My mantis seems to be afraid of his food?

[ladyarcana55]

Yesterday I put in a cricket and he freaked out! He wasn't trying to take it down but he was trying to get away from it. He was scrambling so much that he fell off of the wall. I took the cricket out and put him back in his enclosure. I tried it again today and he did the same thing.

Why is he doing this? The crickets are the same size he has always taken. The last time he ate was Sunday. I figured he would be hungry now.

I tried tong feeding but he does not like it. I don't know what to do. I was originally going to go through the remaining crickets I have (6 of them) before switching over to roaches, but if this keeps up I may not have a choice but to make the switch early. Am I worrying myself needlessly? He seems spry and active. 

Thanks again everyone!

 

[River Dane]

As long as he’s not too thin, he should be fine for a while, depending on his instar.

When was the last time he molted?

 

[Mantis Lady]

It could be he is preparing for his molt. My mantis slapped the cricket away when I tried to feed her one when it was close to molting time.

 

[Mystymantis]

If mantises refuse food or try to push it away and maybe even freak out like you said, I think they might be readying for a molt like Little Mantis said above. I have had mantises seem to get upset at food in their enclosures when they are about to molt and they will strike at the prey but not in the way to eat it. Best of luck!

Hope your little mantis is doing well.

 

[ladyarcana55]

I hope that's what it is, but I would be surprised. He only molted a couple of weeks ago, give or take, April 27th. But I have noticed that he tries to scramble to higher ground when he can. My husband likes to handle him and lately he's been very active trying to get to his shoulder. And I notice the he really likes to be upside down.

I will let you know. Thanks again everyone, I do feel so much better!

 

[MantisGirl13]

He is probably just getting ready to molt. You should just leave him alone in his cage and mist him daily. Hope he molts well!

- MantisGirl13

 

[Predatorhousepet]

What species and instar is your mantis? I have had some mantises molt at less than 2 weeks following a previous molt. This is more common the younger they are. How often do you usually feed your mantis? The more you feed them the faster they go thru their molts. You only really need to feed him when his abdomen becomes thin, then you can give him food until his abdomen becomes plump again. If his abdomen is still plump even though he hasn't eaten in almost a week that is a pretty big sign he is about to molt. If this is the case then yes you need to stop handling him until at least 24 hrs after he completes his molt. You should also increase misting his enclosure up to twice a day to increase the humidity which will help him molt successfully.

 

[ladyarcana55]

What species and instar is your mantis? I believe we figured out that he is a Bordered Mantis (Stagmomantis limbata). As for his instar, I don't know but I am guessing he is at least L4. My friend who gave him to me didn't keep track of how often his mantids molt.

How often do you usually feed your mantis? When I first got him, my friend told me to just keep feeding him and I would feed him pretty much every day. After he molted he would only take food every three or four days. It's hard for me to tell when his abdomen is plump because to me, it always looks thin, but then he does not eat. I think part of it too is the fact that he had a mis-molt and I am having a tough time seeing his abdomen.

My friend also told me to keep misting his enclosure and to make sure I spray him with water to help his molt, so I have been doing that. So far he seems pretty peaceful, just relaxing on the roof of his enclosure.

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Feeding him every 2 or 3 days is fine they do not need to be fed everyday. Overfeeding leads to them going thru molts faster effectively shortening lifespan. After he molts be sure to wait at least 24 hours before trying to handle or feed him. Feeding too soon can cause something called "droop butt" which isn't reallly harmful it just isn't aesthetically pleasing. 

When you mist the enclosure dont spray the mantis directly with water, they don't really appreciate it, just spray the walls and substrate. You want to increase humidity to help him molt, you don't need to get him wet.

Hanging upside down from the top or side of the enclosure is pretty much what most mantises do about 90% of the time, it's completely normal behavior.

Can you post a picture that shows his abdomen?

 

[ladyarcana55]

I have the feeling he doesn't like it. When I do spray him, and I make sure to do it lightly, he scurries away from me. I swear if he could, he'd probably shake a fist at me. It's kind of funny.

But here's the picture. But I just noticed that the tip curls strangely. Is that supposed to happen or is that a part of his mis-molt?

 

[River Dane]

if those are wings, he’s an adult, and will not molt again. He’s probably searching for a mate.

If that’s excess exoskeleton, then it might be molting issues.

EDIT: is it possible for him to be adult already? I didn’t think limbatas matured this early in the year? Did your friend find him as a nymph, or did he hatch the ooth him/herself? He might’ve skipped diapause.

 

[ladyarcana55]

From what I understand, my friend found the ooth and hatched it. He pretty much raised them until they started eating crickets then he started to give them away. I don't know if that tells you anything.

What confuses me about it all is that he's been keeping mantids for a long time but he knows so little about them! He figured Bruno was male because he looked so long and skinny. I didn't think he was right, but whatever his logic was it worked.

Skipped a diapause? What is that? He could very well be an adult but I have no idea how to tell.

 

[River Dane]

It is possible he is an adult. I’m fairly sure those are his wings, and his body looks like an adult’s.

The males are generally skinnier and proportionately longer, but before the later instars, you can’t really tell with some species based on this alone. If you’re friend sexed him based on this, he may be fully grown.

If those are his wings, than he is an adult. My male limbata was approx 7.5cm at adulthood, give or take.

Diapause is when an ooth haults development of eggs during winter. When temperatures warm up, the eggs begin to develop, and the nymphs hatch a couple months later. A majority of species go through diapause in winter, including this one, although it isn’t necessary in domesticated ooths. In the wild, it prevents mantids from freezing to death and lacking sufficient food.

 

[ladyarcana55]

No, my friend sexed him before he molted I am guessing he was just lucky.

And I am not sure he had a diapause. I'm in Southern California and the lowest it's been during the day is low 60's while the evening lows are usually in the mid 50's. How does skipping a diapause effect a mantis?

 

[Predatorhousepet]

I agree, he looks like an adult male. You said he mis-molted...was that his last molt and what happened?

A male's abdomen (the back part sticking out of the wings on yours) is long and thin, when it starts to look flattened that means he needs to eat. Don't worry if he goes a few days without eating, male adults sometimes don't eat much. 

Since he is an adult and won't molt again you can cut down misting to two or three times a week. Maintaining high humidity is less important now, misting is mainly so he can drink water.

 

[ladyarcana55]

His last Molt was April 26. When my husband and I were going to bed, we noticed he had slipped and had gotten caught in the small branch I put in his enclosure to climb on. We assumed that he would be able to climb out on his own because he didn't look like he was trapped. When we woke up he had molted. I freaked out and that's where my last post had come from.

His legs are fine and he is moving but there is a slight angle to his thorax that you can't see in the photo. His wings also look like they got crumpled up.

I kind of feel bad now. I thought he would molt one more time and it would fix things. When he was given to me my friend said he was still really young. But then, he likes to leave a lot of food in the enclosure with his mantids so I am guessing he over feeds them. But this is my first mantis and I know I have a lot to learn. But I love it and I can't wait for the next one.

Thanks everyone for being so patient with me!

 

[MantisGirl13]

He is definitely adult. If he can catch his prey and eat ok, then he should be fine. I hope that he is ok!

- MantisGirl13

 

[Mantis Lady]

I am wondering if he is eating again and if his misformed wings isn't bothering him.

 

[Predatorhousepet]

As you concluded, your mantis might be young chronologically but he went thru all his instars at an accelerated rate due to overfeeding, making him an adult prematurely.

Unfortunately not everyone bothers to research how to care for their pets properly even though they have the entirety of human knowledge at their fingertips just sitting in their pocket. On the other hand, there is also a lot of bad information being put out there so it's great you are asking questions and fact checking the information your friend gave you. This forum is an excellent resource for both new and experienced mantis owners. I'm happy to answer any questions you have, you are excited to learn and that is a wonderful thing.