discolored mantis after final molt

[Graceface]

Sad to be saying my freshly molted adult Orchid, Ingrid, doesn't look like she will make it. 

She is looking discolored, like brownish all over and I found her hanging by one leg from the lid of her enclosure. She isn't dead yet, but won't drink any honey water when place the qtip to her mandibles. They may be bound up or she may just be giving up

She wouldn't eat post molt. I thought she wasn't hungry yet or perhaps ignoring flies now, but it's clear she is having a problem.  

I don't know what went wrong. I think she must've had internal complications during her final molt. She'd had frass sticking to her abdomen before her final molt, idk if that had something to do with it. it seemed to stick inside her exoskeleton, which you can see if you look at her premolt photo 

My other females have one ball of frass sticking to the end of their cercus too. They dont seem to have it building inside their exoskeletons like Ingrid, but one piece sticking to the end. I tried brushing it off with a paper towel, but it doesnt come off. Am i doing something wrong? Humidity falling in microclimate of the cups? Idk. I just want my other ladies to molt properly next time.

Not the best images, sorry, I woke up to see this. I'm a bit distraught about this poor girl. She's probably going to get the freezer treatment

Premolt:



This morning:

 

[Synapze]

Oh no... fingers are cross for her. ?

Do you have a humidity / temperature gauge for the cups? If not, here is an example of how I control humidity & temp in multiple 32oz cups. 

These meters are cheap... couple of bucks. The probe fits perfectly into one of the holes in a fabric lid. I mist all the nymph containers at same time and same amount, so when I reach the desired humidity, it's safe for me to assume the other cups are approximately the same. I move the probe occasionally to one of the other cups make sure I have them all in sync. 

These meters are cheap, but they aren't laboratory quality, but they will meet most mantid keeper's needs. As far as accuracy, they're close enough. I tell people that if their specimens can't handle slight variations, they'll need to buy a more expensive meter, but I don't find it necessary. 

Hope this helps.

 

[Graceface]

Thanks @Synapze I do have monitors. Not inside the cups, but next to them. I may need to get some of those! The other meters I have are cheapo eBay ones too, but they don't have probes

I keep my enclosures inside aquariums with a fogger/ultrasonic humidifier and heat mat, both of which are on controllers with probes inside the aquarium. I have cheap meters placed around the aquarium and outside, too, so I can monitor conditions. Currently the ladies are in 32oz cups as enclosures with screen lids The enclosures are lined with damp paper towels, which I typically change daily or every other day at the longest. I mist daily inside the enclosures, too, to make sure they are staying hydrated. 

I don't really think the humidity is off, just grasping at straws to figure out if there is anything I can do to improve and ensure this doesn't happen to my other girls. I'm still a new orchid keeper, she is my 1st female adult and was my favorite. I just love these little creatures and wanna make sure that if I did something to cause this issue I fix this behavior asap.

 

[Mantis Lady]

Sad to be saying my freshly molted adult Orchid, Ingrid, doesn't look like she will make it. 

This is sad to hear, I was happy that Ingrid molted, but with reading this I feel sad. I hope your other girls will not getting this problem....

 

[MantisGirl13]

Oh no! I am so sorry! How is she doing now? Have you tried honey?

- MantisGirl13

 

[Graceface]

Oh no! I am so sorry! How is she doing now? Have you tried honey?

- MantisGirl13

Yes, I tried. Her mandibles didn't move, idk if she could move them or not, she may have been too far gone. She didn't make it

 

[cwebster]

Am so sorry to hear she mismolted and didnt make it. Very beautiful girl. 

 

[Graceface]

Thanks everyone. My husband and I are pretty bummed. She was a sweet, fly killing machine and we will miss her. I'm hoping her sisters will molt to adult successfully, though I'm not sure what went wrong with Ingrid

 

[hysteresis]

She was a sweet, fly killing machine and we will miss her.

@Graceface you are a rock star!

 

[MantisGirl13]

I am so sorry you lost her. She was beautiful.  

- MantisGirl13

 

[MantisGirl13]

You should feed all of your other mantids some honey or diluted honey just in case Ingrid had a bacterial infection and it could spread to the others.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Graceface]

Thanks everyone. I noticed Heidi has a horizontal brown stripe across her abdomen, that seems to be along a segment line on the underside of her abdomen. I'll get a picture, but anyone know what could cause this? 

I clean their enclosures weekly, swap paper towels daily, use distilled h2o, wash my hands before handling mantises, etc so I thought I've been taking proper precautions to avoid any illness. With Ingrid's passing, I just wanna be sure this isn't a disease or illness

 

[MantisGirl13]

Thanks everyone. I noticed Heidi has a horizontal brown stripe across her abdomen, that seems to be along a segment line on the underside of her abdomen. I'll get a picture, but anyone know what could cause this? 

I clean their enclosures weekly, swap paper towels daily, use distilled h2o, wash my hands before handling mantises, etc so I thought I've been taking proper precautions to avoid any illness. With Ingrid's passing, I just wanna be sure this isn't a disease or illness

Can we see a pic of Heidi? 

It sounds like you are taking a lot of precautions, and I hope that whatever happened to Ingrid will not happen to your others!

- MantisGirl13

 

[Graceface]

It sounds like you are taking a lot of precautions, and I hope that whatever happened to Ingrid will not happen to your others!

- MantisGirl13

Thank you! I figure the best defense is a good offense, ya know? I heard Orchids can be prone to dying from stale air, and the heat and humidity they require is also the range where mold and bacteria like to grow. I thought I could avoid potential problems by keeping their enclosures clean and having a care routine and habitat setup that prevents stale air. 

Heidi acts normal; she shows no other signs of illness. I'm hoping she is okay.