shaneckc
Active member
Up until last week, I've never taken much interest in any sort of insect. For the most part, I really wanted nothing to do with them, hahah!
Well, last week at work, I found the smallest praying mantis I've ever seen crawling atop my toolbox. I coaxed it onto my finger and let it crawl around for a bit, intrigued by its miniature size. I had never realized how small these things start off!
I'm always curious to learn about new things, so I started doing a little research while my new friend hung out next to me in a small petri dish. After a little bit of reading, I knew that this mantis and I would be very good friends because I HATE spiders, and mantids EAT spiders. It's like a match made in heaven :clap: . I fed it a small ant that I killed in the process of putting it into the petri dish, and it must have been hungry because it ate the ant right up. I later learned that ants aren't the best food for mantids, so I'm relieved that it's doing okay since then. I took it home in a small container.
The next day, after doing quite a bit of research on these forums, I decided to build him a small habitat. Inspired by spongeworld, I think this is suitable for such a small Mantis. I will eventually put a screen type material across the ceiling, and more for climbing obstacles along the sides, for when the mantis gets larger. I plan on changing the flooring material regularly, and any recommendations for what to use would be greatly appreciated. Right now, the flooring is just a foam sponge material from the dollar store. I got a 10 pack of these sponges too make replacing the floor easier for now, to avoid mold and other less sanitary conditions. I've been moistening the sponges with warm water daily to help keep the temperature and humidity up.
I think it is a male Stagmomantis Limbata L1, based on what I've read on the caresheets and compared to on several other members pictures of different mantids. It's very possible that it could still be a female, since it is so small, but I'm pretty sure I can count more than six segments on his underbelly. So for now, I'm calling him Geoffrey
. He seems to like to crawl around on my fingers and most of the time in his habitat, he just hangs out upside down. Yesterday was the first day he actually started to explore the habitat a little.
Click for video:
I have been feeding him small aphids from a plant outside my house. He typically eats them enthusiastically as soon as he see's them move, so I'm assuming he likes them. After the ant I gave him on the first day, he didn't eat until 2 days later when he gobbled down 3 aphids. He ate 2 or 3 aphids the following day (yesterday) and today he has eaten 2 aphids, as well. I've been taking him out of a his habitat and placing him in a small plastic dish for feeding time. I figured it was easier for him to find his prey while he is this small. Is this recommended? I could see this feeding method potentially interfering with Geoffrey's molting schedule, but I'm not sure.
Click for Video:
I'm very excited to watch him grow and molt, but I'm not exactly sure when to expect this to happen. I've read to look for signs of reduced appetite and hanging upside down all day, but I'm not sure what else to look for.
Any tips on how to make Geoffrey a happier mantis and help him develop are greatly appreciated!
Well, last week at work, I found the smallest praying mantis I've ever seen crawling atop my toolbox. I coaxed it onto my finger and let it crawl around for a bit, intrigued by its miniature size. I had never realized how small these things start off!
I'm always curious to learn about new things, so I started doing a little research while my new friend hung out next to me in a small petri dish. After a little bit of reading, I knew that this mantis and I would be very good friends because I HATE spiders, and mantids EAT spiders. It's like a match made in heaven :clap: . I fed it a small ant that I killed in the process of putting it into the petri dish, and it must have been hungry because it ate the ant right up. I later learned that ants aren't the best food for mantids, so I'm relieved that it's doing okay since then. I took it home in a small container.
The next day, after doing quite a bit of research on these forums, I decided to build him a small habitat. Inspired by spongeworld, I think this is suitable for such a small Mantis. I will eventually put a screen type material across the ceiling, and more for climbing obstacles along the sides, for when the mantis gets larger. I plan on changing the flooring material regularly, and any recommendations for what to use would be greatly appreciated. Right now, the flooring is just a foam sponge material from the dollar store. I got a 10 pack of these sponges too make replacing the floor easier for now, to avoid mold and other less sanitary conditions. I've been moistening the sponges with warm water daily to help keep the temperature and humidity up.
I think it is a male Stagmomantis Limbata L1, based on what I've read on the caresheets and compared to on several other members pictures of different mantids. It's very possible that it could still be a female, since it is so small, but I'm pretty sure I can count more than six segments on his underbelly. So for now, I'm calling him Geoffrey
. He seems to like to crawl around on my fingers and most of the time in his habitat, he just hangs out upside down. Yesterday was the first day he actually started to explore the habitat a little.Click for video:
I have been feeding him small aphids from a plant outside my house. He typically eats them enthusiastically as soon as he see's them move, so I'm assuming he likes them. After the ant I gave him on the first day, he didn't eat until 2 days later when he gobbled down 3 aphids. He ate 2 or 3 aphids the following day (yesterday) and today he has eaten 2 aphids, as well. I've been taking him out of a his habitat and placing him in a small plastic dish for feeding time. I figured it was easier for him to find his prey while he is this small. Is this recommended? I could see this feeding method potentially interfering with Geoffrey's molting schedule, but I'm not sure.
Click for Video:
I'm very excited to watch him grow and molt, but I'm not exactly sure when to expect this to happen. I've read to look for signs of reduced appetite and hanging upside down all day, but I'm not sure what else to look for.
Any tips on how to make Geoffrey a happier mantis and help him develop are greatly appreciated!
