L2 to L3

[D_Hemptress]

one of the eight ghost i have molted, but i cant tell which one, is there something that i should look for so i can tel the difference? anybody please!!! and thank you!!!

 

[Mantisman.]

It should be thinner than the others...provided they are well fed of course, also, it should be larger and probably lighter if it is recently molted, when did that happen?

 

[D_Hemptress]

over night, i notice two that where longer than the others, but i was getting ready for work so i havent gotten a good look. ill take them out tonight and see if i can tell better

 

[Malakyoma]

Its hard to tell sometimes. My Odontomantids are starting to molt from L1 to L2 and I cant tell which ones. They're basically the same size.

 

[Mantisman.]

I think maybe you can notice it by how thin its abdomen is, I think it is the most noticeable sign of moulting if color or size don't tell something, they always go thin after moulting, no matter how fat they were before doing it.

 

[Paradoxica]

I think maybe you can notice it by how thin its abdomen is, I think it is the most noticeable sign of moulting if color or size don't tell something, they always go thin after moulting, no matter how fat they were before doing it.

Yes, thinner but also a wider abdomen.

 

[D_Hemptress]

ok so i just got home and checked out the enclosure and my little guys. and it appears two of them are much larger than the others. these culturs are going fast i ordered another on ei hope it gets here fast.

 

[Danny.]

Are they shaking their little butts?

Shake it fast But watch ya self Shake it fast Show me what'cha workin' wit"

 

[D_Hemptress]

so my bf just got home and i wanted to show him how significantly the size shange was from L2 to L3 and he pointed out another one is molting right now. wonderful, and everything looks like it is going smoothly. iwish i could take a better picture but i dont want to disturb him/her.

 

[D_Hemptress]

omg. tonight must be the night for molting. there is another one now. i didnt realze how fast the process was. cool indeed.i now have 4L3's and 4L2's

i guess ill seperate them until they are all the same size again...

 

[lancaster1313]

I see that you probably figured it out already. I haven't kept ghosts, but with the mantids that I have had, I compare head size to try to judge if one has molted. The head is usually bigger if the body doesn't change size dramatically, or if the earlier instars are so fat that it is hard to tell with body size.