Walker Jones
Active member
my ghost mantids bred this weekend (Friday/Saturday night) and the female laid an ooth this morning, I was wondering if they are able to fertilize their eggs that fast or if I’ll have to wait for my next batch for babies?
Fertilization timing?
- Thread starter Walker Jones
- Start date
Help Support Mantidforum:
As long as the breeding was successful, that is they actually connected for a period of time and sperm was transferred, then the eggs will be fertilized. It does not matter how long or short after a successful mating for the ootheca to be viable. It will be fertilized because female insects store the sperm in a special place called the spermetheca and can fertilize every egg case they make from just one mating. As long as the mating was a success the egg should be fertilized. Though sometimes you can't tell for sure if they actually mated but that's a different issue.
So I would assume it was a success and that you will have baby ghosts sometime soon from that first egg case.
So I would assume it was a success and that you will have baby ghosts sometime soon from that first egg case.
Walker Jones
Active member
awesome, I don't know if it's an indication of successfully mating or more food but this ooth is a bit thicker so i'm hoping it means there is babies
Possibly, but there is no real way to know if an ooth is fertile by looking at it from the outside. But I am guessing it does have babies.
