Did they finish mating? I might have messed this one up!! =(

[xxdreamchas3r913]

Sorry for asking so many questions!! I was just wondering if there was a chance that a couple weren't done when they were separated! They started mating a couple nights ago and were connected all night and morning. around afternoon, i checked on them and picked up the long leafy stick thing they were on to get a closer look..after looking at them for about 10 seconds, the male disconnected from the female. almost immediately, she turned to look at him and started eyeing him really scary looking so i actually intervened and coaxed the male off! when he jumped off, he made a flying leap and the female looked like she tried to grab him she kinda shot her arms out toward him really fast i was so scared of losing a male that i didn't really consider if i had interrupted the couple before they finished! they are limbatas, all my past limbata matings always lasted around 15 hours more or less and this pair were together for a long time, at least 10 hours so i was very hopeful that they had finished. but mantids aren't all the same so is it possible that i might need to mate the female again? i'm not too sure if the male disconnected because he actually finished or if i startled him or was just taking a break or something..they were mating all night tho so i'd think that she at least got a bit of sperm...would appreciate any input you could offer! pretty much just want to know if i should remate her! thanks everyone sorry again for posting so many threads! i swear i'm not purposely trying to spam the board with dumb questions or anything!

 

[mantiscraze]

Exactly, they were doing great a couple nights ago and were connected all night and morning, until you decided to interrupt their loving making. If you are that worried, I would just reintroduce the male and let them do their own thing. Make sure the enclosure is big enough and just let them do their own thing. I see that owners are so paranoid about sexual cannibalism that they are doing all sorts of things to "prevent" it. Sometimes it's exactly the sort of things that you do that's causing it. Just provide ample space, food, and leave them for a couple of days.

 

[xxdreamchas3r913]

aiyah yea i should have just let them be! but even tho i shouldnt have bothered them when i did i would have had to move them in a few hours thats the problem, i don't really have a good place to leave them i've been keeping them in our restrooms but alot of my family live in the same house so i've had to decide which restroom would be more private when i put them in there but i still can't leave them there the entire time until they finish...someone eventually needs to shower or something in the middle and i always end up having to switch them to the other restroom at some point before they get done =(. i know i have a bad system going here...actually just now my mom told me to move the pair that was mating since last night to the other restroom and a bit after i did the male disconnected again....i waited this time tho and sat down and watched them a bit to make sure they were actually done i'm pretty sure that this time they were the male didn't seem like he was going to start up again his forelegs let go of her and his abdomen straightened out. and when she started to walk a bit, he reared up and flew off on his own. but yea i think i might mate the other female again to be safe. havent actually remated a female before, is it pretty much the same? like does the female act any different with a male when she's already mated recently? thanks for your input appreciate it

 

[mantiscraze]

To be honest, if they've mated for a day, that's more than enough time. Although no one can guarantee it, until the ooth hatches.

If you introduce the male too soon after they've mated successfully, the female might just eat the male for energy. Mantis behaviors are not random, although can be provoked by humans. Any cannibalism they do is to ensure the success of posterity.

If you want to increase the chance of fertility, you should wait a couple of days, feed the male and female separately, and then reintroduce them. You don't really need an entire bathroom to mate them. I've used much smaller enclosure. You can find a large box and but some fake plants in them, and use it next time. Do you need the male for another female? If the male does end up eaten it's most likely for a good cause.

 

[xxdreamchas3r913]

ok that sounds good if theres a good chance the mating was successful i'll just leave her be it's not like it'll be a terrible thing if her ooth ends up not hatching i'll actually be satisfied if i only had one ooth that hatched! and i still have two other females that have finished mating and another two that are still waiting to mate so i think it should be fine. and i definitely have enough males especially since the last two came out alive! i was planning on losing all of them to be safe so i've been keeping the same number of males as females but now that 3 survived i'd like to release all males i can after they mate. thanks so much for your advice i really appreciate it! good to know i don't need a whole restroom for them too haha i kinda just wanted to give the male as much room as possible to escape if he had to lol i'm still paranoid with that. how big of an enclosure would be best? i've been using a regular fish tank for them probably about 10 gallons but i kept the lid off so they wouldn't be trapped in the same container when they finished. so would it be fine if i just closed it? there should be enough room for the male to fly away from her but she won't chase him down or anything right? do they ever walk over and grab the male after he flies off if she can still see him? it still kind of a scary thought for me to leave them both in a sealed enclosure to be honest haha but if that usually works fine for everyone else i'll give it a shot! thank you so much! really helped me out! =)

 

[mantiscraze]

There is no magic formula to this. Sometimes males get eaten before he has any chance to fly off, so having an escape route is not foolproof. That being said, there are things that we can do to reduce the chances, especially in captivity. A great set of general guidelines can be found here http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=7112

To recap, make sure both parties, especially the female is not hungry (there is no rule that says males can't eat females). Make sure that they are both ready to mate. Provide enough space so that the male can separate him from the female. Most cannibalism happens within arm's reach, when the male is either on top of the female or next to the female. Keep in mind that some female species can't fly, so if the male gets away, there is nothing the female can do. Males may even offer himself up for consumption either consciously or unwittingly, since it's exhausted from mating. You can always separate the two if you sense mating is not working or is done.

Again, sexual cannibalism is not the norm, and I wouldn't worry about it too much. Just avoid stupid mistakes, relax, and enjoy the hobby and have fun.