Cole's Mantids

[Cole 78]

Hey everyone! I recently got my mantids (today) and I LOVE them. They are all either L1-2. I have a thistle, orchid, and a panther. They all ate well, the thistle ate tons. While the panther had trouble hunting, but caught a few FFs. I absolutely adore them! Here are some pics I took of them. also if you could determine what gender they are that would be great

Thistle:

Orchid:

Panther

 

[MantisGirl13]

Awesome mantids, Cole! Btw, this is a panther mantis:

Thistle:



This is a thistle mantis:

:



☺ You got a bit mixed up there! What Instar are they? They are beautiful!

- MantisGirl13

 

[Cole 78]

@MantisGirl13 oh thanks for the clarification. The Panther is L3-L4, Orchid is L2, and Thistle is L2-L3.

 

[Mantis Lady]

Nice pics,  Have fun with your mantids, they will learn you a lot @Cole 78

 

[MantisGirl13]

 I am glad I could help! Your thistle is beautiful, and i just love the eyes on the panther! 

- MantisGirl13

 

[Cole 78]

I am currently trading the thistle if any one wants. Same with Panther.

 

[Cole 78]

My panther is a ravenous eater! I probably will keep him/her after all. My thistle on the other hand refuses to eat. It mostly slaps away it’s food. What could that mean? My Orchid eats normally. I’m worried about the Thistle though, it’s only ate one FF in the past two days.

 

[hysteresis]

Could it be your thistle is readying to molt?

 

[Cole 78]

Could it be your thistle is readying to molt?

That matches up, I want a couple more opinions to confirm this suspicion. It sound about right though.

 

[Mantis Lady]

I am thinking about molting too if you thistle slaps away his food it is a sign of "I don't want to eat"

I hope it will have a good molt.

 

[MantisGirl13]

Yep, it sounds like pre-molt to me!

- MantisGirl13

 

[Cole 78]

Ok thanks everyone!

Also quick update: Just finished feeding. Panther ate over 15, not sure how many the Orchid did, but now her abdomen is distended so she must have ate tons, and Thistle continues to display pre-molt behavior. When can I expect to see my Thistle's colors to come out? The green and white.

 

[MantisGirl13]

Ok thanks everyone!

Also quick update: Just finished feeding. Panther ate over 15, not sure how many the Orchid did, but now her abdomen is distended so she must have ate tons, and Thistle continues to display pre-molt behavior. When can I expect to see my Thistle's colors to come out? The green and white.

Wow, 15 is a lot! No more food for the panther or the orchid for a few days! I am not sure when you will start to see the colors because my thistle never got her green; she stayed tan and white all of her life.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Connor]

Ok thanks everyone!

Also quick update: Just finished feeding. Panther ate over 15, not sure how many the Orchid did, but now her abdomen is distended so she must have ate tons, and Thistle continues to display pre-molt behavior. When can I expect to see my Thistle's colors to come out? The green and white.

Thistles normally never get their green until adulthood and sometimes unfortunately never get them. I believe it depends on the genes they carry and also what species of thistle they are. Not many people know but there are two different species of thistles going around, the problem is they look almost completely identical. One of the species is from Egypt and the other I forget lol. 

 

[Cole 78]

Wow, 15 is a lot! No more food for the panther or the orchid for a few days! I am not sure when you will start to see the colors because my thistle never got her green; she stayed tan and white all of her life.

- MantisGirl13

Is it possible to over feed a mantis? I feed mine a couple times a day. They usually eat everything. 

 

[MantisGirl13]

Yes, it is possible! Only feed once every other or every two days. Mantids do not need several meals a day. You can see how hungry they are by looking at the size of their abdomen. If the abdomen is skinny, feed the mantis. If the abdomen is bloated, no food for at least two days. 

- MantisGirl13

 

[Cole 78]

Some pictures I got that I thought turned out nice. Also surprise! A video!

Orchid:

Also here is a pic to determine what sex it is, please help.

Video!

https://i.imgur.com/eceNCJe.mp4

Please click on it as it will not let me display and show full video at the same time. 

Now for the Panther:

What sex?

Didnt want to disturb Thistle since I think it will molt soon.

 

[Graceface]

It may be too soon to tell on your Orchid nymph. Usually it is a guessing game until they reach L4 and the color band develops. Based on what I've seen in your awesome photos, it looks male (narrow leg petals, I'm counting 6 or so segments with the last segment looking small). Again, very hard to determine at L2. 

I've never sexed a panther mantis before, but it also looks male based on the abdominal segments. 

Great photos! Do you use a macro lens?

 

[Mantis Lady]

Cool pics. I like the close ups. I need a macro lens for my phone. Your pics are better than mine.