injured Mex Unicorn nymph - best food?

[cloud jaguar]

We have 4 Mex Unicorns from Katnapper (Becky). These are great pets and fun to watch. One had 3 legs and we named it "tripod." Today tripod shed to L4? and another nymph ate his front arms. At first I thought it had mismolted but I could not find the arms. Then I noticed one of the nymphs attack and try to eat another one. Well I thought these could live together but I guess not

We separated them. Tripod now has a nice new leg it was missing but the front arms are missing the front portion and it will not be able to grab food. We will try to feed her by hand but so far these nymphs are finicky as heck and only eat ffs. No small crickets for them as they run away from them. What is the best option to try to keep this little one alive?

 

[d17oug18]

from what ive read in the past, get a small wire(as small as possible) and put a dab of honey on the tip of it, then try to stick it with dead FF's, or live ones lol, and put that to his mouth. I've heard a lot of success stories on this way of feeding for all species, hopefully you can keep it up till he molts again. Good Luck on Tri-Quad lol.

 

[Katnapper]

That is sooooo weird you posting this today, Arkanis!!! :huh: Earlier today I was feeding, and had a net cage of Unicorn nymphs ready to get some house flies for. But I got distracted doing something else in the bug room... and when I picked the cage back up, one of the nymphs was cannibalizing another! It's the very first and only time I've ever seen a nymph eating another one of this species. I've seen the adult females eat the males... but never nymphs. Huh. Maybe this generation is especially agressive, or more cannibalistic than others? I don't know! Mine were overdue for eating, so likely were pretty hungry. Were yours?

It's also coincidental that I'm in the process right now of writing a blog entry about mis-molts and a 3 legger I had. I'd suggest you try hand feeding like I did with Quasimoda... it worked out in the end. But she proved to be infertile, even after mating. I talk about it in the blog. Will have it posted soon... just adding some pics to it right now. Just click on the "Phyllovates chlorophaea" Catagory (on the right hand side of my blog page), and it will bring up all of the entries I've put in that category. Hope maybe it helps... Best of luck with it!!!!

 

[jameslongo]

From experience, I stuck a suitably-sized cricket/fly with a pin & stuck the pin into a deli cup lid, so that the cricket/fly is suspended in mid air (preferably inside in the deli cup). Your mantid will hopefully just lean in & start munching on it.

Give us some feedback when you get the time.

Cheers,

James.

 

[Rick]

Never beleive that any mantids can live together with no possibility of incidents like that. I use a long pair of tweezers with a smashed cricket or fly on it. Get a juicy part and put it up to its mouth. It should start eating.

 

[massaman]

not true rick or not always as i got like 8 gambian spotted eye nymphs living together and one male molted to a adult and they seem content and only swat or stretch out their raptorial arms at one another if they get to close to each other!I had nine females living in the same cage before they all died off of the same species and they did not do anything to one another!

 

[Rick]

not true rick or not always as i got like 8 gambian spotted eye nymphs living together and one male molted to a adult and they seem content and only swat or stretch out their raptorial arms at one another if they get to close to each other!I had nine females living in the same cage before they all died off of the same species and they did not do anything to one another!

I know sometimes it works but what I am saying is that incidents can happen.

 

[PhilinYuma]

I know sometimes it works but what I am saying is that incidents can happen.

They can and they do. If you want to keep a group of any mantis species together, you have to be prepared to lose some to canibalism., whether they are "social,"

like ghosts and Texas mantids, or not.

 

[hibiscusmile]

I use a stick pin or toothpick, most can eat once they have it in the mouth and hold it there too, each poster did good advising you, I to cursh the ffs together, or take the gooey end of a fly or cricket and hold it to its mouth, when it starts eating, I slowly....slowly lower the goody till it follows it down and will continue eating them, it is a daily routine u will have to do to save it.

 

[PhilinYuma]

Here's a source that might help you, Arkanis: [email protected]