Ghosts, Oothes, and Questions

[PeterF]

My ghosts have been breeding wonderfully. All on their own.

I've been running 2 tanks, they molted to adults, and started mating more or less right away.

I just had the first ooth laid yesterday.

My only real question about the nymphs when they hatch:

Will they be ok w/ Flightless FFs? Or would they be more comfortable with flying food?

 

[GreenOasis]

I think they would do fine with either. I always feed flightless (they DO jump!). I haven't mated any Ghosts yet, but I've had some since L1 & they always ate the flightless Hydei just fine.

 

[nebrakacinese]

As they get older(ghost mantids) do they have to be flying food and if so can pupae for house flies be bought I'm not sure if over the winter i can culture any flies I guess check and see what the pet stores have.

 

[warpdrive]

I've raised L1s to L4. Today my favorite female molted to L5.

L1s I raised on mels and did a mix of mels and hydeis at L2.

Starting at L3 I did a mix of hydeis and house flys. By L4 they are all on house flys.

I have tried tiny crickets and supers, but they don't care for them much and didn't go after them.

They do like flying foods and I saw one snatch a fly out of mid air one handed once.

Harry

 

[sporeworld]

Pretty much what Warp said. FF's for the first few instars, then house flies, then Blue Bottles. Besides providing variety, you can just stick with that.

 

[nebrakacinese]

Can pupae for houseflies be bought and used as needed i don't know the lifespan of the common houseflie but i'm getting L2 ghost nymps i have plenty of mels just trying to get this figured out so i'm ready.

 

[sporeworld]

I honestly don't know which instar this was, but here's the extreme outside of just about when a Ghosts is ready for Blue Bottles... I always get a kick out this pic...

 

[PeterF]

I guess the real question is between flightless fruit flies and flying fruit flies.

 

[sporeworld]

I've never used wild or flying fruit flies, and had hundreds of ghosts mature nice and healthy, so I'd say it's not a big deal...

 

[Rick]

I use nothing but flightless ff's. They are far less of a hassle.

 

[PhilinYuma]

So lets hear it for the "wild type" FFs, busy and irritating as God meant them to be! Irritating in both senses of the word. When the "Dirty Jobs" guy visited Chuck at Spider Pharm and went into the notorious "fruit fly room" in the trailer, where the ff's fly around uncaged, he came out choking and described the experience as perhaps the worst he had had in the series!

Wild fruit flies are tougher and more fecund than their modifies counterparts, but the major advantage is that, left in a 12" cube, they will quickly distribute themselves over the whole area instead of crawling around near ground zero. I just went and looked at a cage of the little buggers in a well established culture, and there is not one above ground level. Also, of course, such a culture will eventually "revert to type" and you will have "wild flies" and have to start over.

Are there wild ffs around the "zoo", now? If so, get out the vinegar!

 

[warpdrive]

Hi,

Due to a supplier of flightless FF not shipping on time, and then finaly getting 2 long dead tubs out of 4...with the hydeis producind before and faster then the mels....we now have Warpdrive all natural Extermination services.

I just took 2 L1 ghosts and tossed them in a deli container that had a slice of orange in it, and punched two tiny holes in the sides.

5 tubs like this took care of my wild FF in my bedroom in just 3 days. Then half went into my living room and half in my kitchen...3 days later I'm basically wild FF free.

Got house flys? Wardrive all natural extermination will come to your house with a chameleon to take care of everything.

Roaches? We will free range a few geckos in your kitchen and in days you'll be pest free.

You can find us in your local yellow pages or PM me here.

Prices alter depending on how far I must travel. Yet I'm sure if you live in texas you can just treat me to some good barbecue and we can wave all the fees.

Harry

 

[macawlover2]

I may be a newbie, but I've had the same small $10 culture from Petco for the past 6 weeks. The jar says it only lasts 3-5 weeks, but they keep breeding! The only issue I see is that their food supply on the bottom is running out... So I stuck a chunk of apple in there... maybe it'll help?

Anyway, I've been using flightless FF's the entire time, and I got my mantids as tiny little nymphs from Rebecca.

 

[PhilinYuma]

I may be a newbie, but I've had the same small $10 culture from Petco for the past 6 weeks. The jar says it only lasts 3-5 weeks, but they keep breeding! The only issue I see is that their food supply on the bottom is running out... So I stuck a chunk of apple in there... maybe it'll help?

Anyway, I've been using flightless FF's the entire time, and I got my mantids as tiny little nymphs from Rebecca.

I think that the answer is always, "whatever works for you"! If you want more, though, you might want to start culturing them,. Most folks use a 32oz pot with a cloth/mesh lid. the culure medium usually consists of potato flakes and at least 1/8 by volume active yeast granules, some sugar for the yeast to grow on, and enough water to make it the same consistency as the culture that you bought. Let us know how it works.

This is not the same formula as I have posted here in the past. Mine is more expensive, requires buying in bulk to be cost effective, and is designed to produce a lot of ffs per pot!