I Found a male, I Found a male!!!

[Pet Duck Boy]

Yeaaah!!! Was at church, and after the youth group I went outside, turned the corner, and immediately spied a gray blob that didn't belong on the light pink wall. It was a Gonatista grinsea male!!! I scooped him up and I now have him in an 8 inch tall and 4 inch wide cylindrictal container. Now I have a male for my female! I've had my female for about 3 weeks, she laid an ooth yesterday. She was wild-caught, but I like knowing that she's really fertile and I'm not just incubating a dud ooth. So, she's skinny now. I fed her with a large moth last night, and a BB today. Should I wait for her to get fat again before mating? And um...what's the mating procedure? I got no idea how old the male is, but he's pretty flawless. How many ooths can an adult female in this species lay/what is the average? Thanks!!!

 

[LauraMG]

Breed him quick! And read this http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=7112 It is a perfect guide to mating

 

[angelofdeathzz]

If the male had wings he's adult,if the wings are very small he's sub-adult(one molt away). she can be mated any time and will stay fertile for the rest of her life. most mantis will lay 5-10 ooths about one every 7-14 day's, depending on how much you feed her-more is better if you want alot of ooths.

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

If the male had wings he's adult,if the wings are very small he's sub-adult(one molt away). she can be mated any time and will stay fertile for the rest of her life. most mantis will lay 5-10 ooths about one every 7-14 day's, depending on how much you feed her-more is better if you want alot of ooths.

He's a male, no doubt, and an adult. Full wings and all.

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

*Double post*

 

[myzticalboi]

Wooooohooo! Now its your time to shine to become a breeder! Good luck!

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

The male was quick to eat a bottle fly, but he won't take another. When should I introduce the two? In a week?

 

[angelofdeathzz]

no time like the present if he's adult. you will want keep watch though or he might just be another feeder.

 

[PeterF]

Females might be best off with a rest after laying, but it has likely been long enough that you don't need to worry about that.

Do take some time to feed her up before introducing him. But, once she's had a bit of a snack they should be ready to go.

 

[Rick]

Introduce the female into his cage. These do pretty well together so you shouldn't have any issues. I bred this species for about two years straight. It may take him some time to inititate mating, so I just left them together. They almost always paired up eventually.

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

I placed the female in the males container this morning. He gave her a glance, stared, but as soon as the female moved he freaked and RAN (The males of this species can MOVE!) and flew around his tank. He rammed into the female at one point, and she grabbed him by the leg and 'almost' bit it off. Luckily I had a tooth pick. I'll try again in a week...

 

[macawlover2]

This is so interesting, I didn't know that some mantids can take to each other right away whereas some need time to adjust. Cool!

 

[Rick]

I placed the female in the males container this morning. He gave her a glance, stared, but as soon as the female moved he freaked and RAN (The males of this species can MOVE!) and flew around his tank. He rammed into the female at one point, and she grabbed him by the leg and 'almost' bit it off. Luckily I had a tooth pick. I'll try again in a week...

He just got spooked. Try again later. You will want the mating cage to be a decent size.

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

He just got spooked. Try again later. You will want the mating cage to be a decent size.

Yeah, I can get a large net cage at walmart, I'll try that. The male still seems a little spooked about this captivity concept, more than when I got my female, he slaps away any food but he did eat the night I got him.

 

[Jesskb]

wild males usually take a little while to settle down after you catch them.

 

[Pet Duck Boy]

wild males usually take a little while to settle down after you catch them.

I guess it was a little too late.

I thought he was doing even better this morning, I offered him a roach from my colony and he surprisingly chased it down and gobbled it down. But when I got back from school, he wasn't moving, he was a few inches away from where he was when I left him. He was just dead, still hanging on. Like he died in his sleep....sigh... I guess I can only hope the ooth my female laid is fertile.