New Orchid Mantis Owner!

[x0jennalee0x]

I'm getting my first Orchid Mantises! Would really appreciate any tips and advice on raising them. Thanks guys!

 

[MantisGirl13]

Have you kept any other mantids before? These are not necessarily a beginner species. How many are you getting? What instar are they?

Orchids are one of my favorites when it comes to looks.

- MantisGirl13

 

[x0jennalee0x]

Have you kept any other mantids before? These are not necessarily a beginner species. How many are you getting? What instar are they?

Orchids are one of my favorites when it comes to looks.

- MantisGirl13

They are currently L2. I have ghost, European, and giant Asian mantises! I know they aren't really a beginner species, so that's why I'll take all the tips and advice I can. I've defintely been reading care sheets, including the one on here.

 

[MantisGirl13]

Ok, good to know that you are doing your research. They can be kept at room temp or warmer in deli cups with twice daily misting. Feed every other day, increasing the time between feedings as they mature. 

- MantisGirl13

 

[x0jennalee0x]

Ok, good to know that you are doing your research. They can be kept at room temp or warmer in deli cups with twice daily misting. Feed every other day, increasing the time between feedings as they mature. 

- MantisGirl13

I actually do my research first and then decide if I want to get that species! I've been reading quite a bit.

Thanks for the tips! 

 

[MantisGirl13]

I actually do my research first and then decide if I want to get that species! I've been reading quite a bit.

Thanks for the tips! 

Good! I do the same, but most newbies just see the beauty of the mantis, buy it, and think about care requirements later, usually resulting in an unhealthy or mismolted mantis.

Glad I can help!

- MantisGirl13

 

[River Dane]

My orchid lady was pretty chill. Never gave me any issues. I’d forget to mist her a lot, and I’m in SoCal and she was sitting in a Deli Cup by a sunny window, but she molted and lived on just fine. Obviously I do not recommend keeping your orchid the same way, but I don’t think they’re as delicate as most care guides imply. Just don’t stress too much about them.

 

[MantisGirl13]

I agree with River Dane that you shouldn't stress about them! The thing that makes them a non beginner species is their heat and humidity requirements, which are not that hard to reach.

- MantisGirl13

 

[hysteresis]

Ventilate. Ive had ZERO issues.

I have an adult female, and a sub female.

Both are thriving little pitbulls!

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Yes, ventilation is super important for orchids. Poor ventilation is usually the cause of most problems with low ambient humidity second, especially for molting issues. However, you also don't want the environment to be dripping wet all the time either which is why ventilation is so important. Maintaining high ambient humidity while having lots of ventilation can be tricky for beginners and sometimes even for experienced keepers. Best tip is to use a temperature/humidity gauge to make sure the environment stays on target. You want humidity to stay between 70% to 90% and temperature between 75° to 85°F. If you live in a particularly dry area with low humidity you may want to invest in a room humidifier instead of relying on misting several times a day, constant proper humidity is better for them than lots of ups and downs. If you live in an area that already has high humidity, like I do, you can cut down misting to once a day or even every other day. I only need to mist my orchids every other day unless I've been running the heater. It dries out the air pretty badly so I run a sonic humidifier I bought specifically for my insect room to get the humidity back up. I have temperature/humidity gauges on all my orchid's terrariums and cups. For the cups I bought gauges that have wired probes so I can place them inside the cups by cutting a small wedge out of the lid so it still closes.

I feed my nymphs and males every 2 days while I feed adult females every other day (unless they are breeding then they get fed every day.) Nymphs and adult males can eat fruit flies or house flies while adult females eat blue bottle flies, roaches or other larger prey.

 

[hysteresis]

People confuse wetness and humidity.

They're not the same.

 

[Predatorhousepet]

People confuse wetness and humidity.

They're not the same.

Absolutely! I wish I could upvote this comment 5 more times.

Having a constantly wet environment is really bad for orchids, it makes the air inside their enclosure stagnant so you have to have really good ventilation. You want a dry environment most of the time but at the same time still have very humid air. When you mist do it lightly so any standing water droplets evaporate within a few hours, just enough to boost humidity and give them a chance to drink if thirsty. This is why also using a room humidifier is a really good option for orchids.

 

[hysteresis]

Yup. I apply this concept with all my mantises.

I use two different misters. A coarse spray to wet my cotton pads (substrate). That is where I get my humidity from. This spray doesnt touch the sides of my cup. Humidity comes from evaporation.

The fine mist is applied to the sides and foliage to provide a drink. I dont rely on that to provide humidity. It dries within an hour or two. 

And I try not to spray the mantises. Sometimes I'll give them a fluff overspray with the fine mister if im table feeding them. 

 

[Mantis Lady]

They can be kept at room temp or warmer in deli cups with twice daily misting.

They can be kept on room temperature? I thought they needed a lot of heat?

 

[hysteresis]

They can be kept on room temperature? I thought they needed a lot of heat?

Ive seen some folk say they keep theirs at room temps. I keep mine 76-78°F.

 

[x0jennalee0x]

Yes, ventilation is super important for orchids. Poor ventilation is usually the cause of most problems with low ambient humidity second, especially for molting issues. However, you also don't want the environment to be dripping wet all the time either which is why ventilation is so important. Maintaining high ambient humidity while having lots of ventilation can be tricky for beginners and sometimes even for experienced keepers. Best tip is to use a temperature/humidity gauge to make sure the environment stays on target. You want humidity to stay between 70% to 90% and temperature between 75° to 85°F. If you live in a particularly dry area with low humidity you may want to invest in a room humidifier instead of relying on misting several times a day, constant proper humidity is better for them than lots of ups and downs. If you live in an area that already has high humidity, like I do, you can cut down misting to once a day or even every other day. I only need to mist my orchids every other day unless I've been running the heater. It dries out the air pretty badly so I run a sonic humidifier I bought specifically for my insect room to get the humidity back up. I have temperature/humidity gauges on all my orchid's terrariums and cups. For the cups I bought gauges that have wired probes so I can place them inside the cups by cutting a small wedge out of the lid so it still closes.

I feed my nymphs and males every 2 days while I feed adult females every other day (unless they are breeding then they get fed every day.) Nymphs and adult males can eat fruit flies or house flies while adult females eat blue bottle flies, roaches or other larger prey.

Awesome! Thank you so much for the info!

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Ive seen some folk say they keep theirs at room temps. I keep mine 76-78°F.

"Room temperature" is subjective and can encompass a wide range in temperatures. One person may think 65°F is room temperature while someone else may think 85°F is. For me 76°-78°F is what I consider room temperature to be.

The main thermostat in my house is set to 78°F, which is a suitable temperature for orchids. They should be kept between 75° to 85°F (ideal is 80°F.) I do have a cord heater running under my terrariums hooked to a thermostat set at 75°F just in case the temperature dips below that. 

They can be kept on room temperature? I thought they needed a lot of heat?

If you consider 80°F (27°C) a lot of heat. Everyone has different ideas of what room temperature is so I dislike using that phrase in mantis care directions, it has too much room for error. While orchids can tolerate from 70°F up to 90°F, keeping them at the extreme ends of their temperature range over the long term can stress them out. 

@x0jennalee0x You're very welcome!  Glad I could help.

 

[hysteresis]

LoL. My blephs and gongy are at 95-100°F. That's hot.

 

[Mantis Lady]

If you consider 80°F (27°C) a lot of heat. Everyone has different ideas of what room temperature is so I dislike using that phrase in mantis care directions, it has too much room for error. While orchids can tolerate from 70°F up to 90°F, keeping them at the extreme ends of their temperature range over the long term can stress them out.

For me room temperature is (21-21,5°C  and at night cooler. And I am somtimes still feeling cold I never tried to raise an orchid because of heat.