How best to pick up a Chinese mantis?

[-MK-]

Every time my Chinese mantids molt, they look huge! Two of them just molted to L4, and they're not little bugs anymore. Their heads are much bigger, their jaws are clearly visible now and their front raptor legs are significantly larger.

What prompted this question is that, earlier today I put my hand out in front of one of the new L4s, who abruptly went into a defensive posture - and I actually flinched! In the past, if they didn't want to climb on at first, I would just keep pushing my finger farther under their front legs until they finally climbed on. But these mantids are going to get huge, assuming they stay healthy, and I don't want to scare them or do anything else that could provoke a pinch and/or a bite. After seeing the damage they do to all sorts of prey, I have big respect for their pwnage abilities.

So, how do they like to be approached? Sometimes if I hold my hand in front of them and then raise it a little, they'll reach out with the front legs and do that motion that shows they want to climb on. But if they don't want to climb on at first, what should I do? Sometimes I need to pick them up - to clean out their cups, for example. And speaking of those 32-oz cups, what's the best way to get them back in? :lol: Mine always want to stay out, and their grip is getting more tenacious as they get bigger, so just giving them a quick brush-off into the cup isn't working so well anymore. Plus, I don't want to risk injuring them.

And the final, inevitable question: who here has been pinched or bitten by mantids, and if you have been, could you please briefly tell the story, what type of mantid it was, and whether or not it was yours? Oh yeah, and did it hurt? I know this is a lot of questions and some of them are weird, so thanks to anyone who takes the time!

 

[Rick]

The only time I mantis has ever pinched me is when collecting them in the wild. If you grab them on the thorax they sometimes can get the point of their front legs into your skin. It hurts a little. They can bite if held a certain way but a pinch is far more common. I wouldn't worry about either.

As far as picking them up, well I usually don't. If they are small and I have to remove them for cleaning or whatever I just coax them out and onto/or into something else. Generally the larger they are the easier this is.

 

[worldofmantis]

its threatened by your hand, id just nudge behind it to get it to climb onto your hand

 

[hibiscusmile]

I use my forceps to put under their legs and lift them with that, it works pretty good, but that is a big mantis to have to live in a cup, maybe u could find something else for it or make a cage out of screen and a cardboard box, it really is hard on him to live in there.

 

[superfreak]

yeah, a nudge or a breath of air sets them in motion if theyre scared of your hand at first. they tend to forget things quick

i was bitten by a large Hierodula nymph. I was asking for it though - holding them by the thorax makes them feel constricted. Let them roam around on your hands, dont try to hold them down Unless youre willing to be pinched/bitten

 

[superfreak]

Oh and it hurts a little, but is more scary and unexpected than painful.

 

[Katnapper]

Oh and it hurts a little, but is more scary and unexpected than painful.

I agree.

I was clasped hard and bitten by an adult female Chinese once. It hurt a little bit, but more of a surprise and shock type of thing. I can't remember now what I was even doing with her. I think I wrote about it somewhere in here, but have no idea exactly when or where. I also had an adult female C. humeralis grab and latch onto my finger, and it appeared she was going to bite... but I hastily shook her off. I can't say I was gentle about the shaking either...while I was doing a frenzied dance that I'm sure would be worthy of some pretty good laughs had anyone seen it.

If I'm in doubt or they won't easily get on my hand, I use a chopstick to wrangle them. Just put it in front of them and ease it up so they will climb on (hopefully).

 

[d17oug18]

my first limbata pinched me just the same as all these other stories, put hand in cage and attacked it, it attacked me 3 times before it let me hold him. RIP Monkey

 

[-MK-]

Thanks a lot to everyone for the replies so far!

I guess what made me ask this question is something that happened years ago. Before I decided to raise my own, I'd only seen two praying mantids in person ever - one lived in my back yard for a summer, and the other, oddly enough, I saw in the outdoor section of a bar in Chicago on a summer night. It was just hanging out on the wall of the building, minding its own business, when a group of people came walking in. One of them pointed it out, and some stupid meathead in the same group knocked it off the wall for a laugh. Since at this point it was on the ground in a fairly high-traffic area with people who had been drinking, I tried to pick it up to put it in a safer place. That's when it (barely) got me with the pinchers. It didn't hurt, but it freaked me out because this was an enormous bug. It was the first one I'd ever seen in person, and I couldn't believe how huge it was! So I let go immediately and just kept an eye on it to keep it from getting stepped on. I think it flew away after not too long.

I've already set most of my mantids loose in my yard since they became L3s, and yesterday I was lucky enough to reunite with some of my little buddies while pulling weeds. I like to think that they remember me, but I know they're just bugs. Some climbed onto my hand readily, while I got to witness another one opening a family-size can of whup-you-know-what on a spider. It was great to see them outdoors and appearing to be doing well. They weren't easy to spot, but I managed to see a bunch of them after looking closely. I'm hoping that at least some of them survive long enough to grow up huge, and I hope to be able to hold them in my hand when/if I encounter them in the future. Like I said, I guess that's what prompted this question.

I'm keeping a few L3s and L4s in the 32-ounce cups still, but most of them will be released too. If I decide to keep any as indoor pets, they will get suitable homes long before they outgrow the cups. Thanks again for the replies from everyone who took the time! I'm always eager to hear more...

Also, thanks to chris and superfreak for the advice. I'd heard of nudging them before, but blowing on them (like I just tried with the Chinese L4 who's resting on my hand as I type) works great too.

 

[hibiscusmile]

It makes you wonder why people can be so cruel, he was probably sitting there listin to the country tunes :{

 

[bassist]

I also had an adult female C. humeralis grab and latch onto my finger, and it appeared she was going to bite... but I hastily shook her off. I can't say I was gentle about the shaking either...while I was doing a frenzied dance that I'm sure would be worthy of some pretty good laughs had anyone seen it.

That should be expected from Cilnia humeralis :>

 

[kmsgameboy]

I am new to mantid keeping but I havent had any problems with my Chinese Mantid. She willingly climbs all over me. Sometimes when I try to get her on a different arm/hand she will tuck her arms in as if scared but I think it is just because such a large object moves so close to her. When I handle my pet I try to make sure my movements are slow and smooth so I dont startle her like this. I can only imagine how I would feel if I was in thier place!!!

 

[-MK-]

I agree with you, kms. It must be somewhat intimidating to the mantids, since humans are so much bigger than them. I'm just hoping that some of mine will grow to be large adults in the semi-wild habitat of my yard, and that I will be able to walk up to them and say, "Hey, buddy, remember me?" as they crawl onto my hand. So far, it's gone well.

I never tried to hold the huge wild Chinese female (except once with gloves, to keep her away from the lawnmower and my hands) who lived in my yard a while back. But since I raised these little guys from birth, I'm hoping that they might not be so skittish if I approach them. So far, they've been very friendly outdoors. And, since my idea was always to raise them in captivity just long enough to increase their chances of survival outdoors, I'm thrilled at the results; I've seen a couple of them munching on prey, while I saw a few others stalking prey, or just hanging out. They still readily climb onto my hand and act like we're still friends!

 

[kmsgameboy]

I agree with you, kms. It must be somewhat intimidating to the mantids, since humans are so much bigger than them. I'm just hoping that some of mine will grow to be large adults in the semi-wild habitat of my yard, and that I will be able to walk up to them and say, "Hey, buddy, remember me?" as they crawl onto my hand. So far, it's gone well.I never tried to hold the huge wild Chinese female (except once with gloves, to keep her away from the lawnmower and my hands) who lived in my yard a while back. But since I raised these little guys from birth, I'm hoping that they might not be so skittish if I approach them. So far, they've been very friendly outdoors. And, since my idea was always to raise them in captivity just long enough to increase their chances of survival outdoors, I'm thrilled at the results; I've seen a couple of them munching on prey, while I saw a few others stalking prey, or just hanging out. They still readily climb onto my hand and act like we're still friends!

Thats awesome! Im ready to get some more! I love my chinese so may hatch an ooth outside but I would really like to raise a few more indoors. Im just not sure what yet.

 

[nasty bugger]

I usually use the line " you've got some beautiful eyes" and they seem to dig it...

I usually put my finger or hand down and let them climb up on it. Simple enough. If they want off before I get where I'm going I cup my other hand over/around them lightly. Rarely did I have to pinch them up.

 

[cloud jaguar]

a nice wine, perhaps a picnic in the woods..

 

[planetq]

I was pinched a few times and bitten really hard once.

All cases were W/C, the ones I kept as pets were tame. But man, the wild ones are ferocious!

Being pinched is not that bad, it just feels like a pinch and not much.

When I was bitten though, the T.Sinensis female REALLY dug her jaws into my finger. There was minor bleeding involved too.

A few days later it was swolen, and a little itchy, (probably because of a simple infection from the bite) and I didn't do anything, and it just went a way after a few more days.

No big deal haha.

Yeah the T.Sinensis' are one of the more aggressive species I have dealt with, if not the most aggressive.*

Just their sheer size, and their sturdy raptorial arms must give them enough confidence to take on a human (finger). haha

I don't know if anyone noticed, but they look kind of hardy too!

If you look close at their faces they have a slight slant on their upper inward part of the eye(where the eye meats the forhead)

giving them a slightly grumpy/angry look, compared to the perfect oval eyes that overall more gentile genera like Empusidae or some others might have.

THE PERSONALITY IS IN THE FACE! haha

 

[planetq]

I was pinched a few times and bitten really hard once.All cases were W/C, the ones I kept as pets were tame. But man, the wild ones are ferocious!

Being pinched is not that bad, it just feels like a pinch and not much.

When I was bitten though, the T.Sinensis female REALLY dug her jaws into my finger. There was minor bleeding involved too.

A few days later it was swolen, and a little itchy, (probably because of a simple infection from the bite) and I didn't do anything, and it just went a way after a few more days.

No big deal haha.

Yeah the T.Sinensis' are one of the more aggressive species I have dealt with, if not the most aggressive.*

Just their sheer size, and their sturdy raptorial arms must give them enough confidence to take on a human (finger). haha

I don't know if anyone noticed, but they look kind of hardy too!

If you look close at their faces they have a slight slant on their upper inward part of the eye(where the eye meats the forhead)

giving them a slightly grumpy/angry look, compared to the perfect oval eyes that overall more gentile genera like Empusidae or some others might have.

THE PERSONALITY IS IN THE FACE! haha

* Although I hear C.Humeralis' are pretty agressive too. Anyone who've kept both: Which would you say is more feisty?

 

[Katnapper]

* Although I hear C.Humeralis' are pretty agressive too. Anyone who've kept both: Which would you say is more feisty?

Of all the species I've kept so far, the adult female C. humeralis are the only ones I'm consistently wary of handling. Maybe it's their look... very strong, sturdy, and bulky in head and upper body; and their faces look much more intimidating in both shape and expression than a T. sinensis. I do know from experience that they have quite a strong and persistent grip. And feeling that, in combination with watching one clearly and purposefully trying to get those mouthparts on you, definitely makes me think twice before reaching in and grabbing one! :huh: