Gravid mantis - how much longer until she lays?

[BugLover]

My chinese mantis has been gravid for a month now, and she hasn't laid yet. Her abdomen drags, and she looks like she is about to pop! Is she close to laying?

 

[devetaki9]

I posted a reply in another thread but I will repost here I always take my girls out in the evening and let them exercise and get a change of scenery. I don't know of this actually helps.

I have read to change her furniture around in the enclosure and also to pick fresh grass, roots dirt and all and put it in the enclosure. Just make sure it's grass that hasn't come into contact with chemicals or fuel or pesticides.

Also make sure she has some really good surfaces to grip so she can lay since she is carrying so much extra weight >.<

 

[BugLover]

Thank you! yes she has lots of fake vine and a fake flower in her tank, she seems to like the flower petals and leaves for resting though I will try the grass

 

[sally]

I like to try to make it warm, with a little more humidity if they are having trouble. And yes, soil and I bring in real plants sometimes.... Some of my mantids are fussy about laying surfaces. I try to provide sticks for laying surfaces. ( I put them in the microwave first) I also offer water and honey. I hope your mantis lays her ooth ok

 

[BugLover]

She already has coco coir for bedding, and I added some grass today. But today when I took her out, she started acting weird. After a few minutes of having her out, she started nibbling my finger! She got misted earlier today, so I don't think she was thirsty. After that, I offered her the insides of a superworm, which she started to eat and after a minute dropped it, and started rubbing her mouth on the ground as if to get something out of her mouth. She has also been a bit slow to respond and sluggish the past week or so, which I assumed was because she is full of eggs. Is something wrong with her? I have had the superworms in a container with blended oats and a carrot for moisture. I heard that carrots could be poisinous to mantids, but my Mealworms (which i feed to my smaller mantids) get carrots all the time and it hasn't caused any problem to my mantids.

 

[devetaki9]

She could just be getting antsy and ready to lay? My Cayla still has not laid her ooth and she is slower but still eating well and loves to be on my hand. Cabo has not laid another ooth and is getting bigger and pretty active.

 

[BugLover]

She is laying!!!! I saw her moving her abdomen around a fake vine, and I waited another five or ten minutes and she started laying! I was nervous she had become egg-bound since she was acting so weird :sweatdrop: I misted her more, gave her honey, hand fed a superworm thinking it might help and she had a stinkbug feast a few days ago, and today I took some fake vine, taped it to a window, and set her on it to hang out for the evening. She also seemed to "lubricate" the vine before she started with the foam? is that like the first part of laying? I am so happy!

 

[devetaki9]

That's wonderful news!!!