gonna mate my Phyllocrania Ghosts later but got a few questions

[sinder151]

The female is now 2,5 week old since she molted to adult and have eaten alot the last 4-5 days, atleast 4 dubias she have taken and eaten the last days. the Male is still active and eats alot too, he ate a dubia for 2 days ago and grabbed another one for a hour ago. the male molted to adult for about 1-1,5 month ago.

But how should i do it? i have build a small cage for them with a few sticks and some paper on the ground. should i just leave them both inside there for a few hours or how long can they stand there and stare at each other before they connect? i tried to mate them for a few days ago but then they only stared at each other and then the male flew away. but wanted to try again now after the Female have eaten alot and are much bigger then last time i tried to mate.
i have heard that making it warmer inside where the mantises will make them mate faster is this true? right now its 25,5+ inside there

i have to have them inside a cage when mating because i have a cat wich will eat the mantises if he gets a chance.

 

[Shadow]

Well this is what I did I put the female on one of my hands and the male on the other then I just put the close to the abdomen and he crawled on I then watched him.you then can put them in the cage. I don't know about temp but mine was 72 F

 

[Extrememantid]

Place him behind her.. And if you have a mesh enclosure laying around or anything use that

 

[sinder151]

tried right now, when i finaly hoped that he jumped on and would connect then 2min later he walked away, View My Video
when he ran away - View My Video

then at second try he ignored her like hes been doing before when i have tried. View My Video

 

[aesculpius]

I took out all remaining food from the larger of the two enclosures, reduced the number of perches and then tossed the male in with the female. They started screwing a few hours later. Give them some privacy, distracting them while they screw has been known to increase the rate of cannibalism. Also, they're ghosts mantises, as long as the they're fed they are pretty chill with each other.

 

[sinder151]

can this be a sign of them maybe connect soon? put them back to the breeding box and they started at each other for 40 min then i went and blow some wind on them and the male slowly crawl on top of her.

View My Video

 

[sinder151]

yesterday before i went to bed i saw them connecting and the females abdomen were pumping. now when i just woke up then the Male is not connected anymore but the Female abdomen is much bigger then it was before.
The male is still standing on the back of the female but doesnt do anything then standing in her, will the male connect with her again or should i put them back into the cage?

 

[Extrememantid]

I've never really noticed the abdomen get larger from mating but maybe.. And staring at each other is not a sign.

 

[sinder151]

I've never really noticed the abdomen get larger from mating but maybe.. And staring at each other is not a sign.

The male have been riding ontop of the Females back all day now, is it normal that the male will be riding the Female like a horse for so long time? the female is not intrested in any food and seems like she dont care about the male on her back.

 

[Extrememantid]

The male have been riding ontop of the Females back all day now, is it normal that the male will be riding the Female like a horse for so long time? the female is not intrested in any food and seems like she dont care about the male on her back.

That's normal .. They aren't a very aggressive species so not to much to worry about.

 

[sinder151]

woke up a few hours ago and then the male was not riding the female anymore, but both was alive

How long does it take before they lay the Ooth?

 

[Aryia]

Females start laying ooths anytime after 3 weeks from turning adult, no matter if they've mated or not. The more you feed her and the warmer you keep her, the sooner she will be mature and ready to lay an ooth.

Did you see a connection? If not I would suggest mating them again in a couple days to ensure that the eggs become fertilized.

 

[sinder151]

Females start laying ooths anytime after 3 weeks from turning adult, no matter if they've mated or not. The more you feed her and the warmer you keep her, the sooner she will be mature and ready to lay an ooth.

Did you see a connection? If not I would suggest mating them again in a couple days to ensure that the eggs become fertilized.

Yeah i believe i saw a connection before i went to bed, and then the next day when i tried feed the female then the male connected with the female again but disconnected with her after 20min

But i can try to mate them again in a few days, And i try to feed her everyday but she have refused food after the mating. and the temp is around 25-26+ all the time

 

[Krissim Klaw]

You are going about it backwards. Normally you want a large enclouser for mating not making a smaller one. Ghosts tend to be pretty chill so cannibilization tends to be rare, but in general, more space tends to be better when it comes to keeping your boy alive.

Rick already has a basic thread stickied that does a good job of discussing some of the basic methods used for breeding. If you haven't already read it you might want to. http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=7112

Mantises will mate multiple times so if in doubt you can always pair them again. If the female has stopped eating it might be a good sign she is getting ready to lay an ootheca. Even if the mating was a bust and she is not fertile, she will lay but if you saw them connect than there is a good chance it was a success. Personally I would give her some privacy and time away from the boy and other distractions so she can lay, even if it means this first ootheca may be infertile. Make sure she has plenty of space and lots of twigs and such to choose from for laying purposes.

 

[sinder151]

You are going about it backwards. Normally you want a large enclouser for mating not making a smaller one. Ghosts tend to be pretty chill so cannibilization tends to be rare, but in general, more space tends to be better when it comes to keeping your boy alive.

Rick already has a basic thread stickied that does a good job of discussing some of the basic methods used for breeding. If you haven't already read it you might want to. http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=7112

Mantises will mate multiple times so if in doubt you can always pair them again. If the female has stopped eating it might be a good sign she is getting ready to lay an ootheca. Even if the mating was a bust and she is not fertile, she will lay but if you saw them connect than there is a good chance it was a success. Personally I would give her some privacy and time away from the boy and other distractions so she can lay, even if it means this first ootheca may be infertile. Make sure she has plenty of space and lots of twigs and such to choose from for laying purposes.

Yeah ive read that breeding from Rick. but its for another spieces so i had to ask some questions before i started.

But how many days should i wait for them to mate again? and if the Female lay an Ooth how long should i wait before i try to mate them again after the Ooth been layed? will she be tired after the Ooths been layed out?

And i cant have my mantises outside their cage to mate them, my cat have learned how to jump up to where i keep my mantises wich is close to 2 meters high so cant have them outside the cage when i mate them like Rick are doing in his guide. then the mantises will be eaten by the cat.