizzler container cause it is @10 inch round & 8 inch high.... :stuart:

 

[Mvalenz]

LOL... See, nobody can have just one.

And I am starting to buy snacks based on the fact that they come in nice big plastic jars.

That is a great idea. And here I was combing the earth looking for a half gallon plastic fish bowl. I'm going to target tomorrow.

 

[hibiscusmile]

Sure you can ask questions in that post, would I love it! u betcha! I think your enclosure is fine, the baby ghost do not hunt as they say, but as babies, they are bad and run around if a few are in the same housing an will find the food, for one baby, I put in 6 to 8 mels each, and mist twice a day. The flower stems are fine for them to run around up and down on, they really should not need something else on the sides, some mantis may, but ghost are smart and will use the stems, also they dont mind hanging from anything and do not have to be "king of the hill"" :kiss:

 

[suzypike]

I already took my enclosure apart because someone told me I had too many flowers and stuff in it that might cause molting problems.

I ordered 2 Mantis Mansions from you. I'm not sure what I'll do if my mantids arrive before the mansions. How hard will they be to move? I was just going to follow the instructions on your thread to decorate my mansions.

Thanks so much for the input! I NEED it! I feel like I'm running around in circles.

(what is 6-8 mels?)

 

[hibiscusmile]

melnogastor fruit flyes, gee look at me spelling, dont know if it is me meds or I just can't spell...LOL

I will vent the containers for you and send them monday, wait, what size did u get?