How many fruit flies for L3 ghosts?

[Predatorhousepet]

I just received 3 Ghost mantises the day before yesterday and 2 out of the 3 molted to L3 yesterday. I gave them 24 hours and put a few melanogaster fruit flies in, which they made short work of. I put a few more in and they ate those just as quickly. How many fruit flies should I be putting in at a time? Their abdomens still look pretty flat and based on how quickly they dispatched them and the fact that they chased some down (I thought they were sit & wait predators??) leads me to believe I am not feeding them enough after their molt. The melanogaster flies are pretty small, how many do L3 sized Ghosts need to eat & how often?

 I did previously order some hydei from Josh's Frogs but the culture didn't survive the trip (all the adult flies were killed off in the mail and the medium was covered in mold when I received it. They offered to replace it but I opted for store credit and ordered from Rainbow Mealworms instead.) When the hydei get here how many of those should I feed them at a time? 

I also have an L2 Orchid and an L2 Hierodula. They should probably be eating hydei instead but I only have the melanogaster for now. However, they seemed to get satiated faster than the ghosts. How many should they be eating and how often? I don't  want to overfeed.

 

[rantology]

I have a batch of L3 ghosts right now and they are happily wolfing down Hydei fruitflies, so you could up the prey size. I have them in a large group enclosure and I keep ample amounts of flies in with them at all times- I don't think they overeat as they quit when they are looking plump. Keeping prey available at all times might speed up their life cycle though (I'm not sure what would be optimum)

 

[Rick]

Abdomen nice and plump? You're feeding enough. Abdomen flat, feed more until plump. Abdomen looks like it will burst (it won't) ease up a bit. It really is that simple. 

 

[CosbyArt]

@Predatorhousepet Indeed as Rick wrote simply watching the abdomen size is the best way to feed. There really is no set feeder species amount to mantid instar level, too many variables that can not account for everything. The abdomen is the only optimal feeding method to ensure they are eating properly, and after doing it a few times is a easy technique.

I will simply add do not put tons of flies into any mantids habitat, where the flies are climbing over the mantid. Depending on the size of the habitat, 6 to 10 flies is more than plenty at one time.

I've seen some new keepers add many dozens of flies to the point the habitat was nearly covered in them. It will only lead to the mantids becoming stressed, can not/will not eat in such a container, can become injured trying to escape the flies, and due to the stress and constant energy expenditure can lead to illness. If there are too many flies simply remove them.

 

[Predatorhousepet]

I do plan to offer hydei once the order gets here. After the first ff culture died I went to Petco to pick some up but they only had melanogaster flies. I seeded a second culture of melanogaster because the one from Petco looked like it had already peaked. 

For the ghosts I had added roughly 10 to 15 melanogaster flies in a 32 oz deli cup the first time and after those were eaten I put about half that amount in the second time. Both ate all the flies I put in and it looks like their abdomens are plump now so I did not put in more.

The third ghost still hasn't molted yet. The first two molting was a surprise so I didn't do anything special for them beforehand but for the third I removed all the fruit flies from the deli cup and started misting every 14 to 16 hours instead of every 24 to increase the humidity a little to assist with the molt (being extremely careful to make sure it isn't mid-molt before misting) I'm guessing its completely normal for same age siblings to not all molt on the same day but is there anything else I should be doing or not doing? 

Unsexed L2 Ghost

Male? L3 Ghost #1



Male? L3 Ghost #2

Unsexed L2? Hierodula membranacea 

Unsexed L2 Orchid

 

[CosbyArt]

I'm guessing its completely normal for same age siblings to not all molt on the same day but is there anything else I should be doing or not doing? 

Yes, even if they receive the same care/temps/feeder amount/etc nymphs that hatched together can vary in instar up to two full molts (I've had it happen with a female). Usually though they are within a few days to week though in molting together.

Just one really, don't sweat the small things and enjoy them. But seriously if they are eating enough feeders and have the proper humidity range there is not much else that can be done.

 

[cwebster]

Cute little guys! Thanks for sharing the photos.

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Cute little guys! Thanks for sharing the photos.

Thanks! Nothing more adorable than a teeny tiny mantis. Lol.

The last ghost finally molted to L3 last night, I *think* she is a female but I can't be sure until I get a closer look at her. I'm giving her a few more hours before I feed her but I can already tell she's ravenously hungry....she intently follows every movement anywhere near her cup.

 

[hibiscusmile]

Sorry for late reply, your ghost is ready for stable or house flies, fruit flies are to small, even a new ghost will tackle a house fly

if hungry.

 

[cwebster]

Sorry for late reply, your ghost is ready for stable or house flies, fruit flies are to small, even a new ghost will tackle a house fly

if hungry.

where can you get housefly cultures? Thanks!

 

[cwebster]

Spooky ghost mantis has as far as i can tell stopped eating. There are a half dozen hydei n the deli cup with her. She molted once a few weeks ago. I am not sure how to tell what molt size she is. Am concerned because she is just hanging upside down from a twig all the time. I thought maybe she is getting ready to molt but i cant tell...it always surprises me when they molt.

 

[Ocelotbren]

Based on what you are saying, it sounds like she is getting ready to molt.  Let us know!

 

[cwebster]

Thank you. Should i remove all the hydei? His abdomen if that is what i think it is looks kind of flat.

 

[Serle]

The drosophila will die in a couple days anyway........... S

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Hanging upside down from a twig all the time is pretty normal behavior for ghosts. They use the "sit and wait" method of hunting. If they are really hungry they will move around to better position themselves to catch prey or even chase after it a short distance. In the early instars they take about 2 to 3 weeks between molts depending on how much they've been eating (and other misc factors.) They will refuse food a few days up to a week before molting. If you keep track of the number of molts and when they happen on a calendar it helps to roughly estimate their next one. What age did they say it was when you bought it?

 

[cwebster]

Not sure how old she was...came from a reptile show. Will try to get photos and post them. We have had her about two months now and she has molted once.