do you worry about your mantis run away and you can't catch it back?

[Lalapink]

I am new to mantis. I have a hierodula membranacea. It is so small but it keep running and running so fast on my hand.  That's probably because it had just arrive my home after 3 days in a parcel. It's still a small mantis. what if when it grows big and has wings?  Will he run away and I can't catch him back? Can you share some of your experience with me? Do you find it difficult to catch them back when they fly away from your hand? Do you have any way to prevent them to fly/run away from you? 

 

[Synapze]

I haven't had many problems with Hierodula sp. flying away. They usually aren't very difficult to catch if they do. Generally, males tend to be more flighty than females. Some species are naturally skittish and hard to handle. 

If you're worried about your little one escaping, take it to a small space such as a bathroom. Cover the toilet and block any openings. If it tries to escape you'll have an easier time capturing it. The little ones get calmer as they mature and get accustomed to being handled. 

 

[Krissim Klaw]

For small nymphs you can get something like a light plain colored towel/blanket to set on the floor and sit there for handling. It makes it easier to keep track of the nymph if they decide to jump. As mantises get older they calm down considerably and tend to be rather fun to handle. Girls typically get too heavy to do more than flutter hop as adults.

While boys can fly far, they are typically pretty easy to keep track of indoors as long as you keep an eye on them while they are out. Mantises will gravitate toward light so if you do loose one you can often find them again by checking light sources/windows and other high places as they also like to crawl up. Usually when you hear about people loosing mantises indoors it isn't because the mantis was actively trying to get away from them but that they set it down somewhere to hang out and the mantis decided to wander off when they weren't looking.

 

[Mantis Lady]

I start handling them when they are big enough not to loose them. Very small nymphs can bevery fast with running and jumping.

I never have seen my females flying. Some of my males did. but i found them again.

 

[Lalapink]

Thank you for everyone share your experience. I will try to keep an eye on mine and hopefully mine is a girl. It’s still too small to tell.