Hornworms for california mantis?

[Joelee]

I'm brand new to mantis care and have a beautiful adult female california mantis (not wild). I haven't been able to find much variety of food yet where I live, but am looking forward to spring and summer so I can catch some outdoor insects and possibly culture flies on my own!

I just found a pet store in town that carries hornworms with their own food. I have read lots of different information about them with mantises and am looking for a straightforward answer about feeding them to my girl Gypsy. I have read that brightly colored caterpillars can be poisonous and I know they have the horn. I know some people breed them until they're moths, but can they be eaten in caterpillar form just fine? Will they try to fight back with the horn or are they bad for my mantis?

 

[mantisman 230]

While they are able to be used for food, they aren't very good for smaller species. Larger mantids handle them fine, but they shouldn't be used as a staple. 

 

[Joelee]

Thank you for your help!

 

[Ranitomeya]

Manduca are very high in water content and unless they're fully-grown and nearing pupation, most of their mass is their gut and its contents, so they're not the best source of food for mantises that are more accustomed to feeding on prey with more muscle and fat content than hemolymph. You can use them, but they're not very effective as a food source and you'll find that your mantis will produce a lot of liquid waste and become hungry more quickly.