Mantis Color

[minomantis]

So I've read many posts online about mantis color and the three conclusions that I've got were humidity, environment, and genetics. I'm curious what everyone thinks and/or if you have any stories on color change with your mantids. The color part is such a fascination with me and i'm sick of having only brown chinese mantids.

 

[hierodula]

I dont know exactly. In different cases, different things have worked, ex: we have had people with green gongys by increasing humidity, and we have also had ppl report their mantis changes color over time by adding a color to their environment, and some are trying to breed similar color mantids to get mantids with all the same traits. Im just sharing what I know, hop it helps

 

[Mime454]

For me, the colors of the environment have been the biggest indicator of the final color of the mantis.

 

[Ntsees]

For me, the colors of the environment have been the biggest indicator of the final color of the mantis.

+1

 

[mantisboy]

This is a timely post, I had raised Euro nymphs this and by L3 I had a pretty good balance of green and tan ones. By L5 I had released all the males and kept 3 females, 2 green and 1 tan. At L6 both of the green ones literally changed colors from green to tan within the span of 72 hours.

 

[Crazy4mantis]

I think somtimes light levels can change colors.

 

[Saebjorn9]

Having the same issue. I'll catch brilliant green mantids outside, literally BLINDING neon green. After a couple molts in captivity that green fades to olive. Then in L6 they turn brown. While not racist against the brown ones...I'd be the first to admit green mantids are visually prettier than the brown ones.

 

[minomantis]

Having the same issue. I'll catch brilliant green mantids outside, literally BLINDING neon green. After a couple molts in captivity that green fades to olive. Then in L6 they turn brown. While not racist against the brown ones...I'd be the first to admit green mantids are visually prettier than the brown ones.

Yea, I think green or a combination of green and another color is better. Not that brown is bad, it's just boring...at least to me.

 

[minomantis]

So another female mantis molted and when she was done she was a nice rich green. I have pictures in my gallery, but she was that green for the whole day and when I woke up this morning, she completely changed color! she's now yellow and green, more yellow then green. It just blows my mind how this can happen.

 

[sinensispsyched]

I hatched a chinese ooth and released the (brown) nymphs in a garden after raising a few. I only later found one, but it was entirely green.

 

[TySAAAN]

What if someone did a test where, one enclosure green, another yellow, one blue, and another just plain and simple. They all have to be the same species and be fed the same food, to make sure its not the foods doing the changing. Wait a week and see if there was ANY color change relative to their enclosures color. I would try myself, but I don't have enough mantids ;(

 

[Paradoxica]

Back when I had some Creo. Pictipennis I put a bunch of red in one of the enclosures. After a few months it definitely had more of a reddish hue to it, although it did turn out to be my only male(not sure if that might make it redder).

 

[psyconiko]

To me the color is determined by the genes.They are not chameleons and anyway you would need more than a generation to make your mantis change its color in a new environment.

 

[TySAAAN]

Back when I had some Creo. Pictipennis I put a bunch of red in one of the enclosures. After a few months it definitely had more of a reddish hue to it, although it did turn out to be my only male(not sure if that might make it redder).

Wow, you should keep a generation or two in a neon green environment. Just imagine, neon mantids ^_^

 

[tylersterrain]

I have a hard time believing that a mantis would change its colors based on its surroundings within one generation. In other words, a mantis would not realize it's environment is green and make it's next molt more green. Generally speaking, camouflage is a trait that develops over time as the off spring with worse blending coloration are eaten by visual predators (natural selection).

This being said, I could definitely see moisture playing a small roll in color (if their is anything I would personally test, it would be that. Even a small trend over the testing of several generations would be an interesting find). However, from what I have read/researched, the mantids change color from molt to molt due to genetics (and that is all). Their genes may carry the possibility for completely brown, completely green, and a blend of the two. Not only this, but this can change from molt to molt (ensuring an even broader genetic diversity in camouflage).

My personal hypothesis behind the changing between molt to molt is that it ensures a faster adaption to its surroundings through a quickly changing trait. For example: If a drought hits an area, and the environment is brown/dead, it wouldn't take as long for the natural selection to take place, and the species would adapt faster.

If anyone has links to research or articles on mantids changing color to better fit the surroundings within one generation I would be happy to see it

 

[Danny.]

I have a S. limbata the went from being green to a complete yellowish color. Is it normal in this species?

 

[brancsikia339]

I have to say it's mainly genetics. I have 12 L2, L3 majusculas and some are neon green, some green, some olive, and some brown.

 

[yen_saw]

My experience with color experiment on Stagmomantis carolina has been that green nymphs will grow up in darker brown color with draker environment but cannot revert back to green color once it gets the brown color. Whereas green nymphs will continue to stay green till adult if kept in greenish environment. Seem like whichever condition that favor their chance of survival. Bad luck for the brown color that decided to move into 'greener pastures'.

 

[tylersterrain]

My experience with color experiment on Stagmomantis carolina has been that green nymphs will grow up in darker brown color with draker environment but cannot revert back to green color once it gets the brown color. Whereas green nymphs will continue to stay green till adult if kept in greenish environment. Seem like whichever condition that favor their chance of survival. Bad luck for the brown color that decided to move into 'greener pastures'.

Interesting, so you did see a relation between the environment and the coloration with stagmomantis carolina? How many did you raise and was the trend pretty obvious?

I'm really interested in this topic.