How long after laying?

[Chivalry]

How long after a female lays should I wait to try to breed her? I put my P. medioconstricta together about 5 days after, and she is currently eating his head, without ever connecting, I don't think. I never see her (or most of my others, with like 2 exceptions) actually calling, but she had a funky wing molt so it'd be hard to tell.

It's not been a good week... my little Gambian (my first mantis) died (she was getting old), one of my idolos mismolted, one of my S. viridis died of unknown causes, and now my poor double shield male got devoured. *sigh*

 

[Precarious]

Sorry you lost your male.

You should always wait to breed after the female is very fat. Until then they will try to eat everything within reach (depending on the species) or at least be more likely to eat the male. If she had just laid she was likely thin and looking to bulk up.

I don't really follow any set timeline when it comes to breeding. I just go by how fat the female is. When she's fat she's ready. I can also usually get them to connect within a short time so I'm present to watch and don't have to house them together and risk it. After they connect I'm sure to give the male enough space to escape after. Large species I keep loose in the room. Smaller species have enough room to fly in a net cage or aquarium.