Hi, I started out with 6 ghosts, all well fed, but over the last 4 days, 2 of them have gone missing in a 20*20*30 terra. My other ghosts haven't eaten them as they don't get any fatter, I think the ones responsible are my springtails. Is this possible? I mean they are so tiny, would they ever attack a living creature? And by disappearing, I really mean disappearing, there is not a single thing left of them. It's like they never even walked around there...
Mantids disapearing
- Thread starter SpaceWolf
- Start date
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Springtails only eat stuff like mold, fungi, decaying matter and poop. They certainly didn't attack them.
What stage are the ghosts in? 20x20x30 for 6 is quite cramped in later stages. Even if you didn't notice changes in abdomen size, cannibalism sounds like the most likely cause here. You should take a close look at the ground whether there might be any bits of legs or such left over.
What stage are the ghosts in? 20x20x30 for 6 is quite cramped in later stages. Even if you didn't notice changes in abdomen size, cannibalism sounds like the most likely cause here. You should take a close look at the ground whether there might be any bits of legs or such left over.
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I would say it was cannibalism then... I would check under all the plants and decor though atom make sure they aren't stuck or just hiding.
Well then, after 5!!! days, 1 of them came out from under moss that was behind an orchid. I have literally no clue as to how she got behind that since there is like a 0.3cm opening and they are already pretty big L6. What a relief, but also a shock when I saw her crawling out from under the orchid. Still 1 is missing, but I gotta chose to either destroy the terra to find her (I don't even know if she's alive) or letting life go its way in my little nature box..
I was thinking they would be in all the nooks and crannies... I'd figure the other one did the same thing.
Yeah but I checked like my entire terrarium for any possible place for them to be hidden in. I swear the hole I saw is so tiny, I couldn't even fit my pinky in there. I still don't get how they could have gotten in there. Anyway, I'm glad I got at least one back, maybe the 2nd comes out also, I doubt it, because she was in for a molt, but let's hope so.
MajorManny
Well-known member
Huh, I wasn't aware one could safely keep mantises in communal enclosures past L3. I know ghosts are more docile, though. And I'm not at all a professional.
Hope you find them all!
Hope you find them all!
Deroplatys shouldn't be kept in groups, they become quite aggressive as they grow bigger. However, there are a lot more mantids that can be kept communally. A few genera from the top of my head are Heterochaeta, Sibylla, Metallyticus, Haania, Phyllothelys, Hestiasula, Orthodera, etc.
There are many mantids that do well in groups, it's just that the most common species in the pet trade, except ghosts, are more on the big and/or aggressive side.
