large ant like mantis

[Joe]

hey,

i looked around on the net for a few minutes and came acrossed this:

http://bugguide.net/node/view/4436

heres some info about it: (definitly a must READ!) http://fulltext10.fcla.edu/DLData/SN/SN001...02/98p02997.pdf

They say its called a Little Yucatan mantis(Mantoida maya) that's supposedly large for an ant mantis and is native way down south of the US, around florida to mexico, and i'm wondering if anyone's found it before? this is quite interesting and want to see what you guys say about this.

Joe

 

[Ian]

Thats pretty dam cool...didn't think a mantid of such type existed. As you say, that content is quie interesting in that PDF. You should be on the lookout!

 

[Mantis Keeper]

I stumbled across the picture of this mantid before on the same site about a year and a half ago. I have been looking for this mantid ever since. I also find it simply amazing and hope to eventually get ahold of some. If I manage to find some, this site will definately be the first to know.

 

[AFK]

anyone got pics of the adult? according to the read, they look dramatically different.

 

[yen_saw]

The pic in bugguide is an adult.

 

[Mantis Keeper]

Na, the picture in bugguide is a subadult. I also read somewhere(don't remember where though) that they look drastically different as adults.

 

[AFK]

yes, they look and ACT like ants all the way until their very last moult (adult). so right before adulthood, they look like huge ants!

come on, somebody's gotta know where there is an adult pic of this guy.

 

[Christian]

Hi.

The pic shows a subadult. Adults of this genus are fully winged. This genus is quite interesting, as it represents one of the three most primitive extant mantid taxa. Some authors argue that it might be the most primitive mantid. They are not very large, though, about 2-3 cm. Breeding these ones should be rather tricky. None of the more primitive mantids was successfully bred up to date. I wish I had some living ones for my work on prey preferences, but I will not go to Florida in near future and as I do not see other possibility other than searching for myself I have to wait much longer...

I do not know of any photos of living adults, but there are several drawings and a few photos of pinned specimens.

Regards,

Christian

 

[Joe]

wow interesting replies! thats cool theyre about 2-3 cm i was expecting them to me 1 cm lol. let us know if anyone finds them! you guys that live in florida are pretty lucky. doesnt florida have about 6 species of mantis? i heard that somewhere but i'm not sure.

Joe

 

[francisco]

Hello All

I got a couple of nymphs from a friend in Florida, a few months back.

Both of them were adults, they were both males, I was hoping for females so I did not get any ooth.

they are really fast and nervous mantids.

I fed them fruit flies.

I agree with Christian, they are really fascinating and really primitive, just like Metallyticus sp. I don't know of anyone rearing them in captivity with success.

They are very small mantids similar in size as a boxer mantis.

I kept my two nymphs separated, in a 32 oz cup with some peatmoss as substrate and a few branches and moss for decoration and also as a hiding place.

the adults lived for like 2 months.

regards

FT

 

[wuwu]

did you take any pics francisco?

 

[francisco]

Hello Wuwu,

I think I did, I will look for it.

I pinned the mantis in my collection.

FT