Diet of mainly moths?

[Dana]

I've been catching food for my Carolina mantis that we've had for under a week. It's mostly been moths, though I did get her a small fruitfly the other day.  I tried to feed her a fly the other day but I think it was too powerful for her yet.  Anyway, is a diet of moths okay for her for now until I can catch more appropriately-sized prey?

 

[CosbyArt]

@Dana Yes a diet of only moths can work but with reservations - especially as a Carolina mantis (Stagmomantis carolina) is just as interested in crawling prey feeders.

Some mantid species only eat flying prey, and moths can be a large potion of those feeders. The downside is they are really high in fat, and likely missing other mantid nutritional needs. In nature mantids capture a large array of feeders, so many keepers will give a other feeders to help meet those requirements, typically house or bottle fly varieties for mantids that only eat flying prey.

However as it is a Carolina mantis (Stagmomantis carolina) it will just as readily eat crawling prey. I feed my Carolina's crickets and house and bottle flies year round. The flies can be purchased in colder months, otherwise they can be captured with a net or homemade traps.

As you capture feeders, you can find plenty of other things to catch besides moths too (Crickets, grasshoppers, katydids, etc...). See the topic here for details, no sense re-typing it all.

 

[Dana]

Thank you!!  I will read that. I am beginning to wonder if I shouldn't create a trap of some sort. Doing this on a tight budget has helped me get creative in how I can feed her without having to but a culture, etc. I'll read that post you linked, and thank you for the information about the crawling insects. I wasn't aware about that!  

 

[CosbyArt]

@Dana Your welcome, and have fun finding new things.

On a budget the best option would be to check a nearby Dollar Tree store. They had butterfly nets in the toy area locally here for only $1 that would let you catch as many flies and such as you wanted. The store also had them at their site too, but I no longer can find them on the site, likely sold out there but still may find them locally for you.

Or you can make a net with nothing more than a metal clothes hanger, some fabric (old sheet or pillow case will work too), and a handle (or stick). It wouldn't hold up to any sweeping in plants, but for catching flies and things in the air it works. See the video here...

 

[Dana]

Thank you!  We actually have the Dollar tree nets!  

Are there any insects I should without a doubt avoid?  I think that's my hesitation, is the fly I gave her the other day gave her a run for her money - I think it was too strong (wing power) or at least it appeared to be. I eventually let it out of her enclosure because I was scared she'd get injured. 

I know the moths are pretty harmless. I'm scared for her to be fed something that isn't good for her or that may harm her. I know my other hesitation is related to her size and not being sure I'm giving her the right size food, yet I want to overcome all those and get it figured out for her. 

 

[CosbyArt]

Thank you!  We actually have the Dollar tree nets!  

Are there any insects I should without a doubt avoid?  I think that's my hesitation, is the fly I gave her the other day gave her a run for her money - I think it was too strong (wing power) or at least it appeared to be. I eventually let it out of her enclosure because I was scared she'd get injured. 

I know the moths are pretty harmless. I'm scared for her to be fed something that isn't good for her or that may harm her. I know my other hesitation is related to her size and not being sure I'm giving her the right size food, yet I want to overcome all those and get it figured out for her. 

Great to hear, while they are cheap and not very deep in the net pocket, after a few attempts you should be able to catch flies and things easy (After all it is not a heavy duty custom sweeper net, or one purchase for entomologists).

Yes, avoid insects that are too large, ideally the feeders should be two times the width of the mantids head (you can get a bit larger, but will learn the max size with trial and error). Of course avoid any feeders that could injure or even eat your mantid itself (I avoid spiders and bees for that reason, plus I'm a bigger arachnid fan than mantid lately lol). Also avoid beetles as most eat toxic plants, and their hard shell (elytra) makes it difficult for a mantid to eat anyway. Other toxic "bugs" are lady bugs, milkweed bugs, stink bugs, centipedes, millipedes, fireflies/lighting bugs, etc. In most cases though a mantid will not eat or vomit out anything it should not eat.

It goes without saying, but I've heard it before anyway..., do not feed your mantid earthworms, slugs, snails, and other slimy worms and mollusc.

Indeed most moths you come across are harmless, but there are some that feed on toxic plants but that tends to be very uncommon (at least ones your bound to find). In the same regard the bigger butterflies such as the Monarach butterflies feed on milkweed and other toxic plants and are not a good feeder choice.

In my yard I tend to catch houseflies, bottle flies, common moths, grasshoppers, katydids, crickets, and related prey. There are however other things you can try, again your mantid will let you know if it likes it.