Mantis broke part of hind - leg No longer eating - Falling A Lot

[Samanthathamantis]

Hi Everyone!

I posted a new message on the new members board but I thought I should start a new post. I am worried about my Mantis. We have had her a little over a month. Shegave us an egg sack and was doing great until recently one of her hind legs broke and nows she is not able to move around much, keeps falling, and is not eating the crickets and spiders we put in for her. She basically looks like she's on her way out. She just lays on her back a lot but when I pick her up she is responsive and likes to be on my hand. But when I place her back in her cage she can't balance herself and falls on her back and then just lays there until I help her again. I placed a winged fly for her and she seemed interested but the poor thing can't get to it. If anyone has any advice for me in how to help her live longer, please let us know by posting. I know Mantises don't live more than 3 seasons in the wild but I was hoping it would be different in captivity. Any thoughts? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Mantis Mom

 

[lunarstorm]

Hi Mantis Mom,

I'm sorry to hear that it sounds like your mantis's final days. But there's a silver lining in that she's fortunate to reach old age (many wild mantids don't) and that's super cool to leave an ootheca (egg sack).

Regarding tending to her: have you tried hand feeding her? If you put a fly in some tweezers and slowly wiggled it near her face, that could help. An occasional drop of honey on the end of a toothpick can also be a treat but not really sustenance. Once my mantids cannot hunt (for whatever reason), I just try to keep them warm and hydrated (more frequent mistings with warm distilled water) during their final hours.

 

[Psychobunny]

I agree.

At this point, there is really nothing you can do except just make her comfortible until

she dies.

When one of my mantids get sick or injured, I hand feed them smashed cricket guts

on a toothpick.

Put it up to their mouth so they dont need to move their arms.

As long as they eat it, I will continue with the feeding until they stop and/or die.

 

[Samanthathamantis]

Thank you everyone for the advice. I didn't think to feed her with a toothpick since I thought they only eat food that is still alive, but I will certainly try that. Last night, she did eat the winged fly we put in for her so she still has some strength to her I suppose. Today she is just lying on the ground but she always wants to come up when I put my hand out to her. Any idea how long she might last?

 

[Samanthathamantis]

Also wanted to ask if anyone knows if ants might be a good item to feed my mantis.

 

[lunarstorm]

Pictures might help us better guesstimate her remaining life but based on your descriptions I'd guess a week. If she ate a fly that's a good sign, typically my adult mantids will refuse all food during their final hours. And you're right, mantis food does generally need to be alive, I only rarely use a toothpick with a drop of honey but they do seem to all enjoy it, young and old.

I don't feed ants to my mantids as they can bite (crickets and ants can be dangerous to an ailing or freshly molted mantis). Mantids tend to prefer flying food, moths, flies, etc., check out the Food and Feeding section of this board for more info. Here are a few good sources for flies should you find yourself incubating the ootheca and raising young nymphs.

http://www.mantisplace.com - Rebecca is a frequent forum user and offers just about everything a mantis-keeper could want (mantids, supplies, etc.)

http://www.mantispets.com - Carey with GreenOasis also posts to these boards occasionally and is very helpful.

http://www.southeasternfruitflies.com/ - several members recommend their fruitfly cultures.

Of course, there are lots of reviews in the Classified section to help you decide.

 

[Psychobunny]

Thank you everyone for the advice. I didn't think to feed her with a toothpick since I thought they only eat food that is still alive, but I will certainly try that. Last night, she did eat the winged fly we put in for her so she still has some strength to her I suppose. Today she is just lying on the ground but she always wants to come up when I put my hand out to her. Any idea how long she might last?

Yes, they will eat it but you have to literaly stick it on her mouthparts so she knows it's food.

Then she will continue eating it.

It could take a few tries and a bit of patience

 

[Samanthathamantis]

Well, I think Samantha is pretty much dead now. We had an overnight trip last night and when we returned home today she looked frozen solid. I tried misting her with warm water which had helped her before but this time she just twitched her legs and had no desire to move. She fell on her back and made no effort to get up when I tried to help her so I left her alone. She still moves but only if I touch her with a leaf. I assume she is not going to get up again. How long does the process of death take? Will she continue to twitch and move? Should I put her in the freezer? Well, this experience with Samantha has definitely made me want to have other mantises as pets. They are truly amazing creatures.

 

[lunarstorm]

Sorry to hear of Samantha's ailing, that is always hard. I don't think anyone can tell you when to put her into the freezer, euthanasia is your decision. I've used the freezer when a mantis is severely injured but if it's of old age like yours, I usually just let time run its course. However she passes, you've provided a nice life for her away from foul weather, predators, and the various other hazards.

I hope you try to hatch her ootheca. Ooths from wild-caught adults are very possibly fertile, so if tended to properly, you'd be able to witness a full life-cycle and always have the option to release however many you please (a nice advantage of raising a local species).

 

[Samanthathamantis]

Yes, I plan on keeping the ootheca and expect they will be hatching in the spring when it gets warmer. I need to read up on the care and hatching some more and would love to keep one of Samantha's offspring as a pet. The rest of the hatchlings will make for great pest control in our yard come spring

 

[mantisboy]

Psychobunny is spot-on-target making cricket stew and using a toothpick. I also just snap the abdomens off the crickets, hold it in a pair tweezers and apply pressure to squeeze the contents out and into the mouth of the mantid. It can be a tedious process, I use bamboo shishka-bob spears. Most times the mantids will be a little fussy but once they taste the "goo" they start feeding. It can take 15 or 20 minutes and after 10 minutes or so my hand starts getting shaky.

If they are being really difficult there is another trick, take the "goo" and wipe it on the spears of their Coxae. Even the most finicky will eat it off their Coxae. The trick is too only use the "goo".

I know Mantises don't live more than 3 seasons in the wild but I was hoping it would be different in captivity

What species of wild mantid was Samantha? To my knowledge all wild mantids here in the United States live for only a single season whether they are in captivity or not.

 

[Psychobunny]

Psychobunny is spot-on-target making cricket stew and using a toothpick. I also just snap the abdomens off the crickets, hold it in a pair tweezers and apply pressure to squeeze the contents out and into the mouth of the mantid. It can be a tedious process, I use bamboo shishka-bob spears. Most times the mantids will be a little fussy but once they taste the "goo" they start feeding. It can take 15 or 20 minutes and after 10 minutes or so my hand starts getting shaky.

If they are being really difficult there is another trick, take the "goo" and wipe it on the spears of their Coxae. Even the most finicky will eat it off their Coxae. The trick is too only use the "goo".

What species of wild mantid was Samantha? To my knowledge all wild mantids here in the United States live for only a single season whether they are in captivity or not.

So far, I have never had one refuse to eat the guts after litterly rubbing it in their face!! LOL!!

It may take several trys before they finally realize that it's food (provided they are hungry of course).

It's is kind of gross to smash up the cricks since I remove all the legs and just smash up the abdomens

with the back of a teaspoon (yuck!!!)

The good thing about doing this is that they dont have to move. Just sit there and chew!!

I have saved a few sick mantids this way and they are now doing fine when I was so sure they would die.

 

[mantisboy]

As you can tell I have never done this procedure before....lol!