I caught a couple of spiders (yes, I know they're not bugs) last night and put them in with a couple of my L4s. They wouldn't eat them, but it got me thinking. Since some arthropods contain venom, are there any specific ones that can harm a Chinese mantis if eaten?
Is there any bug which should not be fed to a Chinese mantis?
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Not really. I wouldn't use spiders for smaller nymphs because if not eaten right away they could spin webs in the enclosure and nymphs could get caught. However if they are big enough spiders are fine. If they grab something they shouldn't eat they generally know and will drop it.
superfreak
Well-known member
this topic has been gone over so many times. generally in the "has *insert insect here* ever hurt your mantis" or "is it ok to feed a mantis a *blah*" department.
in short - if the insect has huge jaws or a stinger and you think it might hurt your mantid, then either kill it and feed it once dead or take a risk. its really up to you. they deal with it most of the time, but there are always exceptions.
in short - if the insect has huge jaws or a stinger and you think it might hurt your mantid, then either kill it and feed it once dead or take a risk. its really up to you. they deal with it most of the time, but there are always exceptions.
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Sorry - I should have done a search first, but it was close to bedtime, and this was on my mind. Also, mine won't eat anything that's dead. I've tried to make a dead bug look like it was moving by rotating the cup on its side, making the dead bug roll or slide and appear to be moving, and the mantis grabbed it at first but then flung it (not dropped it) across the cup as if mad at me for wasting its time. :lol:
I've seen YouTube videos of mantids making short work of bees and hornets, but I guess maybe this is only some of the time? If a large mantis got stung by a bee, wasp, or hornet, would it likely die?
Rick, you were right on both counts. One spider began spinning a web in the mantis cup, and the mantis in the other cup had one go at the other spider, then quickly let go, and they retreated to opposite sides, so I ejected both spiders shortly thereafter.
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I've fed spiders found in my house to mantids that were much larger than the spiders with no issues. If a mantis grabs a bug that could be poisonous or something like that they generally know to drop it. They can eat bees and things but I normally don't use those as food because some bees like honeybees are on the decline and we need them. Wasps generally have little in the way of edible parts and their exoskeletons are very hard. I've never seen stinging be a problem though.
I have seen a wasp kill a mantis in the wild (in my flower garden) one time. I just happened to be watching the mantis when the wasp came down and attacked it. But besides wasps, the only insect I can readily think of to avoid feeding would be ants.
Wow, that's two surprises! I never would have expected a wasp to attack a mantis, nor would I have thought that ants were bad for a mantis to eat. Why are they bad for them?
superfreak
Well-known member
Most mantids wont eat them as they contain formic acid (responsible for that horrible smell when you squish them) 
Also, a few ants left alone with a mantid could rip it to pieces.
Also, a few ants left alone with a mantid could rip it to pieces.
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