Opinions on this aquarium for an enclosure.

[ky_mantis]

I found this little 1.1 gallon aquarium on Amazon and I had thoughts about using it for an enclosure for my first mantis. I'm looking to get maybe 3-5 Ghost Mantis. I like that it will sit flush against a wall, so I could use it on my desk and it has a built in light. I'm sure.its made of plastic so I could always drill some holes for ventilation. 

Tetra LED Half Moon Betta Aquarium, 1.1-Gallon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007GCGUUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Z2YbAb0MYVVTQ

 

[PrayingMantisPets]

hm it looks kind of compact. also theres a open hole on the front lid.

 

[ky_mantis]

hm it looks kind of compact. also theres a open hole on the front lid.

I could but screen over the hole. They also have larger models at 2.5 gallon.

 

[Connor]

You would have to put some netting on the top... that wouldn’t house any more than 1 adult ghost

 

[PrayingMantisPets]

yea its kind of small for 5

 

[PaxALotl]

I am interested in this because I have a bunch of small, unused aquariums around and I'd like to use one of them for a mantis enclosure. 

For example, I have a 2.5 gallon that is exactly like this: http://a.co/1w0p1jx and it seems like it would be pretty easy to modify it for mantis use. That plastic top could be fitted with some mesh to cover the holes, or possibly replaced entirely. It does have a little LED built into the bottom of it which is nice, though! 

I saw on another thread where someone used the top of a mason jar to create a little port so that you could easily get access through the lid, which seems easy to do. My hope is to buy some ghost nymphs and eventually have one grow to maturity, or maybe split the tank (or setup another) so I can have a male and a female, then try my hand at breeding. 

Anyways, I am mostly looking at how to best modify the lid to make it mantis-secure and safe. Any suggestions very welcome. After 20 years of building tweaking aquariums including CO2 injectors and all sorts of custom stuff, there is nothing I like more than busting out the hot glue gun or whatever else is needed to make it nice!

 

[john57]

I would replace the top with a Fiberglass windows screen. Ghost love to hang from the ceiling to capture flies and to molt but not always. Do not use a metal screen because the wires are crossed at the corners which could trap the feet. Fiberglass or shelf liner with the holes are good since the corners are molded together. This is very important specially for other species of  praying mantis like the Idolomantis Diabolica which do not have sticky feet like the Ghost but have small hooks that can get torn off from the crossed wires of a metal screen.




 






 

 

[MantisGirl13]

Tulle is cheap and makes great cage top netting as well!

- MantisGirl13

 

[PaxALotl]

Are they any examples/tips of how to best replace the top with a some kind of mesh/net? On a jar or cup, it's easy to cut a piece of mesh and use a rubber band, but what about something that looks a little nicer on an aquarium? Also, I see that the 'real' enclosures always have some convenient way to open the thing up and feed, etc. How do people do the aquarium to mantis-house conversions?

 

[Synapze]

Tulle is cheap and makes great cage top netting as well!

- MantisGirl13

Agreed! It's also practically invisible which some people might prefer in decorated enclosures. I believe it's easier for mantids to hang from tulle, especially if they have any mobility issues or even missing both tarsi. 

 

[MantisGirl13]

If the tops of enclosures already have a wide mesh on them, hot glue tulle on the inside of the lid. It is not visible, but very useful.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Covering a rectangular top with screen is easy, just hot glue fiberglass window screen & secure it in place using hot glue and 1/4" wooden dowels, this works best if there is already something to secure them to or cover over. Another method that works for irregular shapes or if there is little to secure screen/dowels to is to build a "ceiling" by hot gluing plastic cross stitch canvas cut to size. You can find this at craft stores or Amazon. (If you want to keep fruit flies in add a layer of fiberglass window screen)